Susan Evelyn Illman was installed as the new Master of the Worshipful Company of Paviors at a ceremony held in St Martinwithin-Ludgate on Wednesday 5 March 2019. Sue is the first ever female Master of the Company.
Whilst Sue is a Londoner by birth, she grew up in Buckinghamshire, but has always had a love of the City, its buildings, spaces, its urban ‘buzz’ and traditions. Initially working in accountancy in London, Sue moved to Gloucestershire in her mid 20’s to retrain as a Landscape Architect, studying for a degree and post graduate diploma.
Having freelanced in various parts of the country, and then worked in South Africa, Sue returned to the UK, where she eventually set up her own practice, but was soon joined by Yvonne Young to form a very happy and productive partnership that lasted until Yvonne’s retirement.
Sue very much enjoys the variety and challenges that landscape architectures brings, ranging from historic landscape conservation (in which she has a post-graduate Diploma from the Architectural Association), to major infrastructure projects such as power stations, and her work in integrated water management, for which she is perhaps, best known. Having set up a research project in conjunction with the University of Gloucestershire into Sustainable Drainage over 11 years ago, Sue has become a respected practitioner, lecturer and trainer in water management and SuDS (‘sustainable drainage systems’), and was a co-author of the Construction Industry Research and Information Association SuDS Manual, and lead author of the new SuDS Construction Guidance published in November last year.
Sue has long been in involved with the Landscape Institute, sitting on a wide range of committees for many years, before becoming a Board member, Honorary Secretary and then President from 2012-14. During that time she continued to promote integrated water management, sustainability through landscape, and particularly to promote inter-professional collaboration and advice to government on water matters. In recognition of these efforts she has been made an Honorary Fellow of the Society for the Environment and the University of Gloucestershire. She continues this inter-professional role for the Construction Industry Council as their Champion for Flood Mitigation and Resilience.
Sue lives in Cheltenham, with her husband Maurice, and two daughters Connah and Jade, spending her free time wrestling to progress her ’20-year plan’ to renovate her three-quarter acre garden, when not horse-riding or walking in the Cotswolds.
Sue’s Master’s Charity for the year is Alzheimer’s Research UK and her Master’s Challenge is the Moonwalk London for breast cancer.