A celebration of life

________________________________________________
Family

I didn’t really get to know him however until the final term of the second year when we became friends. Gren won a scholarship to study the kibbutz system in Israel over the summer. That was when I discovered his romantic nature, his propensity for ideas and his ability to turn them into action. On my 21st birthday, whilst he was still in Israel, a raw 20year old, he arranged through his sister, Sylvia to send me 21 red roses. Out of the blue, they arrived on my doorstep, delivered by Interflora.

Throughout our life together, he continued to create and provide romantic gestures, giving me a pebble from a beach when we holidayed in Greece on my 65th birthday. He had inscribed it “65 Anny, still young and beautiful after all these years”. I’ve still got it.
Later, when I was 70 he booked a family weekend in the Cotswolds to celebrate Becky’s 50th, Rory’s 40th and my joint birthdays (all within 2 weeks of each other). It included a 3 tier cake, one tier for each of us decorated with our names and ages. This was transported with the rest of our luggage in the car without my knowledge.

It was followed later by a second celebration – a meal at a restaurant local to Bishop’s Castle with 8close friends, 4 of whom had travelled long distance requiring an overnight stay. It was a total secret. I believed we were going out for a quiet, romantic meal just the two of us and even telephoned one of the friends in the afternoon to tell her that. She was actually en route to the venue when I phoned but maintained the secret.

His romanticism also underlined his devotion to Forest and trainspotting. The former I could share, having been a lifelong follower of football myself but the latter was different. Whilst, in the early years, I would share day trips to nice locations in the summer and read my book, I drew the line in later years when he would take a weekend coach trip, leaving after work on Friday evening to Sunday evening, sleeping overnight on the coach and stopping at public toilets for a wash and brush-up. He was very disappointed when I refused to go with him.

These are just a few recollections of Gren’s irrepressible romanticism and his love of things and people close to him. Rory, Corin and I have been astounded by all the memories that you and myriad others have sent in. They repeatedly reference his dynamism; ideas; staying power; humility; leadership; charm; intelligence; consummate professionalism; his motivational qualities; commitment to causes that he believed in and his ability to get things done, whether at work, in politics or merely enabling people to achieve their full potential.

Einir Burrowes who worked with Gren in the early2000’s refers to an occasion when she was asked by Gren to precis a 5,000 word paper that she had painstakingly prepared, down to 500 words. He then asked her to summarise it in 50 words. She says “whilst this was a painful experience at the time, I discovered that doing so helped me to get to the kernel of the case.” She goes on to say that it taught her lessons for which she was forever grateful and describes Gren as “a great role model and mentor”

Today we are celebrating his life.

Unfortunately, as Shirley Drury, Director and latterly Chair of ELWa ( the Education and Learning for Wales public body for which Gren worked in the early 2000’s ) says “his wonderful qualities are lost to the world much too soon”

________________________________________________

As his son, I obviously knew him closest as my dad, and as a granddad to Leila and Seth. So, I’m not going to share memories of his working life or involvement with the community, you’ve done more than a good enough job of that!

I feel very fortunate that I was able to have a number of conversations with Dad over the course of his final few days with us. This included many hours chatting about his life. I guess when you know the end is coming you get pretty reflective, and he wanted to share with me why he thought he was like he was; good and bad.

Many of the memories we’ve received talk about him being a “good man”. From what Dad and I talked about, this started early in his childhood, when his mum and dad pushed him and Sylvia to be different from the other kids on the street; Dad suggested that Boris may say they were “levelling out”. At part of this, they encouraged him to be independent and to follow his passions, which as most of you know were birds (of the feathered kind), trains, and Forest. This independence and a passionate belief that people shouldn’t be limited or held back by the cards they are dealt, not only led him to his political views, but also drove him throughout his career and during his later life in the community. It was also the founding values that drove much of the way he raised me.

In the short time that I have, I want to share just a couple of memories that I hope sum him up for me, and why to me he was more than “good”; he was “great”. These are only small things, but sometimes it’s the smallest things that make the biggest impact.

Whilst dad’s passion for birds was less dominating as I grew up, his passion for Forest continued and also extended to my football. From the age of 6, Dad would take me and normally at least one friend to play football for Montgomery. Despite his best efforts, we weren’t able to convert any of them to support Forest though. Many of my school friends, some of whom I haven’t spoken to for 20 years, have messaged me over the last few weeks sharing their memories of this and how he was responsible for introducing them, and nearly every young boy in Bishops Castle, to football.

His passion for trains continued. I have many memories of being dragged around an engine shed, but mostly I remember wondering why my dad was dressed in a suit and driving a BMW, when all the other men looked so different!

His passion for work and the affection that his colleagues held him in also transcended into my life. One such example is when I was returning from my time at Arizona State Uni. Shortly before landing at Heathrow, the captain announced that I needed to come to the cockpit once we’d touched down. Worrying that something terrible had happened, I was escorted to the front of the plane only to find the pilot and co-pilot laughing hysterically. His PA had managed to get a message to the cockpit to say he was running 20 minutes late! I was embarrassed, but in the main I couldn’t have been prouder that she was so committed to my dad that she’d had BA send an emergency fax to the plane!

There are numerous other memories I’d love to share, but I just don’t have time. So I’d like to finish before handing over to Corin, by saying thank you to dad! Thank you for being so supportive of me, even when you didn’t always agree with what I was doing, thank you for pushing me to be a better person, and thank you for being such a loving grandad to Leila and Seth!

________________________________________________

In that jest… I’m going to tell you about a couple of memories which signify who my dad was to me.

As we all know, my dad has a passion for education and careers. Throughout my life, my dad, through various methods, always pushed me to over achieve. I recall a time when I was at university, where he remarked that ‘you better geta job, because you’re not coming home after Uni’…he wasn’t joking!

A year or so later, after him providing some ‘coaching’ about what was best for me, I found myself applying for sandwich year work experience placements as part of my undergrad degree. The first application that I managed to get to final interview stage, was for Philips (the Dutch company who make toothbrushes and shavers). They were and still are I believe, based in Guildford in Surrey.

So true to his word and desire for me never to return home, he decided he would pick me up from my uni halls in Manchester and drive me down to Surrey. The 5 hour journey down resulted in becoming along pep talk, followed by a 5 hour debrief and reflective session on the journey home. I realised later in life, that this was his way of showing he cared. Needless to say, I got the job.

In more recent years, me and my dad have found solace in his support of my business endeavours. Dads left-wing, socialist, risk averse outlook on life have provided me with a wonderful soundboard to stress-test my capitalistic, high risk business decisions against. And although these discussions were occasionally heated, he always helped me see the other side of the coin and has on a few occasions (although I would never admit this to him), turned certain failure into a win.
My dad was to me, a man who guided me to a better education, degree marks I probably didn’t deserve and jobs I wasn’t qualified for.

Thank you for always pushing me, even when I kicked and screamed.

As I move forward in life with my business and career endeavours, I know I will feel lost without you but since your passing, I have already found myself asking myself ‘what would Dad do?’.

________________________________________________

Becky, Rab, Ella, Lola

Becky
How will I remember Gren? His extensive train collection, his incredible work ethic, his passion for Forest and his hatred of Ketchup! His love of music, snappy clothes, and at a certain, slightly inebriated sixtieth birthday party, I discovered we shared a love of dancing.

On a more serious note, Gren’s most generous act towards me, was supporting myself and Anne-Marie re-establishing and continuing our relationship over the last twenty two years. For this I am forever in his debt.

Rab
My thoughts turned to Gren last Tuesday when the Mighty Reds lined up against Forest. The Mighty Reds went 1-0 up just before half time, neutral observers may well have said somewhat fortuitously. Thoroughly deserved I thought. Although Forest huffed and puffed as the 90 minutes were up it looked like a 1-0 City win. Then in the space of one injury time minute journeyman old pro Lyle Taylor scored twice for Forest, cue delirium among the Forest ranks. I half expected Taylor to rip off his shirt to reveal ‘THAT WAS FOR GREN’ on his chest.

Gren, I feel I must come clean. City were lucky to lose by only one goal, we were totally outplayed, FOREST WERE THE BETTER TEAM.

Ella
When I was applying to University Gren offered to drive me to Cardiff and show me around the city and the university. This was a very touching, generous offer which I felt incredibly grateful for.

Lola
I remember when Gren and Granny Annie would play cards with me when I was little so I could stay up late. I had a lot of fun playing Sweaty Betty with him!

________________________________________________

Sylvia
– Gren’s sister

Grenville and I grew up with a mum and dad who always wanted the best for us and for us “to do well for ourselves”. Grenville achieved above and beyond their expectations and they would have been so proud of him and his OBE as I am.

When I was married he was adamant he would not wear a morning suit , he was 17, but he did and felt so good in it he wore it into Nottingham that night but not to watch Forest!

Maybe his incisive mind is demonstrated when in one of our” discussions”, we never agreed, I said “but it’s common sense”; he replied, “what’s that? define common sense”. I shall always remember that, as I will you.

________________________________________________

Anita Masters
– Gren’s niece

I have very fond memories of Grenville, not least going to stay at 5 Salop Street. Such a great house with lots of happy times for me.

I can also clearly recall going on several holidays with The Jackson Family. The first was the canal boat trip. We all wanted to steer the boat and do the locks until the torrential rain came for the whole day. Suddenly it became Grenville’s turn and he had to stand out in the rain all day, while we played cards in the warm and dry!The other great holiday adventure was in France. Rory and I were playing on the river on our air beds. It was a great idea until the current seemed to take us into the middle of the river and extremely fast downstream. As we couldn’t get over to the riverbank, Grenville had to run as fast as he could along the river bank until we could reach it and clamber out!

I know Grenville achieved so much in his lifetime for which everyone was immensely proud especially Grandma Jackson and Mum.

________________________________________________

Gareth Thomas
– Gren’s nephew

Grenville was my uncle, I’ll always have fond memories of him. I’ll never forget going to visit him at Oxford college, I was only a toddler and I remember going into his garden and seeing a fork so thought I’d do some digging. I ended up putting the fork straight through my foot, ending up in hospital. After I had been to hospital and having it removed and put into plaster, Grenville then took us all punting on the Isis.

I also have great memories of going on a canal holiday with Grenville,Anne Marie and Rory and our grandma on the Shropshire union canal. I was so lucky to have you as my uncle and very proud of an uncle who had a much deserved OBE. 

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

Gareth Winstanley
– Gren’s nephew, long since resident in Australia

After my father died, as a 13 year old boy I visited Bishops castle on a number of occasions. Uncle Gren was at this time one of my few male influences.

So It’s the Late 80’s, Rory is younger than me, so that means I get to sit in  the front seat!

I can’t recall the exact model of the car, as I was too young, what I do know is today they are affectionately referred to as “the hot hatch!”

I distinctly remember holding my breath as he sped through the lanes close to the stone bridges at what felt like Silverstone speeds. These were Amazing memories for us boys.

Gren showed me first hand how he played with his boys, how he gave his love as a dad. It’s now only in recent years, as a father of two boys myself, that I have come to realise how he showed me how to Behave as a father and a man.

He was a great empathy, and a great man.

________________________________________________
Friends

________________________________________________

In particular I will always remember the ‘haunted’ house in Bishops Castle, with the old creaky wooden floor, tiny steep wooden stairs and the ghost in the hallway!

During our visits we went on lots of family walks and day trips together.

________________________________________________

In later years our own children had grown particularly fond of Gren – especially our little George with their shared love of trains. In fact Gren, knowing he wasn’t well, decided to give some of his precious Hornby train set to George. Our little boy treats these trains like royalty and we both think, thanks to Gren, that George will grow up with a treasured interest and lifelong enjoyment of these machines. When I emailed Gren to thank him his exact words were ‘Love the close up picture of a smiling and proud George’. 

You both were also at our wedding in Scotland and that is the one of the pictures I include; it speaks volumes of his love for life and the fact that he and Mum are dancing with Dad in the background is priceless. True friendship.

________________________________________________

Stephen Smith
– a school friend who has lived in Germany since the 1970’s but returns to watch Forest and meet up

I was shocked and saddened to hear that Gren had passed away because I was not really aware of the seriousness of his condition. We had been in regular contact and I last heard from him only a few weeks ago. Gren was always his optimistic self – an essential attribute for a committed Forest supporter – and during the past year conveyed the impression that he was doing well and responding to treatment. Consequently, I was taken aback when he said that he had had a relapse but in no way did I expect the situation to deteriorate so rapidly. Especially in view of the complications caused by the pandemic it must have been incredibly difficult to cope during the last 18 months.

Gren and I came from similar backgrounds and became friends in the mid-60s through our common interests. After leaving school our paths diverged but we always kept in touch. At one time I even worked in the same department as his dad at Players. During the last few years the contact had been more intensive through the convenience of modern technology and I shall deeply miss our get-togethers in West Bridgford. His loss will leave a substantial void in my life.

________________________________________________

Gren and Anne-Marie had drive, enthusiasm, an unshakeable Socialist ethic, a love of music and of design in all its forms. Add to this a shared interest in industrial archaeology and transport history, (in Gren’s case a lifelong obsession(!) with railways), which I too had shared until the scrapping of steam, and an unshakeable friendship was formed.

Gren and Anne-Marie moved to Skelmersdale and we up the road in Preston. We continued to see each other frequently, and I have vivid memories of their elegant Cheery wood furniture, perfectly tended houseplants, and their trendy Alfa-Sud, which much to Gren’s displeasure I referred to as the rot box which sounded like a souped-up lawn mower!

Canal holidays…ahh, those were the days. This was bonding on an altogether new level.
Together with our friend Callum, also from Lanarkshire days, and his wife Eleanor, we spent summers in themid and late 70’s cruising the waterways, sampling copious pints, colliding with banks, bridges and occasionally other boats; (always their fault), despite shrieks of “bows orff” from proto hooray Henry’s! We tried to ensure Gren was NOT at the tiller when cruising beside mainline railways. This was a particular problem alongside the Trent and Mersey canal. On more than one occasion Anne-Marie was forced to remonstrate with Gren in terms I will not repeat here, when culinary delights were put at risk through random steering whilst his attention was focused on some rare diesel locomotive.

At the end of the decade Gren and Anne-Marie moved to “The Castle” and we to Cornwall. The picture taken around 1980 shows them on a visit to our part of the world in the relaxed form that we always enjoyed when together. As is evident, children had arrived by this time, (hi Rory), and visits became less frequent, but we never lost touch, and in later years, canal adventures were resumed…

Happy times, fond memories, and an appreciation of an unfailing friendship with one of the best blokes I ever had the pleasure and luck to be associated with. We loved you Gren, and the thought that we will never again share a lock, or a pint, together is a tough one to take.

________________________________________________

Grenville was exceptionally knowledgable about railways, both modern and historic.   When he lived in a high rise flat in Cambuslang, Scotland, he would play recordings of steam locomotives chuffing up ascents for his own amusement.   One evening, when Anne-Marie was out, he inadvertently played some recordings a little too loudly.   The next day, he met one of his upstairs neighbors, who had complained to British Rail about excessive noise in the tunnel below the flats, only to be told the nearest line was miles away!

When Anne-Marie and Grenville lived in Skelmersdale, I would visit them and attend Nottingham Forest games.  I committed the unpardonable sin of calling them Notts Forest, much to Grenville’s indignation.  Needless to say, I then kept repeating it.

Anne-Marie and Grenville reciprocated by visiting me in the United States.  Corin was actually conceived in my home.  I have no children, but I do claim an assist.
We enjoyed many canal holidays together.  One cold, rainy day, I fell into 10 feet of water at Nantwich Basin.  As the barge was going away from me, I swam clumsily to the bank, burdened by being fully clothed.  Grenville slyly mentioned to me, while stifling a giggle, that “Recreational swimming was not permitted in the Basin!”

Thereafter, I always alleged that in fact I had been pushed, rather than fell.   Many years later, we passed close by the scene of the alleged crime, and I repeated my strong suspicions.  Grenville averred that if the crew had indeed wanted to murder me, they would have done a much better job of it!

When cruising the canals, we often went under rail lines.  if Grenville spotted a train in the distance, he would inevitably come out with something like, “That’s the 9:10 from London to Glasgow”.  He would then confound us further, by adding, “Stopping at Crewe, Manchester and Oxenholme!”  His knowledge of train schedules was encyclopedic.

Grenville was a dear friend, a very adept, skillful and diplomatic planner with the highest ethical standards.  I miss him very much.   If Grenville had any inkling of how people viewed him, I think he would have been very proud.  And deservedly so.  He will certainly never be forgotten by anyone whose life he touched.

________________________________________________

One or two introductions stood out and Grenville’s was one of them. He said his nickname was Bear. I was then slightly in awe of this big bloke, called Bear wearing a green leather jacket who seemed very self assured. I’d always assumed that I’d got the correct spelling of bear but many years later wondered if it shouldn’t have been b-a-r-e having been told of his preference for sunbathing in the altogether when circumstances allowed (just don’t mention Greece and the locked door)

Our paths didn’t cross much in that first year at the poly but from the second year onwards we spent more time together working on group projects and enjoying student life in general including a few illicit and some legitimate punt rides. The green leather jacket became synonymous with Grenville as a signature piece of clothing that stayed with him for the whole of the course. We shared our 21^st birthday celebration together out at Elsefield and Wendy became part of the social group which, after 2^nd year, included Anne-Marie.

During our group projects Grenville’s work ethic and ability became very evident. When he needed to be he was always very focused and we benefitted from his late night clear and concise contributions to the groups efforts. He was, though, often distracted by his blossoming relationship with Anne-Marie so we sometimes had to work round that. It was obvious though that they were definitely a couple and could well have a future together.

Grenville and Anne-Marie were the first of our year to get jobs, both with Lanarkshire County Council, at the end of our final year and soon began to plan a wedding. I was honoured to be asked by Grenville to be his best man and we have, since then always kept in touch as families. Sharing the ups and downs of family life and visiting each other in Glasgow, Skelmersdale, Bishops Castle and Guisborough on a regular basis. An activity that was sadly stopped by Covid and Grenville’s illness.

Grenville, for us, has always been that larger than life character. Full of information and knowledge and an enthusiasm for life, for art, for football, trains and his garden. We’ve always thought that Grenville had five loves – Anne-Marie, the family, Nottingham Forest, trains (and trainspotting) and work, although the order could vary.

Our times together have always been memorable, punctuated by pub visits, long walks, finding new places to see and good chats. We have lost a good friend and companion but the memories of those times spent together and the experiences that we’ve shared will remain with us forever.

________________________________________________

Gren and I rented a rather basic, flat above a shop / office at 54 St Clements, Oxford (the bottom of Headington Hill), in (I think) our 2nd year as undergraduates at the (then) Oxford School of Architecture & Planning.

The next year we rented (with Simon Hill and, I think, Andy Hutton) Sandford Cottage in Elsfield; a delightful spot about 4 miles north-east of Oxford. Simon had found the empty property when talking to the owner (a farmer) during the summer holidays. Amongst other delights, the cottage had an Aga / Rayburn to keep us warm.

________________________________________________

He loved sport, both watching and playing, Nottingham Forest obviously, train spotting, gardening, birds, holidays, good food and wine to name but a few. He liked to be involved and busy as many of his work colleagues and the committees he steered to success will testify because Gren was an ideas person but unlike many he ensured he saw his idea through to its conclusion both in his public and private life.

A lasting memory we have is from 1991, just before our wedding. Gren invited us to The Hay Literary Festival, it’s 4th year, so very early days. It was in a field with 1 marquee, DBRW were sponsoring the event and Lauren Bacall was headlining. Anne Marie was pregnant and we were sat on a rug on the grass enjoying a picnic when Gren jumped up and said he had to do an introductory speech. So off we went to the marquee, seats in the front row (just 1 of Gren’s many skills – organising down to the last detail !) and then there he stood on stage. A man of distinction, speaking with authority and clarity to a packed marquee – a man greatly respected by many. I must say we were a little star struck.

Gren had passion and drive and always aimed for the best in everything he did, he thrived on it for work, for leisure, for pleasure, for family. Always with Anne-Marie by his side supporting him. We will miss him being in our life.

________________________________________________

“For one day, he was the editor. Or more accurately, he was able to take the editor-in-chief’s chair. Gren’s journey to The Guardian was less a visit, more a pilgrimage, and as he sat that day on the low-slung bright yellow sofa, with the plump cylindrical cushions, he was for a moment the executive guiding the day’s discussion, moulding the newspaper he loved. Smuggled into the airy London room where daily journalists plot and scheme what will appear in the paper and on the website, Gren sat quietly for a moment. And then, a creased face and the widest smile. Not quite the climber on the summit, but certainly a man able to strike one item off his bucket list.

He belonged in that room, because on other days, when it was full, the most pressing issues were debated, and the values he held dear informed those debates. It was a place where they talked about the progressive politics he liked to discuss. Where they celebrated the sort of public service he believed in and the good society he espoused. Where they revealed to each other the trends and discoveries in fashion, design, music and architecture that engrossed him. Where they discussed the absurdities of life that made him smile that gentle smile, and the sporting thrills that captured his imagination.

He might, in that regard, have wanted a bit more talk about his beloved Forest. But he would have loved all the stories, and the stories behind the stories. And participation in a process whose underlying and active philosophy is a belief that the world can be made better. 

He was active, and in big and small ways – in his work, his voluntary contributions and the values he taught and radiated to those around him – he looked to make the world better. He was that very bedrock of a decent society, a concerned citizen.

There was one day when he sat in the Guardian editor’s chair, and that was a joy and novelty. But it was on other days, in his own chosen ways – personal and professional – that he touched people’s lives and their communities. On all of his days, he was Gren; a good man who used his time to do good things.”

Rachel Unsworth
With his usual conscientiousness, even at that stage of his illness, Gren sent a warm reply to a text I sent him on 3 October. This is an extract from my message to him:

“Two of my warmest memories of your kindness are the time you arranged some work experience for me with DBRW in St Katharine’s Dock, when I had no clue or confidence about what to do with my life. Going to London for that short time made me believe I could do more.

The second is a beautiful letter you wrote me after I had Ruby – I still have it. You were the only man who wrote to me about having a baby. Your practical and humorous approach to the trials and tedium that parenthood involves, followed by an emphatic conclusion that it is DEFINITELY all worth it, was so uplifting and encouraging and I never forgot what you said.

What you’re facing will come to us all, in various shapes. But it can’t be said of everyone that they put their time and abilities to such positive use, with boundless enthusiasm, diligence and regard for other people. But there is no doubt that’s what you unfailingly do with your considerable talents.

Along with that, the way you show how you love your family, and how deeply you have loved Anne-Marie for so long, throughout the travails that all of us long-marrieds experience, is another source of hope and inspiration to me and Hugh. Who are both just as inclined as you two to squabble, but then remember that the only thing that really matters is to love and be loved.”

________________________________________________

Carole and Nigel Vaughan
– long time friends

Along with that, the way you show how you love your family, and how deeply you have When we think about Gren, which we do often, we smile. Not only was he one of our best friends, he was a lovely, lovely man.

He was a man of many passions. In fact, we don’t think we have known anyone with as many! His love of trains, both real and model, his tennis and badminton, the sun and sunbathing in the nip, his garden-especially his lawn, his veg and his doves, his love of art, style and fashion- especially labels. He was a foodie and a wine connoisseur, his love of football, especially his beloved Nottingham Forest but above all, what always came through was the love he had for his family and above all, his tremendous love for you Anne Marie.

We feel very privileged to have had just a little part of him in our lives.

________________________________________________

Julia Parker
– long time friend

Bishop’s Castle Swimming Pool opened in November 1974 and the only way people could swim was to belong to a swimming club; you couldn’t just turn up  and swim whenever you felt like it.

One of the first swimming clubs to be be formed was The Beavers, a large group of friends who met at the pool on a Thursday night. It was great fun, with plenty of ridiculous horse play in the water and afterwards many of us went up to the Three Tuns to dry our hair by the open fire.

The first Beavers Ball was held in the Church Barn in Bishop’s Castle in the spring of 1975 and it proved to be so popular that the event moved up to the Three Tuns Top Room. The press cutting refers to the 1979 Beavers Ball and the final paragraph highlights Gren as the winner of the prize for the best men’s costume.

What the writer ( Julia Parker) did not say was that Gren came to the ball as a flasher, wearing a long raincoat which he would occasionally open with a flourish to reveal the two brightly lit light bulbs and a balloon.

Bad taste ? Maybe, but it was a long time ago and we were all young and full of fun. Gren loved being in the limelight for the evening.

________________________________________________
Community

Evelyn Bowles and Richard
– active members of the Bishop’s Castle community

Gren’s last gift

This may just be a footnote in Gren’s lifetime of constructive engagement, but it was of great significance to this community in the middle of March 2020.

Gren was at the heart of the mobilisation of the BC Patient’s Group, which was ideally placed – as a bridge between the GPs and the community – to facilitate the local response to the (then largely unknown) challenge of the Covid 19 pandemic.

Many people had a strong sense that we needed to act, to build resilience in our community, but Gren took the initiative, no doubt with BCPG colleagues, to quickly set up a meeting of interested parties. GPs, Town councillors; shop managers, the pharmacist, college, church, Quaker and housing association representatives and other willing volunteers were invited. Gren had an agenda and key proposals such as basing our efforts on the Medical Practice area, which were key to developing the multi-community network which gradually emerged in this rural area, all sharing information and able to support each other.

Though his own health was probably becoming an issue, he ensured we had a network that could grow, adapt and respond as needs became apparent. This was a great gift to the community and wider area and also prompted the establishment of the BC Food Bank. The volunteer network and Food Bank are still here and hopefully they will outlast the virus. They have instilled both confidence and a sense of security that we can and will reach out and support one another.

Thank you, Gren.

________________________________________________

David Hedge
– Bishop’s Castle badminton club

I haven’t got any particular story about Gren for your memory book. I just remember that he was always so cheery and positive. Even after his knee operation when he couldn’t play badminton he wasn’t down about it. He accepted it and got on with life.

We always had such a laugh at badminton and also in the pub afterwards. I liked to sit next to him as he could educate me politically and would join in with my vulgarities, usually spurring me on to more rudeness. Always up for a laugh.

He was very honest, fair and level headed, intelligent and considered. He was also more than happy to laugh at himself.

I always remember his very distinctive walk and voice wibbly wobbly head !! You married a good ‘un there Anne Marie. It’s a great shame that he’s gone and left you. I really feel for you.

________________________________________________

Steve Wright
– Bishops Castle badminton and tennis clubs

I first met Gren when I joined the badminton club in 2005. I regularly played with him and against him. He was always a challenging opponent but we never took the games too seriously and I look back on those times very fondly. After I stopped playing badminton and joined the tennis club I met up with him again and enjoyed playing tennis with him. He will be sorely missed.

________________________________________________

Lucy and Keith
– Bishops Castle tennis club

I first met Gren when he had a few lessons with Anne-Marie and I managed to persuade him that he should buy a new tennis racket!

Our paths crossed many times at the Tennis Club and he came back for a few lessons after a knee op and wanted to hit a few balls .

Gren made the biggest impact when he took over as Chair of the Tennis Club and empowered us to build the coaching programme and was so supportive and generous with his praise.

Thank you Gren and we will carry on the work that you inspired, you will always be with us on the courts.

________________________________________________

Nigel and Lorraine Reaney
– Bishops Castle tennis club

Our lasting memory of you is your use of the word rubbish.

If we asked how Forest played and they hadn’t won you would reply ‘rubbish’. If you served a double fault in tennis or made a bad shot you would say ‘that was rubbish’.

It’s a phrase we now use and we always follow it with ‘as Gren would say’.

Your cancer was rubbish.

The fact you have left us all is rubbish.

We had some good times together and many lasting memories.

You were a good friend and we will miss you greatly. For the record you were far from rubbish.

________________________________________________

Clive Millard
– Bishops Castle tennis club

I first got to know Gren was when he volunteered to become Chairman of the club at a time when we had lost a very capable chairman but had been unable to find a replacement.

When he took over his organisational abilities soon became clear and since then the club has moved forward in many ways to become financially stable with an increasing membership.

Gren will be sadly missed and on behalf of the club we offer our condolences to Anne-Marie and her family.

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

Loveday and George (Hickey)
– Bishops Castle tennis club and Labour Party

Gren, you will be sadly missed. A true kindred spirit with your politics, tennis and love of football, family and Sparrow Hawks! Always friendly and easy to talk to. Hard to believe we won’t see you again. 

________________________________________________

Judith Payne
– Bishops Castle Labour Party

There is so much to say about Gren’s admirable qualities and generous personality, that I decided to concentrate on his Labour Party work. He was a longtime committed Labour member.

When, in 2017, the Ludlow Constituency Labour Party voted to set up five separate branches, one of which was to cover the Bishops Castle, Clun and Chirbury wards, Gren stepped up enthusiastically, and became both Secretary and Chair of the new Branch.

He organised monthly meetings of great interest, which attracted increases in both attendance and membership of the Party.

During the 2019 General Election campaign he agreed to act as Agent to the Labour candidate Kuldip Sahota. His assidous support enabled Kuldip to become a friendly and popular candidate, although of course, he didn’t win.

Grenville’s commitment, hard work and effectiveness will be badly missed by all in the Labour Party locally and farther afield. He never missed a meeting, although sometimes on Saturdays, he had to leave early to get to the Forest match in time for kickoff!

________________________________________________

Mike Penn
– Ludlow Labour Party

Gren has been a pillar of strength to the Labour Party in South Shropshire since he got truly stuck in after he retired but my particular reason to be grateful to him was the way he stepped in as Agent for Kuldip in the December 2019 general election.

Gren’s wells of patience and good humour were sorely tested I am sure and when I asked him to take it on I hadn’t thought it would be as a much of a challenge as it turned out to be but I hope we were able to help get each other through it and I know Gren was fascinated by the process!

The candidate we’d assumed we’d be working with was given a run in the Shrewsbury constituency at the last minute and we were told Kuldip Sahota would be stepping into the breach. Kuldip proved to be an really nice guy and quite laid back in his way but we didn’t really have time to get to know him well and there were undeniably challenges!

Gren took charge of arranging visits around the constituency and briefing and accompanying him to hustings in the main towns. The frisson when the MP appeared to insult Kuldip’s turban must have caused Gren a nightmare or two but he kept his cool and there were some bizarre moments …

We will really miss Gren’s commitment to the Labour cause and his keenness to rebuild the Party after the recent travails – he won’t be forgotten!

________________________________________________

Cllr Kuldip Sahota
– Labour Party

Very sorry to hear  the sad passing away  of my friend Gren.

I got to know him when I stood as a Labour Party  candidate for Ludlow constituency in 2019 general election.

He was my agent and he so diligently prepared my daily campaign diary and briefed me on the local issues.

________________________________________________
Work

Gail Evans
– a colleague at ELWa

I first started working for Gren in approx. 2001 (ELWa) as his PA and then Divisional Co-ordinator until he retired (we merged into Welsh Government in 2006 and became civil servants!). When he retired I asked him what he was going to do and he said ’I’ll have more time for train spotting’! He loved trains and was on first name terms with all the train conductors from BC down to south-Wales and knew all the tricks of split-ticketing to get the cheapest fare!

Throughout his time at work, I am sure that I will not be alone in recalling fond memories of Gren as someone who worked extremely hard and with great passion, enthusiasm and commitment.  I recall the very many weekly trips to BC to drop off/pick up carrier bags full of work following the work he had done late into the previous night/early morning! My young son Kieran at the time, would accompany me on some of those trips and ask ‘are we going to boss man’s house at the castle’. During some of those journeys, I remember driving through all sorts of road conditions – floods, icy roads and snow just to pick up/drop off his carrier bags. My car was on auto-pilot during those trips – Newtown/BC/Montgomery and return!

Gren then discovered the joy of faxing through work – the longest fax he ever sent me was 40 pages long – I came into the office one morning to discover the carpet had turned white with paper – at least he numbered each page!

Gren was a true gent and although he was my line manager, he was also my friend. I’ll continue to remember his love of mars bars, Chelsea buns from Evans’ café, his favourite footie team Nottingham Forest, train spotting (!) and of course most importantly was his love of his family.

________________________________________________

Paul Pettigrew
– a colleague at Greater Manchester Council and DBRW

Gren was simply one of the biggest influences of my professional adult life and of course a great long-standing friend.

We worked together at Greater Manchester Council as Town and Regional Planners working on economic aspects of the structure plan and subsequently at the Development Board for Rural Wales, where we were both Directors and dare I say the driving force behind all the success we had there under the guidance of Dr. Iain Skewis, whom we both admired and idolised.

Gren was one of the most intelligent guys I have ever known and was like a big brother to me as well as a role model and mentor. I owe him a lot and he will be forever in my head and heart.

________________________________________________

Matt Jenkins
– a colleague at ELWa

“There’s only one Gren Jackson”

If Gren had been as talented a footballer as he was an extraordinary public servant, that would have been the regular chant from the Forest faithful at his beloved City Ground.

I met Gren in the late 1990s. He was a very senior guy in public life in Wales, and although I was barely out on University we struck it off immediately with our shared passion for the world around us, and the spirit of possibility in post-devolution Wales. We worked very closely together through the ELWa years, me as one of his team, and he as my mentor. Always ambitious in his actions, he gave me my first big chance in the world of work and guided me in the years we worked together, something I am forever grateful for.

I can’t quite fathom out his passing. Always brimming with life. Professionally he sparkled. I learnt so much from him.

Such a work ethic, I never saw him unprepared for anything. An absolute professional, and a campaigner in the workplace who never shied away from doing what needed to be done to change the world around him for the better. In my own work, especially how I try to encourage people at the start of their careers, Gren’s approach is my template. A heck of a lot to live up to, but a great example to follow.

There would have been hundreds of conversations between us, often with Gail and Janine involved. Not enough of them remain in my memory bank, but the many that do are treasured. They inspire, and always raise a smile.

Although we hadn’t seen each other for a few years, we were last in touch a couple of summers ago. Looking back on the messages we exchanged then, not much had changed about the expansive scope of his horizon. He was “… working for the leisure industry Matt. ‘Retirement’ sounds too passive.” Typical Gren!

I’m glad I got the chance in that exchange to say how much his belief in me mattered. I’m glad I got the chance to say sorry for the moments I let him down. I’m glad our last exchange left us both with a spring in our step.

Although I’ve never met Anne-Marie, Rory and Corin, he spoke of you constantly. It must be devastating to lose such a husband and father. Please do know that his legacy is secure, and his memory is cherished.

“There’s only one Gren Jackson.”

________________________________________________

Derek Allen
– a colleague at ELWa

Gren was a wonderful man in our lives and I can just imagine how wonderful it was to have him as your family. I hope you are coping reasonably well, and thank you for the sense of celebration you are creating now because he certainly deserves it.

I have two brief anecdotes, one serious, one less so.

Gren listened to the people on the ground in Elwa. When I ran a series of relationship-building workshops he supported me and cared about how they worked, how they would genuinely help, which they did. He even turned up in a rain-soaked South West Wales at 07.00 on a Winter’s morning to represent us. Just great.

On another occasion at our Christmas bash in Cardiff, our ensemble was partying in a night club when some wag, I believe called Adele, seeing Gren at the bar bet me a Fiver that I wouldn’t go up and pinch his bum. Well he was wearing his shocking old mac and I was made up like David Bowie so it seemed like a match made in heaven in my rather ‘heightened’ state. So off I went and duly pinched Gren’s bum! Not too hard of course, he was the big boss. But rather than admonish me he took it in great spirit and bought me a pint. That is the sign of a very fine gentleman and I’ll never forget it.

________________________________________________

Janine Yearsley
– a colleague at ELWa

Back in 2001 I was part of the Welsh Funding Councils organisation which merged with other organisations to become ELWa – this is where I first met Gren.  Gren become my direct line manager for over 7 years and always introduced me as the person who kept him and the division out of prison!

Gren interviewed me back in 2001 and phoned me on my 32^rd birthday to let me know I had the Direct Services Managers Job, I was shopping in Newlook at the time and screamed my head off, I was in shock, I couldn’t believe it  – Gren was laughing his head off with his unique laugh (which I loved J) and said I was funny and unique!!  He believed in me, he gave me a chance, he brought me back to life with regards to loving work!  He also turned me in to a workaholic!!  Sometimes this was good, other times, well…………. We all know Gren had 20 hours in a working day lol!  Gren really did believe in me and encouraged me (or forced me, I’m not sure which) to secure a degree before we merged in to WG – something I never would have thought of, or believed I could achieve being a newly single Mam of 2 very young children and working full time  – Gren believed in me…..I succeeded and passedJ

When Gren had his Cataracts operation, I would drive up from Caerphilly to Bishops Castle with a car full of papers.  Gren would be lying flat out on his sofa staring up to the ceiling and I was sat on the floor with papers sprawled out everywhere.  It sounds crazy, it looked mad, but it worked and we got through what we needed to get through.   We would meet half way from Caerphilly to Bishops Castle to complete Performance Reviews in a layby’s – sounds dodgy yeah?  – it wasn’t, it was to make sure we met the deadline, that’s how we worked!  We had amazing SMT Christmas meals, stunning presents (which I will always cherish) and never excluded from anything.  Gren treated all his SMT the same, irrespective of grade.

I loved our working relationship, our banter and I talked to Gren about absolutely everything, he really was one in a million and supported me through my divorce and was always there to help with a solution. I am heartbroken, I truly am, I adored Gren and will be grateful to Gren for the rest of my life.   I will miss hearing from him, his laugh, his shaking of the head because I have said something ‘twp’ and so grateful I was lucky enough to know Gren, work with Gren, be line managed by Gren and learnt from Gren. 

________________________________________________

Richard Hart
– a colleague at ELWa

I met Gren in the period before ELWa was established and worked with him throughout the ELWa years and subsequently in the Welsh Assembly Government, right up to his retirement. In fact, we retired at the same time.

We had an end of ELWa celebratory party at a hotel in Coryton (March 2006, I think it must have been). I penned a farewell song for ELWa to the tune of Bread of Heaven. I can’t remember the words of the relevant verse, but it concluded with “Grenville Jackson, Grenville Jackson, he goes on for ever more. He goes on for ever more.” It was one of the more popular verses and sung with real gusto by the 100 plus people there.

Well, he will go on for ever more in the thoughts of all who knew him.

________________________________________________

Rachel Garside-Jones (Rachel Jones at the time)
– a colleague at WDA

Many fond memories of Gren who I worked for, firstly at the WDA, and then for many years at Welsh Government. What do I remember?  I remember his pages of notes with long lists of things to discuss that he would have written at 5am that morning on his beloved train; I remember how he was always full of energy and enthusiasm for discussing all things skills and training; I remember the support he gave me both when I transferred into Welsh Government from a UK agency and when I went on maternity leave in 2008, when he kept me up to speed on skills developments. I will never forget that support and encouragement that Gren gave me over the years.

________________________________________________

Anne Davies
– a colleague at Mid Wales TEC

I started my new job at Mid Wales TEC on 1^st August 1999, coming from Montgomery Vets as a vet nurse/office administrator.  At the end of my first day, Gren came and sat on my desk, introducing himself as our director and asked me about my first day and we went on to talk about my job at Monty Vets, guinea pigs etc. Gren took the time to chat to me that day, and that reflected the great person that he was, and I always held him in such high regard ever since.  

________________________________________________

Dr W. Iain Skewis
– a colleague at DBRW

I started my new job at Mid Wales TEC on 1^st August 1999, coming from Montgomery Vets

Gren and I shared an interest in football and I expressed my first reaction to his death, in football language – Grenville was probably “the best signing I ever made”.

Always full of ideas he was also able to pick up those of others and was able to turn the thoughts into action and to motivate his staff to do likewise.  Mid Wales benefited from this ability to deliver and continues to do so.

Gren was a colleague at work but also a personal friend.  We shared a wide range of interests from model railways to passion for football.

He will be sadly missed by his family and friend.

________________________________________________

Jo Banks
– a colleague at WDA

Gren had a very big impact on my life and I shall always be grateful for the opportunities he extended me and the wisdom he shared with me.

My first dealings with Gren were backing he late 1990s when I was seconded from my role as a researcher at Cardiff University to work for Gren at the Welsh Development Agency. This was the first time I got to know Gren as we worked to develop an approach to supporting the food industry in Wales. What struck me then, and continued to inspire me through all the years that followed, was how Gren approached his working life. He once explained to me that he viewed coming to work as ‘playing a game’ – a game he liked to win. He didn’t say this flippantly, but it expressed his capacity to keep perspective and his ability to relish and enjoy the challenge each day brought. When I’ve been stressed or tired I’ve so often recalled those words and that conversation and they have helped me regain my own perspective.

Having struck up a good working relationship with Gren at the WDA, I next worked for him when I took a research contract looking at the potential for organic food production in Wales – work part funded by the Development Board for Rural Wales where Gren was then positioned. Gren had a great capacity to ‘see the big picture’ and I enjoyed the challenge he would bring to my work when we met. In the early 2000s I joined Education Learning Wales (ELWa) and found myself working in the same organisation as Gren (though not for him directly). Being based in Newtown our paths would cross regularly and, at a time in my life when we were struggling with our new family, Gren would always enquire as to how we were doing and offer his encouragement. For all his focus on the task he showed he cared about people and I benefitted from that at a difficult time in my own life.

Having merged into the Welsh Government and all become civil servants in 2006, in 2007 I applied for a job in Gren’s team which he interviewed me for. I recall that in that job interview I told a story about a lion tamer which I think appealed to his sense of theatrics and got me the job. I really enjoyed being in Gren’s team and he extended many opportunities to me. Among those he made happen for me was securing agreement (and funding) for my Masters’ Degree at Cardiff Business School – which I passed with a distinction. Gren didn’t just use people in work, he championed them, and I now try and do the same for people who work for me.

I can honestly say that Gren was by far the biggest single influence on me in my professional life. Gren was a great salesman and he knew how to position and promote his ideas – a most vital skill in the civil service! If I came to him with a dry technical proposal he would pack me off telling me to redraft and “sell the benefits” – simple but great advice that has served me well ever since.

As civil servants Gren and I would often meet on the train platform at Craven Arms (usually at some ungodly hour in the morning) and catch the train to Cardiff. Gren loved his trains and he taught me the art of ticket splitting so I always saved a few pounds on each journey – a trick I find myself sharing with others to this day. I’d sometimes find myself driving behind Gren on the way into the station and recall one very cold winter morning we both arrived a little flustered having watched him skid and slither on the ice in front on the rural roads – and then finding myself doing the same as I followed. We had many many long conversations sat on trains to and from Cardiff and I am thankful for those times talking about both work and life’s struggles and challenges. Gren loved his work and was always pushing forward with a new idea putting a sparkle in his eye. Gren was passionate about making a difference and it was an honour to make a small contribution to the references put forward in support of his OBE – which he would jokingly refer to as ‘other buggers’ efforts’. But the truth was he did go above and beyond, driven by his passion and love “for the game”.

Gren was my unofficial mentor over so many years. Our paths intersected over many years and it was a pleasure to meet up with him on a couple of occasions after he retired. I regret not seeing him more. The impact Gren has had on my life finds expression in the fact that it is Gren’s name that I still so often find myself quoting when I tell my owns staff to go away and redraft Ministerial advice or a policy paper to better “sell the benefits” or when I am helping a stressed out member or staff regain their perspective and tell of how my old boss Gren saw work as ‘fun’.

I am thankful for the opportunity of having known Gren. He was a good man who made me want to be a better version of me. He helped me and he grew me. He will continue to inspire me and his words will continue to resonate with me. I hope that I have learned from him.

________________________________________________

Gill Davies
– a colleague at DBRW

My first memory of Gren was in 1978 when I joined the Personnel Department of The Development Board for Rural Wales (DBRW) working with Joan Lancaster and John Hughes. He was in his 20s tall with a mop of hair but what I remember most was his bright red shoes, quite a fashion statement for Newtown in the 70s.

In 1985 I joined the Marketing Department where later Gren became Marketing Director and I worked with him until he left when DBRW ceased.

In 1989 Gren gave me a management opportunity in Business Finance. I think he had more faith in me than I had in myself but it worked out well and there were many success stories. He was a good boss and very forward thinking in terms of equality, he said ‘women work harder because they have had to’.

Gren worked very hard and expected his staff to, but I did dread Monday mornings. Over the weekends he would scribble reports and ideas and when he ran out of paper it would be on bits of cardboard and paper bags, which I then had to decipher.

Monday morning management meetings always began with the football post mortem, Nottingham Forest of course, Aston Villa and Man City the usual topics for Gren, Dr Skewis and Ron Ankers.

In Business Finance working with companies wanting grants and loans was not always easy. We had one difficult company in Newcastle Emlyn when Gren decided it would be useful for me to visit the company with him to pacify the client.

He said ‘we’ll have lunch’ which turned out to be a mars bar from a garage; I was then travel sick for the rest of the journey. Not the best outcome but we did manage to sort things out with the company.

A few weeks later the tables turned when after a Cardiff meeting Gren asked for a lift back to the office. I was a bit nervous about this but I had a fast car and put my foot down all the way back. When we got back to the office not wanting to say I drove too fast he said ‘I didn’t think we’d get back so soon’.

Gren was very thoughtful about his staff. In 1993 our daughter was taken ill and I found a part time job so that I could spend more time with her. When I told Gren I was leaving he said ‘No’ and agreed that I could work part time until I was ready to resume full time again. Very forward thinking and for him there were ‘no problems just opportunities’

It’s many years since we worked together and our paths haven’t crossed since, but he was the sort of person you thought you would see again and catch up.

He was a good boss but more than that he was a good man.

________________________________________________

Donna Robins
– a colleague at ELWa

I didn’t know him well, or for very long, but he had a massive impact on my life, especially in work. My interaction with him was in work at the time when ELWa was merged into the Welsh Government and he became our Head of Group. It would be fair to say at the time there was a fair amount of scepticism from the traditional civil servants when we started working with and to people previously in ELWa. Their ways of working seemed to be a lot more relaxed than we were used to and the change was a challenging time.

During that period I had started to look for another job and possibly a promotion and had put in a few applications. Gren was having conversations with staff on a 1:1 basis and when it was my turn he asked me what I wanted to do, where I saw myself going. I explained that I was looking for something else and he said that the jobs I had applied for were not right for me. I was very surprised he knew what I had been applying for, and that he had taken an interest. I suggested he could find me something else, and a short while later I was quite shocked to be offered a post which was a promotion, and which was extremely challenging and not something I thought I would be able to do and would probably have never applied for. I absolutely loved that job!  Gren turned out to be someone who noticed what was going on with people around him, he was constantly supportive of my work, and helped to develop my confidence and belief in myself to achieve more than I would have thought was possible. I will always be grateful.

________________________________________________

Ron Ankers
– a colleague at DBRW

I worked with Gren for over 20 years, we both joined the Development Board on the same day. I came from a highly creative background in advertising and marketing and Gren was more of a strategic thinker a  long term planner.

After a long chat he said to me you know “you have a mind like a dustbin“ – he did not realise what a fine compliment he had paid me.

________________________________________________

Dr Dennis Gunning
– a colleague at the Welsh Government

I first met Gren when I moved to Wales in January 2007 to become Director of Lifelong Learning and Skills for the Welsh Government.  Gren was one of my senior management team with responsibility for supporting business development through education and training programmes such as apprenticeships.  I remember being briefed on my new senior colleagues by a Welsh Government civil service “old hand” – his advice on Gren was that he was a bit of a character, an empire-builder and liked to fly close to the sun!

Well, it’s certainly true that Gren was not a civil servant in the “Sir Humphrey Appleby” mould – thank goodness!  I soon discovered that Gren was indeed a bit of a character but that the other character traits I had been warned about were actually a traditional civil service view of someone who liked to innovate, was charismatic and who believed that if a policy was good, then it needed to be implemented quickly and effectively.  He was also never afraid to speak his mind even if feathers were ruffled as a result!  My early dealings with Gren made me conclude that his talents were a major asset to the Welsh Government and its learning and skills agenda.  I was delighted that when the education and training department was restructured, Gren took on a wider role as one of my two senior managers.

Others will comment on Gren’s contribution to Wales through his earlier posts.  As far as my time working with him is concerned, there are some areas that are worth highlighting. Gren’s team led the development of the new Wales skills strategy, published in 2008 as “Skills that Work for Wales“.  He also led on fostering the links between the Welsh government’s skills agenda and businesses and industry bodies – in this work, he and his team built excellent relationships with employers across Wales and with industry representative bodies.  His team was also responsible for setting up, funding and running the ReAct scheme which provided retraining opportunities for people who had been made redundant.

Perhaps Gren’s skills were most fully demonstrated when the banking crisis took hold at the end of 2008.  Discussions with employers had highlighted the dangers of redundancies and reduced hours for employees because of the deepest global recession in 80 years.  In a meeting of the Wales Employment and Skills Board in late 2008, for which Gren was the lead officer, he and I discussed whether the ReAct scheme could be adapted to respond to the crisis, but to try to prevent redundancies rather than respond to them.   The idea was to provide employees on short-time working with training on the days when they weren’t working and with wage subsidy to avoid them being laid off – we called in “ProAct”.  Looked at in today’s context, it was a forerunner of the UK Government’s Covid furlough scheme, but with the important difference that ProAct also provided training as well as wage subsidy.  

We obtained Ministerial support for the ProAct concept, after which it was over to Gren and his team to make it happen.  He used his long experience of applying for European Union funding to get the substantial finances needed for ProAct, his prodigious networking skills to get industry support and then his management and leadership skills to have the programme up and running within a matter of a couple of months.   It was independently reviewed in 2010 by Cambridge Policy Consultants who concluded that ProAct was a success.  Among their conclusions were  “Almost all companies (93%), reported that ProAct support had a positive impact on staff morale.”  “Across the programme as a whole, we estimate the total number of jobs safeguarded to be 1,833 or 18% of total employment in ProAct supported companies. A cautious estimate of the value of these jobs is £74.7m.”   The reviewers concluded that ProAct had added around 3.5 times more value to the Welsh economy than it had cost to run.  And finally, on the way in which ProAct had been implemented – and a tribute to Gren and his team – “………. the delivery of the programme has itself demonstrated real innovation in its approach that deserve wider consideration.  Staff have adopted processes and procedures but not allowed them to get in the way of the objectives of the programme to serve the needs to employers who faced pressing financial problems and required a rapid decision.”

The then First Minister of Wales, the late Rhodri Morgan, saw ProAct as a prime example of best practice in a government’s response to a crisis.  Gren and his team won a UK civil service innovation award for the design and delivery of ProAct.  And an unusual accolade was that Wales received a rare mention in the columns of the New York Times when ProAct was cited as a successful example of schemes in the European Union to protect jobs in the face of the global recession. 

My professional contact with Gren ended when I retired in the summer of 2010 – but it did not end our friendship.  Gren retired the following year and it was great to see his achievements recognised by the award of an OBE.  We still continued to meet in our favourite coffee shop whenever Gren was in Cardiff.  We shared a love of football, trains, travel, political leanings and more, had a moan about the likes of Brexit, and disagreed on which was the most beautiful locomotive on the British rail network in the good old days of steam trains.   It’s really sad that Gren didn’t have the time to see Nottingham Forest get back to its place at the top of English football or to see Labour re-elected to government or to see that last diesel multiple unit operating out of Inverness that he’d missed. 

I’ve had the privilege of working with very talented people during my career in the world of education and training.  Gren is right up there among those most talented people for his drive, innovation, leadership, networking and, equally important when you’re spending public money, attention to detail and to accountability.  I will always remember Gren as a wonderful colleague but also as a great friend.   I will miss the opportunity to meet up with him when more normal times resume – but that sense of loss is nothing compared to that felt by Anne Marie, his sons and grandchildren.   Gren’s was, indeed, a life lived to the full and to the benefit of many.  Diolch yn fawr, Gren.

________________________________________________

Hywel Evans
– a colleague at DBRW

Like the French, Gren didn’t always pronounce his H’s – so I was always Aawel from the first day we met in November 1978. It was my first day at DBRW, one of those “what on earth am I doing here…” days. I suspected that they had completely forgotten I was turning up, but Gren being literally the first person I met, sorted me out, as he did for several years afterwards.

It’s always dangerous to view life through those rose-tinted specs. But my experience afterwards of many organisations and companies made me realise that the time at DBRW was really positive in so many ways. Gren was one of the main reasons for that. He always encouraged and supported me and colleagues to try new things. We were very much on the same wavelength (although we came from totally different backgrounds) in many aspects of social and economic development. That included the whole range of entrepreneurship development issues, aspects of rural life and the Welsh language. Indeed he was the main initial supporter of the concept of the need to develop the economic potential of Welsh speakers and communities – that led to the emergence of Menter a Busnes. Initially a short term project, Menter a Busnes evolved over time to a third sector company operating throughout Wales, at the last count employing 130 people.

So Gren’s insight and support at that time will always be something I’ll treasure.

Diolch yn fawr Gren – from Aawel!

________________________________________________

Teresa Holdsworth
– a colleague at the Welsh Government

I first met Gren in 1999. I had been appointed to set up a Wales wide team to develop and manage use of the new European funding that was to be available for skills and training, Gren was the Chief Executive from the Welsh Training and Enterprise Councils and was responsible for ensuring I was doing a good job.

I remember meeting him for the first time, in Cardiff, and that meeting set the tone for what was to become a long and enjoyable working relationship which lasted until I retired in 2017. Although Gren retired from Welsh Government a couple of years before me, our paths continued to cross as he maintained his active engagement in all aspects of skills development, which he was very passionate about.

I learned so much from Gren during the time I worked with him but what stands out in my mind was his belief in people. He taught me that developing people is the most important job anyone can have, and in whatever walk of life you find yourself, valuing and encouraging the people around you is the key to success.

His enthusiasm and positive approach to everything he did was infectious. I will remember Gren for being a great boss, challenging, encouraging, supportive and lots of fun. I will always think of him fondly, he has left an amazing legacy in all the people who had the privilege to work with him, he will be greatly missed.

________________________________________________

Meurig Thomas
– a colleague at ELWa

Gren was a true gentleman and highly respected both at Elwa and Welsh Government where both he and I worked. He recruited me in 2002 and we worked closely together for many years. He was a talented Director who was very fair and he always sought to do his best. He also had a great sense of humour, a love of trains and above all was kind to other people. I shall miss him dearly.

________________________________________________

John Waters
– a colleague at ELWa

I worked closely with Gren for several years in the early 2000s, first in the education and training body ELWa and later in the Welsh Government.  

I remember Gren as a larger-than-life character, both in physical stature and personality.  In those pre-austerity, pre-pandemic days, we used to hold frequent meetings in different places across Wales and I recall Gren’s instantly recognisable laugh echoing through many office and hotel corridors from Swansea to Abergavenny, from Cardiff Bay to Newtown.  He was a hard-working public servant, enthusiastic and insightful, and will be remembered fondly by his former colleagues.

________________________________________________

Gareth Williams
– a long term colleague

I first met Gren in 1988 when he was working for the Development Board for Rural Wales, I was a callow new arrival at the Welsh Office and we were representing our respective organisations on the Wales Craft Council. From the start, he made a real impression on me because of his ability to manage a tricky situation with both warmth and intelligence while sticking to his guns. And on a personal level, he was immediately friendly and approachable, with a knack for being able to offer advice without being in the least patronising.

Over the next 25 years and more we came across each other in many different roles, and when I started my consultancy business in 2000, he was one of the first people to give me the chance to show what I could do – not as a favour, I like to think, but because he knew I could do a good job and wasn’t afraid to follow his instinct. I always admired his incredible drive, his tenacity and his fierce intelligence and it’s no surprise he commanded such loyalty from those who worked closely with him. Over recent years, I was proud to call him a friend as well as a colleague, but it’s his kindness at the very start which made the most lasting impression.

________________________________________________

Professor Ewart Keep
– Department of Education, Oxford University

I knew Gren through his role at ELWa and then in the Welsh Assembly Government’s SBED.  Gren was one of those relatively rare civil servants who understood the value (and the limitations) of research and how it could help support policy making.  He was a pleasure to work with.  Wales has lost a true public servant.

________________________________________________

A huge thank you to everyone that has shared their memories. Whilst there have been many tears shed reading them all, there’s also been an incredible amount of pride.

As a family, we know we were very very lucky to have Gren as a husband, dad, and grandad. For that we will be eternally thankful.

If you would like to share your memories, please add them to this comments box
(note that you only need to enter your comment, name and email – you do not need to enter a website address):