Ben Cowell is the Director General of Historic Houses, which represents over 1,500 of the UK’s historic houses, castles and gardens, all independently owned. Ben has worked previously for the National Trust, English Heritage, and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. He is the Deputy Chair of The Heritage Alliance, chair of the Heritage 2020 initiative, and interim chair of the Historic Environment Forum. He sits on the Government’s Heritage Council. Ben has published widely on subjects relating to history and heritage, most recently in The Three Founders, published by the National Trust to mark its 125^th anniversary.