Trustees

Rona Aldrich has been Vice-chair of the Books Council since 2021.

Originally from Anglesey, Rona has lived in the Vale of Clwyd for over 40 years. She has a Masters degree in Librarianship and Information Studies from Aberystwyth University. Prior to retiring she was Chief Officer with Conwy County Council.

Since then, she has undertaken various self-employment contracts including for Welsh Government, Welsh Local Government Association and Wrexham County Borough Council. She has been Vice-chair of the Wales National Lottery Community Fund and is currently a member of the Welsh Language Commissioner’s Advisory Panel.

She is Business Manager and Vice-chair of Llandyrnog and Llangwyfan Local History Society and jointly edits its publications.

Alfred Oyekoya was appointed Treasurer in October 2021.  

Alfred Oyekoya is an MSc Finance graduate from Swansea University and a Chartered Accountant, with many years’ leadership and business development experience. He is also an energetic, determined and dedicated champion of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion. 

Meinir Ebbsworth has worked in education as a secondary teacher, adviser and Director of Education. She is also an author of a number of books on Welsh Literacy for children and young people.

She is currently the Strategic Director for the National Centre for Learning Welsh.

Alwena Hughes Moakes is Communications and Engagement Director at Hywel Dda University Health Board. Prior to that, she was Global Head of Employee Engagement and Communications for an international agriculture company with its headquarters in Basel, Switzerland.

Originally from Mold, Flintshire, Alwena is a seasoned communications professional with over 20 years’ experience across the public and private sectors.

Lord Jones is a former First Minister of Wales (2009–2018) and was a Member of the Senedd for Bridgend from 1999–2021. After graduating in law from Aberystwyth University, he went on to train as a barrister in London before working in legal practice at Gower Chambers, Swansea, for 10 years. He was appointed part-time Professor in the Department of Law and Criminology at Aberystwyth University in 2019.

Angharad Price is Professor of Welsh and Creative Writing at Bangor University.

Ruth Thomas is a senior news editor at BBC News, where she leads a team that helps journalists use data to grow audiences and deepen relationships with them – in the UK and across the world. She has worked in the news department of BBC Cymru in various positions including as editor of the S4C Newyddion programme, and one of the founders of Cymru Fyw. Ruth is a keen reader and a slow runner.

Dr Caroline Owen Wintersgill is Senior Lecturer and Programme Director for the MLitt in Publishing Studies at the University of Stirling. She has a PhD on reading, writing and publishing contemporary fiction. Her current research focuses on the values and challenges of small nation and regional publishing in the UK. Before moving into academia, Caroline worked for more than 25 years for leading publishers including Routledge, Bloomsbury and Manchester University Press.