Staff

GCHT Team:

Niall Murphy, Director:

Niall is an architect with 25 years of experience, specializing in heritage, conservation, and community issues in Glasgow. He is currently the Co-Chair of the Glasgow Built Heritage Commission, the Chair of the Govanhill Baths Building Preservation Trust and served on the Glasgow Urban Design Panel for a decade. Niall played a key role in securing funding for the ‘Make Your Mark’ East Pollokshields and Port Eglinton Charrette in 2016 and was a member of the Scottish Government’s Development Management Working Group (2016–2018). He has received several awards, including the Glasgow Doors Open Day Outstanding Talk Award (2023), and frequently lectures on architecture and urban design.

Gemma Wild, Heritage Manager: 

Gemma has over 15 years’ experience protecting and celebrating the historic environment in the UK, helping others develop skills and understanding in conservation and heritage. After starting her career in a planning consultancy, she moved to Glasgow in 2007 and has worked for the Scottish Civic Trust and Scottish Waterways Trust, delivering community engagement, interpretation, and education projects. At Glasgow City Heritage Trust, she now works across outreach and business development. Gemma is an Affiliate Member of the Institute of Historic Building Conservation (IHBC) and a Trustee at Maryhill Burgh Halls, where she chairs the Fundraising Committee and sits on the Heritage Committee.

Gemma works part-time, Tuesday – Friday.

Rachel Kacir, Heritage Manager: 

Rachel has nearly 15 years experience working within the wider heritage sector in Scotland. After graduating from the University of Glasgow with a degree in History and Politics, she joined the National Trust for Scotland (NTS), where she honed her skills in daily operations and team management across various properties. Whilst working at NTS Rachel pursued a Masters in Museum Studies, where she gained knowledge in visitor experience, interpretation, collections management and curation. 

Rachel now manages the Trust’s Activities programme, overseeing a range of projects that provide opportunities for people to learn about and enjoy Glasgow’s historic built environment. Rachel also contributes to business development and communications across the Trust. Rachel is a Member of the Museums Association. 

Rachel works part-time, Wednesday – Friday.

Erin Russo, Historic Environment Grants Manager:

Erin is an Art Historian, who spent her undergraduate years at Franklin University in Lugano, Switzerland. She has completed an MSc in Museum Studies from the University of Glasgow and an MLitt in Curatorial Practice (Contemporary Art) from Glasgow School of Art. During her MSc, Erin was an exhibition research and design intern at GCHT, with her exhibitions focused on Glasgow’s cinemas and cemeteries. She has since rejoined GCHT as Historic Environment Grants Administrator. Alongside her work at the Trust she is a PhD candidate at the University of Glasgow, centring her research on the documentation of performance art.

Guillaume Coët, Finance Manager:

Taylor Cross-Whiter, Heritage Officer:

Taylor studied History at Reed College in Oregon, USA, before earning a Master’s in Architectural Conservation from the University of Edinburgh. After graduating, she joined Historic Environment Scotland as their Technical Research Intern within the Conservation Directorate.

Taylor has worked at GCHT since 2019, focusing on outreach and engagement, promoting and helping people connect with Glasgow’s historic built environment. She is particularly passionate about exploring how heritage intersects with housing justice, urban design, and the climate emergency, and how the historic built environment can play a role in creating more equitable and sustainable cities.

Katharine Neil, Heritage Officer:

Katharine studied History at the University of Glasgow before undertaking a Museum Studies Masters there in 2016. She then worked in Collections Management across a range of institutions including The British Museum, Science Museum Group and the National Trust for Scotland.

In 2022, Katharine joined the GCHT Activities Team, where she has focused on fostering connections between Glasgow’s diverse communities and their built heritage through projects such as If Glasgow’s Walls Could Talk and Our City Chambers. She is passionate about strengthening local relationships and promoting engagement with the city’s rich history.

Kirsty Shankland, Built Heritage Officer:

Kirsty is an architect and certified Passivhaus designer. She joined Wright & Wright Architects in London after graduating from the Glasgow School of Art and later completed her professional studies at the University of Westminster. As an Associate at Wright & Wright she worked on complex projects within historically sensitive settings including Corpus Christi College, Oxford; Lambeth Palace Library; and the Museum of the Home. She has been invited to write and speak on sustainability in the built environment, with a particular focus on existing buildings and heritage contexts.

Tierney Woods, Office Administrator: