Richard is responsible for Aims 1 and 2 of the Management Plan being 'Aim 1. To protect the Site's Outstanding  Universal Value and integrity by allowing the natural processes which created it to continue'  and, along with other team members  'Aim 2. To conserve and enhance the Site and its setting for science, education and public enjoyment.'

 He moved to Dorset County Council as Jurassic Coast Project Officer, a project exploring the potential for World Heritage Site along the Dorset coast. Over the years the job has evolved into Earth Science Manager with the dual role of monitoring, managing and protecting the core interests of the World Heritage Site along with inputting geological expertise into the wide range of work undertaken by the team as a whole.

Richard gained an interest in fossils while growing up in the seaside town of Lyme Regis and he went on to study geology at the University of Hull (1980-83). After graduating he worked in the North Sea Oil Industry before deciding to follow a career in 'the countryside', initially with the National Trust for Scotland on the Isle of Arran and then as warden of the Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre (1986 - 1997). He started work with Dorset County Council in 1997, initially with the Jurassic Coast project which set about exploring the opportunities that World Heritage Site status could provide for the coast.