Dawn Bonner

Life and work

The story behind the role.

Dawn Bonner’s hockey career spans playing, umpiring, umpire coaching, international umpire management and regional leadership in England. Her playing background includes Ealing Ladies Hockey Club in the 1980s and 1990s. She qualified as a Level 2 umpire in 1992, first officiated in the South region, and joined the National Programme Umpiring Association (NPUA) in 2009.

Bonner’s later work concentrated on developing and supporting officials. The NPUA records her appointment as a B Panel Selector in 2019, following two years as Coach and Assessor Co-ordinator. Its panels page, updated on 7 July 2026, lists her as a Men’s National 3 Panel selector, outdoor umpire manager and assessor, and Level 3 umpire coach. The same page places her on the international outdoor umpire managers’ Centre Panel.

International competition appointments include umpire manager for the women’s EuroHockey Championship III in Lipovci, Slovenia, from 1 to 7 August 2021, as recorded by FIH. The Euro Hockey League subsequently named her alongside Francisco Vázquez as an umpire manager for its men’s KO16 tournament in Barcelona from 9 to 12 October 2025.

Her development work extends beyond a single tournament. EuroHockey’s September 2023 report from BHV Push in Breda names Bonner among the mentors supporting an education weekend for developing umpires and judges. The programme combined match appointments with observation, discussion and feedback.

London Hockey’s official contacts page lists Bonner as Safeguarding Officer, Officiating Vice Chair and Development Lead. These responsibilities connect the development and organisation of officials with the welfare of people in the sport. Her coaching role in this profile is specifically umpire coaching.

The Hockey Museum published her oral-history interview on 19 April 2024. It discusses her progression through playing, umpiring and management, the qualifications involved, and her approach to helping other officials. Its account also records her service as an England Hockey vice-president and membership of its Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Group as of 2023.

Her professional background also extends beyond hockey. The NPUA’s official committee biography identifies Bonner as a manager responsible for sourcing indirect procurement for a commercial insurance company in the City of London. It also records her longstanding support for Liverpool FC. The employer is not named in that source.

In an iintroo Umpire’s Opinion video published on 20 August 2026, Bonner discussed a hockey rule she would change and the team she supported during the World Cup. The interview introduces her as an FIH Centre Panel umpire manager.