Shirine Khoury-Haq, CEO, The Co-operative Group
Shirine is Group CEO at Co-op and has been a Director on the Co-op Board since joining in 2019. Shirine joined the Co-op in August 2019 as Chief Financial Officer and later also became Chief Executive Officer Life Services, leading Co-op Funeralcare, Insurance and Legal Services.
Kate Ancketill, CEO and founder, GDR
Kate is a Business Futurist with a tech, consumer, retail and brand specialisation, making complex societal shifts and emerging technologies relatable for any audience. She has delivered the trends keynote for the world's largest retail conference, the NRF Big Show for the last eight years.
Rody Vonk, Global Trainer, Facilitator and Keynote Speaker on Innovation, Business Creativity and Design Thinking
Rody Vonk is an International Facilitator, Trainer, and Speaker specialising in innovation, design thinking, and business creativity.
Before joining the Co-op, Shirine was Chief Operating Officer for the Lloyd’s insurance market, which comprised of more than 50 leading insurance companies operating in over 200 countries. She also led the digital modernisation programme for the wider London insurance industry.
In addition to holding senior positions at IBM, McDonalds and insurer, Catlin Group, Shirine has worked in a number of regulated sectors in the UK and overseas including retail, IT, pharmaceuticals and consumer goods.
Shirine was previously a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee at Persimmon Plc and a Non-Executive Director at the Post Office.
As CEO and founder of GDR, Kate is innovation partner to around 30 of the world's largest consumer brands, including Tesco, Sainsburys, Waitrose, Target, P&G, Costa Coffee, Coca-Cola, Clorox, Danone, Google, Microsoft, Jaguar Landrover and Lego.
With over 20 years of experience, Rody helps organisations break down barriers to creativity, drive strategic ideation, and turn ideas into action.
Through interactive workshops, he equips teams with practical tools to develop innovative products, services, and processes using design thinking, the lean startup methodology, and the FORTH innovation method.
Rody works across the Netherlands, Europe, and the Middle East, delivering sessions for organisations such as Google Academy, Deloitte, the Red Cross, and McDonald’s.
He is also a published author and TEDx speaker on innovation and creativity.
Beth Kume-Holland, Founder and CEO, Patchwork Hub
Beth Kume-Holland is an award-winning disability inclusion expert and the founder and CEO of Patchwork Hub, a disabled-led social enterprise providing an inclusive jobs board, alongside delivering training and consultancy services for employers.
Professor John Woodward, Pro Vice-Chancellor International, Northumbria University
As Pro Vice-Chancellor International, John works closely with the University Executive shaping and delivering the University’s Vision, Strategy and supporting plans.
Laura Bosworth, Founder & Chief Marketing Officer, LOCAL LIFE & REAL
Laura is dedicated to curating meaningful connections between students, their accommodation, and the wider community.
Named multiple times as one of the 100 most influential disabled people in the UK by Shaw Trust, Beth is a passionate advocate for disability inclusion, working across business, government and the third sector to drive change around work, health and disability.
She is a Harvard University Kennedy Scholar, co-founder of the Disabled Entrepreneurs Network and is a Commissioner on the UK’s Independent Commission for Healthier Working Lives.
Beth’s website: https://www.bethkh.com/
Patchwork Hub website: https://patchworkhub.org/
He is also Executive Lead for the North East Space Skills and Technology Centre (NESST).
John provides strategic leadership, vision and ambition in the development of the University’s International Strategy and profile. This includes:
Developing and maintaining strong relationships with key overseas stakeholders, particularly our transnational education partnerships.,
Supporting the Chief Marketing Officer to meet the University’s International Recruitment strategy, working to identify new international markets, partnerships, opportunities and initiatives.
Delivering an excellent international student experience to support student success.
Working closely with the PVC (Research and Knowledge Exchange) to deliver international strategic research partnerships in support of the university research strategy.
In 2022 John began work with Lockheed Martin Space UK and the UK Space Agency to develop NESST, a collaborative £50 million pound research and development facility that will transform the space economy of the northeast and the wider UK. His work in the space sector was acknowledged when he was awarded Business Person of the Year for Northumberland and Tyneside in 2024.
John was born and raised in the colliery villages of County Durham, attending Durham Johnston Comprehensive School. He obtained a BSc (Hons) in Geography at the University of Leeds and University of Liege, Belgium, an MSc at the University of Alberta, Canada and a PhD at the University of Leeds, graduating in 2000. After undertaking postdoctoral research at the University of Leeds, a Lectureship at Brunel University and a research post with the British Antarctic Survey, he joined Northumbria in 2003 as a lecturer. He was awarded a Professorship in 2012 and became Faculty Associate Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research & Innovation) in 2013. In 2018 he became Faculty Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Engineering and Environment, before moving to his current role in 2024.
Having completed a Teaching & Learning PCAPL qualification in 2004 John is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA). He is also a Member of the International Glaciological Society (IGS) and a Core Panel Member of the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) Peer Review College.
John is a glaciologist with expertise in near-surface geophysics and has attracted £36 million of research and capital funding through his career. His interest in ice/sediment/water interactions in glacial environments has led to NERC funded projects to study Subglacial Lake Ellsworth, Antarctica, the history and dynamics of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet and his current project on ice sheet instability as part of the International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration, funded by NERC and the National Science Foundation (NSF). He has conducted cryospheric research projects in Arctic Canada, Iceland, Greenland, Svalbard and Scandinavia and has spent over a year in Antarctica during seven successful science expeditions.
With nearly two decades in the student accommodation sector and a background in place marketing, she understands how to break down barriers between property and place - transforming spaces into thriving, connected hubs.
As the founder of Local Life, Laura champions the visibility of small independent businesses, ensuring they become an integral part of the student experience.
She works closely with universities, accommodation providers, and local communities to bridge the gap between student living and the cities they call home - helping to create a sticky campus that keeps students engaged with their surroundings.
Known for her fresh perspective on property and place marketing, Laura continuously challenges the status quo, inspiring others to rethink the role of community both on and off campus.
Michael Griffel, PhD, Associate Vice President for Student Services and Enrollment Management, University of Oregon
Michael Griffel has spent his career developing student environments that foster academic success and personal development. On his campus, he currently oversees a wide range of responsibilities, including residential academic initiatives, accommodations, dining, capital projects, business operations, and more.
Fiona Ellison, Director, Unite Foundation
Fiona is the Director of the Unite Foundation, joining at the start of 2021. Supported by a small team, the Unite Foundation, founded by Unite Students in 2012, delivers a unique university accommodation scholarship for care leavers and estranged students across the UK.
James Ellerby, Senior Consultant, Russell Partnership Collection
James is an experienced hospitality practitioner and consultant, with over 20 years’ experience in the industry. After graduating with a degree in Hospitality Business Management, James developed a management career within food and beverage and has worked for, and with, a variety of hotels, restaurants, and bars.
Michael has been active in ACUHO-I (Association of College and University Housing Officers-International).
During his years of ACUHO-I involvement, Michael has served two previous terms on the Executive Board as the Workforce Development Director and the Finance and Corporate Records Officer, and is currently serves as Vice President.
In addition, he has chaired the annual conference program committee and been a faculty member for James C. Grimm National Housing Training Institute and the Roelf Visser Student Housing Training Institute in South Africa.
Her career has focused mainly on the youth and charitable sectors. Previously Fiona was Director of Partnerships and Operations for Step Up To Serve which included a 2 year secondment at the National Lottery Community Fund where she led the development of a £70million fund to support youth social action. In addition Fiona is the Chair of the Longleigh Foundation, a charitable foundation that supports social housing residents.
Prior to joining Russell Partnership Collection, James established his own consultancy business, working with a variety of independent and national hospitality, education, and care organisations to review their operations and processes and successfully supporting business improvements across a range of functions.
Since joining the Partnership, James has worked closely with leading universities, the NHS, local government, hotels, and independent food businesses, to review and develop catering strategies, develop new food concepts, and manage new outlet design projects. James has also written, developed, and delivered training programmes for leading international hotel, travel, and leisure operators.
Qualified to master’s level in Organisation Development and Consultancy, James is currently furthering his education through studying a part-time PhD exploring success and failure in new restaurants. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Hospitality, Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, and is an experienced university lecturer in hospitality management.
Carl Hutchinson, Comedian
Geordie comic Carl Hutchinson is a powerhouse comedian on the circuit, known for his brilliant characterisations and expert timing. Watch Till the End, Carl’s 2023/24 tour sees him travelling across the UK over 75 dates including 2 sold out hometown shows at the 1,100 capacity Newcastle Tyne Theatre.
Peter Moore, Lolly Founder & CEO.
My mission is to take state-of-the-art tech into the hospitality and education sector and to make it both accessible and productive.
Steph Fisher, Senior Residential Life Coordinator, The University of Manchester
Steph is an experienced Senior ResLife Coordinator at The University of Manchester.
Carl regularly opens for Chris Ramsey on his nationwide tours and has supported other acts including Russell Howard. His relentless live work has led him to be named ‘One to watch’ by Chortle.
In 2020 he made his debut hosting BBC1’s flagship show The One Show, and has been seen on ITV2’s The Stand Up Sketch Show and Stand Up Central(Comedy Central). He has been heard on BBC Radio 4’s Fred at the Stand and BBC Radio Scotland’s The Good The Bad and The Unexpected.
In 2023 Carl began his solo podcast, The Carl Hutchinson Podcast, sharing a hilarious weekly story praised for its simplicity and relatability, ‘like getting voice notes from your funniest mate’.
Spent many years in senior roles at several tech companies, Vineyard owner, and lover of English wine!
She has been involved in the transformation to a full-time ResLife team structure, which is now a well-established service at the University. Steph has led a number of projects, including moving the Halls Discipline framework from less punitive to more educational outcomes. Most recently, she worked on implementing a compulsory Consent module for students in Halls and is now working with the wider University to meet both the conditions of OfS E6 and on the EmilyTest Charter Pilot Project in England.
Steph is passionate about staff and student wellbeing, all things ResLife, collaborative working, and loves connecting with others with an interest in HE and ResLife.
Outside of work, Steph is a mum who enjoys running and going to gigs.
Mike Ritchie, Digital Director, CampusLife
Mike has worked for CampusLife since the beginning in 2008.
Adam Calladine, Chief Operating Officer, Kinetic
Adam Calladine is Chief Operations Officer at Kinetic, where he helps universities and accommodation providers create better experiences for their teams, event organisers, delegates, and students.
Daryl Dixon, Head of Sport, Northumbria University
Daryl is a highly experienced HE Sport professional with a successful track record of delivering strong leadership, outstanding customer experience, increased participation, income generation and excellent facility management.
He now heads up the team that manages, develops, and produces amazing content for the Browzer platform, which transforms how accommodation and Residence Life teams communicate with students.
With over 20 years in the industry, he’s passionate about using technology to solve real-world challenges in higher education. Adam is known for transforming ideas into impactful products and building teams that care about making a difference. He’s particularly passionate about the potential of AI to drive smarter decisions and deliver real value across the sector
Ian Thomas, Chief Operating Officer, NewcastleGateshead Initiative
Sean Brown, Head of Operations, Chartwells
Sean Brown is Head of Operations at Chartwells, overseeing contracts at 6 universities and 10 colleges across the UK.
Barry Nicholson, Head of Conferencing & Event Operations, Northumbria University
Barry, Head of Conferencing & Event Operations at Northumbria University, has nearly 20 years’ experience working across higher education, event management, and the creative & cultural sector.
Sean supports the development of true partnerships, working with site teams and clients, prioritising the student and staff experience alongside the commercial aims.
Barry oversees the day-to-day event operations and leads the management of our contract with catering providers Chartwells/Compass Group. Out with day-to-day operations, Barry’s focus is on establishing networks and collaborative opportunities, ensuring that the University continues to thrive in a dynamic environment.
Mike Haslin, CEO, TUCO
Matthew Mealing, Associate Director of Campus Experience, University of Salford
Matthew is currently the Associate Director of Campus Experience at the University of Salford, Manchester, overseeing Catering, Conferences and Events, Residential Services, Sports, Sustainable Travel, Nursery, Student Inclusion engagement and Events.
Chris Jarram, Associate Director for Catering, University of Nottingham
Chris is the Associate Director for Catering at the University of Nottingham. He began his career as a chef and quickly discovered a passion for developing people and helping teams grow.
Over the last 18 months Matthew and his team have been working on an ambitious strategy to change the way all these areas impacts positively on the student experience and aligns to the UoS connectivity plan, and most recently has moved the whole catering operations in house.
He joined the University of Salford in October 2022 after three years at Falmouth Exeter plus where he was the Head of Operations Food and Beverage.
This led him to complete a business degree in Nottingham and later an MSc in Organisational Psychology. His career was predominantly in Contract catering in Business & Industry, in roles such as Food Development Manager, training teams and developing brands, and as a Regional Operations Manager. He now brings his commercial expertise and people-focused approach to the higher education sector, driving innovation and service excellence in university catering.
Sarah Ead, Head of Insight, Global Student Living
Sarah has nearly 20 years of professional research experience, including within the UK’s largest media agency. She has been instrumental in designing and running many studies for both commercial and non-commercial clients including major UK and international brands.
Matt Tebbitt, University of Reading
Sam Roth, Operations Director Universities, Gather & Gather
With over 20 years of senior-level experience in the food industry, Sam Roth leads the award-winning Universities sector at Gather & Gather, overseeing a portfolio with a turnover exceeding £35 million.
Since joining GSL, she has taken leadership in the development of our major research projects across the HE and student accommodation sectors and is currently Head of Insight at the Global Student Living Index - the world’s leading student insight platform and performance improvement tool for both university and private student accommodation providers.
For the last three years, GSL have worked in collaboration with CUBO on thought-leadership projects to support the industry in driving up standards and enhancing their understanding of the student experience. Sarah will be giving you a preview of some of the key findings from our latest report, which draws on the wealth of rich data and trends from the GSL Index and focuses specifically on the impact of the resident life experience on the student experience.
This is the third report GSL have produced in collaboration with CUBO following our 2023 report “Future Proof” profiling different international student cohorts and last year’s ‘Closing the Gap report’, which took a deep dive into the experiences and needs of a number of potentially vulnerable student cohorts.
He is a driving force behind innovation in food, technology, and sustainability, ensuring that services remain future-focused and market-leading.
Sam has built a resilient, high-performing team dedicated to delivering tailored, client-centric solutions across the higher education sector. His leadership is marked by a passion for people development and a strong commitment to nurturing emerging talent.
A champion of collaborative partnerships, Sam is a key supporter of the LUPC/SUPC Framework and serves as a Platinum Sponsor for CUBO, actively contributing to thought leadership and sector advancement..
Robert Kingham, Head of Advisory, Student First Group (SFG)
Robert has over 25 years’ experience in the property industry and for the last 15 has specialised in providing strategic estates advice to the Higher Education sector.
Nysa Pradhan, Executive Director, CUBO
Nysa joined CUBO in October 2024 as Executive Director. Nysa brings extensive experience in leadership, innovation, strategic, financial and operational management and a passion for making a difference in the non-profit sector, evidenced by her experiences at Gem-A, BCI, IIS and her own volunteering with the Aga Khan Council as well as her recent roles.
Kirsty Woodward, CUBO Chair and Director of Estates and Campus Services, University of Leicester
Kirsty joined the University of Leicester in 2010, where she progressed from Deputy Director of Residential and Commercial Services to Director of Campus Services before taking up her current role.
He is a Chartered Management Consultancy Surveyor with particular experience in on-campus student housing partnerships, business cases, estate strategies, option appraisals, feasibility studies, capital funding bids, learning environments and space planning.
Robert has advised 50+ universities in the UK and internationally, and 30+ Further Education Colleges, as well as local authorities, NHS trusts, museums, developers and investors.
Most recently, Nysa held the position of Chief Operating Officer at The Gemmological Association of Great Britain (Gem-A).
Nysa works alongside the CUBO Executive Committee and colleagues in the mission to lead and promote excellence in the development of campus life, services and the student experience and in continuing to deliver the core benefits of membership – networking, best practice, data and resources for all campus and commercial services.
At the University of Leicester, Kirsty is the strategic lead for Accommodation; Print Services; Leicester Conferences; Campus Operations, including Portering and Cleaning, Grounds and Gardens, Post, Fleet; and Security. Kirsty is also a Board Director of College Court Conference Centre and Leicester Services Partnership, (the Student Union and University catering partnership) and the University lead on Prevent.
Kirsty joined CUBO Executive Board in March 2019, initially picking up the conference portfolio. Kirsty is CUBO Chair and has represented CUBO on the Board of the Universities UK Accommodation Code of Practice since October 2018.
Prior to joining Leicester, Kirsty was a Senior Project Manager at the Russell Partnership. In this role, Kirsty worked with well-known organisations such as the BBC and Goldman Sachs to improve their catering offer. She also worked with a number of universities, including Leicester. It was while working for Leicester as a consultant that Kirsty began the journey of transforming the University’s catering service, which led to her being offered a permanent role at the institution.
Her early career was spent in hotels including a spell as a Hotel Manager working for Wolverhampton and Dudley Breweries. She also spent ten years at the University of Warwick, firstly as Catering Manager and then as Head of Catering Services.
Kirsty is a former winner of a Caterer and Hotelkeeper Acorn Award and was named Cost Sector Caterer of the Year in 2001. She received her MBA from the University of Leicester in January 2017, having combined her studies with a very busy job.
Charlotte Thwaite, Sustainability Manager Universities, Gather & Gather
Charlotte has over 13 years of experience in the food industry, in roles including operations, sales and production with a particular expertise in sustainable supply chain management, packaging reduction and food waste management.
She has built sustainable innovations for councils, universities, charities and SME’s, focusing on increasing operational and financial efficiencies through implementing more sustainable practises.
As well as having a thorough background in projects around sustainability, she has also co-ordinated the Covid supply-chain response for the UK's biggest meal kit delivery company, managed over 400 caterers and restaurants on a delivery platform and helped develop the new food strategy for Manchester as part of a diverse career.
Charlotte is the Sustainability Manager for the Gather and Gather Universities where she works with clients to implement their sustainable food goals alongside Gather & Gathers Net Zero targets. This includes focuses on carbon, disposable and food waste reduction initiatives as well as positive procurement and carbon labelling practises.
