Sharon has been in the business for 30 years in a variety of functions and roles. She joined the HR team 18 years ago, covering all elements of Supply Chain and now heads up the Early Careers agenda for Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) in Great Britain.
Having spent the majority of her career developing young talent at the start of their careers, her current remit fits perfectly with her passion to create opportunities to support the next generation of young leaders. As part of her commitment, Sharon strives to work with strategic partners who challenge organisation’s approach to underrepresentation of young people across all communities and works to create a level playing field in the recruitment process that might unconsciously deselect from those groups.
Sharon’s dedication and commitment to CCEP’s apprenticeship programme has been recognised by CCEP’s leadership team, as well as her peers and apprentices alike. She has received praise for her outstanding leadership of the programme, which has continued to grow and expand in line with the business’ Early Careers agenda.
As well as recognition from the leadership team, 2021 saw Sharon win the Forward Ladies Corporate Leader and the London Regional National Apprenticeship Champion awards and recognition in the Queen’s 2022 New Year’s honours list with an OBE for services to Apprenticeships and Skills. Outside of CCEP she is an active board member for the Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP) and recently became the Vice-Chair of Youth Employment UK’s board.
Neil Carmichael is Executive Chair of the Association of Dental Groups (ADG), Chief Executive of UK China Education Cooperation (UCEC), and a member of Science Policy Expert Advisory Committee, Royal Society. He is an Honorary Professor, University College London, with a focus on education through the Institute of Education and the Global Business School for Healthcare.
Neil is a Trustee of the Sir Edward Heath Charitable Foundation and currently leads the Trust’s Edward Heath University Lecture Series.
Neil was Member of Parliament for Stroud (2010-17), serving on the Education Select Committee and the Environment Audit Committee. He was elected chair of the Education Select Committee in 2015. He established the All-Parliamentary Party Group on School Leadership and Governance and took the Antarctic Act 2013 through Parliament.
Neil served as Chair of the Conservative Group for Europe, spent two years advising and supporting parliamentarians in Myanmar, served as a governor of several schools and colleges, and chaired the Pearson UK Commission on Sustainable Learning for Work, Life and a Changing Economy.
In his spare time, Neil farms in Northumberland.
Lucy has worked in the training and education sector for over 20 years and for the past 12 years she has been working in the Apprenticeship arena. First leading the business development teams at 2 London FE colleges and for the past 8 years working for Health Education England now NHS England offering strategic support to the NHS on all aspects of apprenticeship development, delivery, and implementation. She is very passionate about apprenticeships and technical education as a great tool to recruit new talent to the NHS but also as a way to upskill the existing workforce and offer career pathways and progression.
Jonathan is a skills evangelist and is globally renowned for driving strategic collaboration that delivers high impact international skills development.
He leverages the UK Government’s global network to empower UK skills organisations to access and navigate international markets, supporting the realisation of export ambitions.
With a successful career spanning over three decades, with 20 years+ delivering skills across 78 countries, Jonathan has demonstrated his commercial acumen and proficiency in work-based skills and training in diverse industrial sectors worldwide.
Jonathan is post-graduate educated in Management, and a graduate in Learning and Development Provision. Jonathan is a Freeman of the City of London, a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Furniture Makers, a Chartered Manager and Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute, and a member of the Chartered Institute of Export and International Trade and the Institute of Directors.
Jayne started her career as a junior assistant on the Hair & Beauty Group at Reed Business Information and worked her way up, having qualified as a journalist, to become Editor-in-Chief of the portfolio. She is now Executive Director of the Professional Beauty Group, which includes the Hairdressers Journal International, Salon International, Professional Beauty and Aesthetic Medicine brands.
All of these have a multi-channel approach to their content with events, awards, print, online and social media channels. Actively involved in the hair and beauty industry for 30+ years, Jayne is an effective member of industry associations and bodies and is a trustee of the industry charity.
As well as this, Jayne is also a member of the VTCT Skills Board of Trustees and brings her current knowledge of the hair and beauty industries and a passion for raising the standards and positive profiles of the markets.
Katy joined City of Portsmouth College as its first permanent Principal & CEO in June 2022, shortly after it was formed following the merger between Highbury College and Portsmouth College. Prior to joining the City of Portsmouth College, Katy was Principal & CEO at Strode College in Somerset where she led the roll out of T levels in 2020 along with securing significant capital investment to enhance and upgrade the college’s campus.
Katy has nearly 30 years within the Further Education sector. For the past 15 years she has held senior positions at several of the South’s leading colleges, covering strategic leadership of curriculum, quality, apprenticeships, business development and the opening and expansion of new campuses. She has worked in a large sixth form college as well as technical colleges and has a breadth of educational experience covering both vocational and technical education as well as A levels. She has led significant quality and financial improvements as well as overseeing large capital development projects.
Katy is currently Vice-Chair of the Board at VTCT Skills and has been a member of the AoC’s Curriculum Policy group for the past 7 years. She was previously Chair of Governors at a secondary school in Somerset and has held other school governor positions. She was also a member of the Education and Training Foundation’s Technical Expert Panel between 2015 and 2017.
Andy Salter has spent most of his 30-year working life in and around the commercial vehicle and road freight sector, building detailed knowledge and expertise. In addition to being the former editor of TRUCK and Commercial Motor magazines, Andy was also a Chair of the International Truck of the Year jury and is now managing director of DVV Media International, a leading publisher in the transport and logistics sector. He is passionate about helping the freight transport and logistics industry prepare for a carbon-zero future.
Stewart has worked in the skills sector for over 30 years, holding a variety of different roles, including CEO of a private training provider, CEO of AELP, as well as working as a consultant and non-executive for a number of independent training providers.
He currently holds the position of Non Executive Chairman at Youth Employment UK, a not-for-profit organisation working in the youth employment sector. In addition to this Stewart sits on the board for Trustee of Skills and Employment Group and as a board member for the Association of Employment and Learning Providers.
Stewart has been a member of the governance board for Kaplan Apprenticeships since 1999.
Parisa is the strategic lead for WorldSkills UK’s workforce and skills development programmes, championing innovation and excellence across further and higher technical education, nationally and internationally. Collaborating with government, industry, and education partners, she leads programmes to raise standards through international benchmarking, professional development, and the integration of world-class best practices.
Under her leadership, WorldSkills UK has made significant strides in establishing the highly acclaimed WorldSkills UK Centre of Excellence, in partnership with NCFE. This pioneering initiative is rapidly becoming a beacon of innovation, codifying the art and science of exceptional teaching, learning, and assessment while setting new benchmarks for excellence in further and higher technical education.
With an unwavering commitment to accessibility and excellence, Parisa continues to design impactful programmes that harness the power of competition-based learning and international insights. Her work fosters a culture of continuous improvement, inspires ambition, and empowers institutions to deliver a world-class education for students and apprentices across the UK.
