UpRising Ambassadors

London Ambassadors

 

Amanda Jordan OBE, Co-founding Director of Corporate Citizenship

Amanda is joint Chair of Corporate Citizenship, which she founded in 2001 after a successful career spanning the voluntary and private sectors, including 10 years developing and managing an award winning CSR programme for NatWest. She was also an advisor to the Social Exclusion unit in the Cabinet Office and a Non Executive Director of the ODPM Government Office Coordination Department.

Amanda chaired a working party for DCSF on child safety and internet content and has also been a Non Executive Director of the Banking Code Standards Board. In addition she is a member of the ICAEW CSR Committee and the ICC CSR Advisory Board at Nottingham University Business School. Amanda's not for profit roles include Chair of the National Literacy Trust and of the Baring Foundation. Amanda was a founder member of the National Lottery Charities Board 1994 to 2000 and was awarded the OBE in the Queens Birthday Honours for services to the voluntary sector.

 

THE RT HON THE BARONESS ROYALL OF BLAISDON

Jan Royall was elected as Leader of the Opposition in the House of Lords and a member of the Shadow Cabinet in May 2010. Before that Jan served as Government Chief Whip and Captain of the Honourable Corps of the Gentleman-at-Arms from February to October 2008; and as a Government Whip and Government Spokesperson for Health, International Development and Foreign and Commonwealth Office in the House of Lords from 2005-08. 

In 2004 she was given a life peerage as Baroness Royall of Blaisdon, of Blaisdon in the County of Gloucestershire. She became a Privy Counsellor in 2008. She is a former Trustee of IPPR; the National Botanic Garden of Wales; and Generation Europe.

 Caroline Waters OBE

Caroline Waters is Director of People and Policy for BT Group.  A role that she has held since 2005 following a number of senior HR appointments in the Company. Her current role focuses on realising BT’s business ambitions through leading-edge people strategies, underpinned by robust policies & processes, which promote inclusivity, empower individuals, generate revenue and opportunity and contribute to community and volunteering. Caroline also leads BT’s Diversity Centre of Expertise.

 

 

 

Lord Harris of Peckham

Lord Harris, was educated at Streatham Grammar School and in 1957, at the age of 15, following the sudden death of his father; he took over the running of the family business. This consisted of three carpet shops, which by 1977 he had increased to 93. Later that year he acquired Queensway Discount Warehouse and in 1978 successfully floated the Harris Queensway Group. In 1988, Harris Queensway was taken over by the Lowndes Consortium and Lord Harris went on to set up Carpetright, which was floated in 1993. Lord Harris is Chairman and Chief Executive of Carpetright plc, which currently has just over 650 stores in the UK, Republic of Ireland, Belgium and The Netherlands and employs almost 4,000 staff. Carpetright plc also comprises of Storey Carpets and a bed business aptly named Sleepright.

He married his childhood sweetheart, Pauline, in 1960 and together they have three sons and a daughter plus 11 grandchildren.

Lord Harris is Chairman of Harris Ventures Ltd. He is a major supporter of many charities including Great Ormond Street Hospital, Prostate Cancer, Guys’ & St. Thomas’ Hospital and the NSPCC to name just a few. Lord Harris and his family also support Harris HospisCare, a local charity in Orpington, Kent.

Lord Harris is a sponsor of 13 Academies which all form part of the Harris Federation Schools. He is also a major sponsor of Bacon’s College, Southwark and Kemnal Technology College, Sidcup. He is a benefactor of two colleges at Oxford, Oriel and Harris Manchester and Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge.

He was voted the Ernst & Young UK Entrepreneur of the Year in 2007 and went on to represent the UK at the World Entrepreneur of the Year held in Monte Carlo. Lord Harris is a lifelong supporter of Arsenal FC of which he is now a non-executive director.

 

 

 

 

Lord Macdonald of Tradeston PC, CBE

Gus Macdonald worked as a shipyard engineer prior to a career as a newspaper journalist, television producer/presenter, then CEO and chairman of various media companies. Appointed to the House of Lords in 1998 he was Minister for Transport and subsequently for the Cabinet Office. In 2004 he resumed his business career with Macquarie Group. He is also a board member of Scottish Power. Gus is a working Peer in the House of Lords, a member of the Privy Council, and Chancellor of Glasgow Caledonian University. 

 

 

 

 

Marcus Jamieson-Pond is the Corporate Social Responsibility Manager of law firm, Addleshaw Goddard, having been appointed to the post in 2006 after an earlier career in Human Resources. As well as defining and managing the firm's award winning programme, he is also active in the wider community in his spare time, having founded the Convergence network in late 2009. Convergence is an "open source" organisation, built on altruism. It believes that when people pool ideas and experiences, interesting things happen that can have a wider positive impact.  As a result of Convergence, Marcus was selected by the London Sustainable Development Commission as one of 15 London Leaders for 2011.

 

 

Mathew Taylor

Matthew Taylor became Chief Executive of the RSA in November 2006. Prior to this appointment, he was Chief Adviser on Political Strategy to the Prime Minister.

Matthew was appointed to the Labour Party in 1994 to establish Labour's rebuttal operation. During the 1997 General Election he was Labour's Director of Policy.

His activities before the Labour Party included being a county councillor, a parliamentary candidate, a university research fellow and the director of a unit monitoring policy in the health service.

He was the Director of the Institute for Public Policy Research between 1999 and 2003, Britain’s leading centre left think tank. Matthew has written for publications including The Times, Financial Times, Guardian, New Statesman and Prospect and is a regular contributor on Radio 4’s Moral Maze.

Moya Greene

Moya Greene joined Royal Mail as Chief Executive Officer in July 2010.  Prior to joining Royal Mail, Moya was President and Chief Executive Officer of Canada Post Corporation. She sat on the Board of Directors of Canada Post, of Purolator Courier Ltd, a subsidiary of Canada Post and still sits on the board of Tim Hortons. Moya has been a senior officer of three of Canada’s largest multinational companies, first in banking and financial services at TD Securities Inc., at CIBC, and at Bombardier Inc. Moya has acquired a strong track record in strategic planning, complex negotiations and relationship building. Moya also has a strong public sector background. She spent the first part of her career in Ottawa where, over a 17-year period, assumed progressively senior roles in seven different Ministries of the federal public service. Moya is a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School and Memorial University of Newfoundland. Moya has been named one of Canada’s top 40 female corporate executives and was recognized as one of Canada’s Top 100 influential women in both private and public sectors.

 

Peter Kellner

Peter Kellner has been President of the pioneering online survey research company, YouGov since April 2007, having served as Chairman from 2001 until 2007. He won the 2007 ‘Chairman of the Year’ award from the Quoted Companies Alliance; in 2011 he was given a Special Recognition award by the Political Studies Association for his work in reporting polls and elections.

He is also Chairman of the Royal Commonwealth Society.

During the past four decades he has written for a variety of newspapers, including the Times, Sunday Times, Independent, Observer, Evening Standard, New Statesman. He has also been a regular contributor to Newsnight (BBC2), A Week in Politics (Channel Four), Powerhouse (Channel Four), Analysis (Radio Four) and election night results programmes on television and radio. He has written, or contributed to, a variety of books and leaflets about politics, elections and public affairs.

Peter has also been a visiting fellow at Nuffield College, Oxford, a distinguished visiting fellow at the Policy Studies Institute, London, and served as a member of committees set up by the Economic and Social Research Council to commission research into elections and social exclusion.

 Before joining YouGov, Peter acted as a consultant on public opinion research to a number of organisations, including the Bank of England, Corporation of London, Foreign Office, National Westminster Bank and Trades Union Congress.

 

Prem Goyal As a founder of Global Markets Consultants (GMC), an investment banking consulting boutique firm, in 2002, Prem has demonstrated excellent entrepreneurial skills. GMC provides banking services to top banks, including Deutsche Bank (DB), HSBC, UBS and Bank of America. Because of his outstanding efforts, GMC has expanded rapidly and achieved an average annual growth of 25%. Since inception, GMC has been successfully providing business opportunities and access to small businesses by connecting them to global corporations across the financial and banking industry all over the world. As a result of Prem's outstanding professionalism, DB has selected GMC as a Preferred Supplier for Business Consulting Services for 2005 - 2011.  This has been a great honor for GMC given the size and global reach of DB.  

Over the years, Prem has volunteered for many charities and not-for-profit organizations, including fire departments, magistrate courts and educational institutions. Since June 2009, he has been serving as a Magistrate in Stratford Court.  Additionally, he is a Trustee for Attlee Foundation which inspires disadvantaged children in Tower Hamlets to achieve more. Moreover, using his academic and professional experience he inspires students in Tower Hamlet College, where he has been serving as a Governor since May 2010, to achieve more in their lives.  Recently he has joined Tayo Situ Foundation, and Time and Talents as a Trustee.

 

Stephen Colegrave

After 3 years touring with his punk band, Stephen studied History and Medical Ethics at Kings London. Reinventing himself as an Ad man, he worked Saatchi & Saatchi for 10 years on and off. From CEO of Saatchi and Saatchi Prague he went on to become Marketing Director of Europe, Middle East and Africa. He took a few years off to produce feature films including “Everybody Loves Sunshine” with David Bowie and Goldie. Recovering from Hollywood he published “Punk” a definitive history of the movement that sold over 500,000 copies worldwide and a series of books: Inside Music, to help people get into the music business.

In 2001 he partnered up with Karen Mitchell to set up Giraffe an independent advertising agency and Boston Books a consultancy. He advises government on innovation in healthcare running the largest healthcare innovation event in Europe and is setting up a National Centre for Sport and Exercise Medicine to fulfill an Olympic commitment. Also Stephen is a partner in Pixie Pop And Posh, an online fashion business and a mini department store in the North of England. He runs “Inside”  - a series of regular events for creative people from film, music, art and fashion and curates exhibitions including the recent Leee Black Childer’s Photography exhibition. Stephen is a trustee of the Young Actors’ Theatre in Islington.

 

Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon. (BA Hons, ACIB)
Lord Ahmad is a Conservative Peer in the UK Parliament. He was born and educated in London and is currently serving as Director of Marketing & Strategy at the trading and commodities firm, Sucden Financial, in the City of London. He has had a varied 20 year business career in the City and financial services, complemented by his direct involvement in community and charitable projects, both in the UK and internationally, as well as an active role in public life. He has held elected office locally and regionally in London and was also Vice Chairman of the Conservative Party between 2008-2010. He is currently involved on development and trade initiatives working closely with British based NGOs.

 

 

Trevor Phillips (OBE)

Trevor is the Chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission. The Commission inherited the work of the previous equality commissions on disability, gender and race in October 2007 and also has responsibility for the new areas of age, religion and belief, sexual orientation, transgender and the promotion of human rights and good relations. Previously he was Chair of the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE).

Born in London in 1953, Trevor attended secondary school in Georgetown, Guyana, and studied chemistry at Imperial College London. Between 1978 and 1980, he was president of The National Union of Students. He then went into broadcasting, becoming Head of Current Affairs at LWT in 1992. Trevor received awards from the Royal Television Society in 1988, 1993 and 1998.

He was elected a member of the Greater London Authority in May 2000.

 

Birmingham Ambassadors

Andrew Litchfield (Partner, Dispute Resolution Group, Wragge & Co. LLP) read history at Birmingham University, graduating in 1991. He then stayed on to take the Graduate Diploma in Law before studying the Law Society Finals course at De Montford University in Leicester. In September 1993 Andrew started a training contract at Wragge & Co LLP, qualifying into the Dispute Resolution Group in 1995. He became a Partner in 2009. He advises mainly corporate clients under investigation and prosecuted for a range of criminal regulatory offences, including health and safety, environmental, food safety, and consumer protection. He provides compliance advice as well as representing defendants throughout the investigation process and in the criminal courts.

 

 

Sir Bernard Zissman

During a busy political career, serving as a senior member of Birmingham City Council, Sir Bernard led the team which developed the International Convention Centre and the world acclaimed Symphony Hall, home of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.  He subsequently led the team placing the foundation blocks for the Midland’s millennium project, Millennium Point in Birmingham and is currently Chairman of the Millennium Point Trust which hosts the exciting science and education project Thinktank and IMAX cinema. 

Sir Bernard serves as chairman of a number of local companies including Advantage Business Angels, CDI Group Ltd, Rewired PR Ltd, Cerebrum Partners Ltd and is European Partner of the Overseas Connection Group. In the past he has been a member of the Council of the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce, Chairman of a large NHS Hospital Trust, Chairman of the Alexandra Theatre, a Director of the BRMB radio station as well as a Trustee of the CBSO Benevolent Fund. He was the first Chairman of the Birmingham Convention and Visitor Bureau (now Marketing Birmingham), and served as Chairman of a range of local authority committees.

His wide experience is completed with being a former Chairman of the Regional Committee of the Princess Royal Trust for Carers and former President the Birmingham Hebrew Congregation. He is currently President of the Representative Council of Birmingham & Midlands Jewry and is also a member of Regional Appeal Council of the National Memorial Arboretum at Alrewas in Staffordshire and a Patron of the Marie Curie Appeal for the new Hospice in Solihull.

 

 

 

 Chris Loughran, Regional Chairman and Senior Partner in Deloitte’s Midlands practice, responsible for the development and growth of Deloitte’s business in the Midlands of England across the full range of the firm’s services. He took up this role in June 2010, on his return from London where, for the previous ten years, he had led the development of Deloitte’s Technology Consulting business. Throughout his time in London Chris specialised in advising organisations in both the public and private sector on their use of technology to promote and deliver business change. As an example, Chris led the Deloitte team that advised the Mayor of London and Transport for London on the design and delivery of the groundbreaking London Congestion Charge.

He joined Deloitte (then Touche Ross & Co.) in Birmingham in 1987, following a successful early career in systems development and management with Lucas Electrical. From 1987 to 1995 he was a key player in the development of the Deloitte’s Consulting business in the Midlands and North of England, becoming a Partner in the firm in 1993. He was a member of the Consulting Executive from 2003 to 2010 and in 2008 was appointed a Vice Chairman of the firm. Chris was elected to the Board of Partners of Deloitte in December 2010.

He is a Non-Executive Director of Marketing Birmingham, a Council Member of the CBI in the West Midlands, a Director and Trustee of Kyra (a Leadership Development charity) and Chairman of Birmingham & Solihull Rugby Club.

 

 

Lord Digby Jones spent 20 years with Edge & Ellison, a Birmingham-based firm of lawyers, where he worked his way up from Articled Clerk to Senior Partner.  In 2000 he joined the CBI and campaigned relentlessly on a range of issues.  In 2005 he was knighted for his services to business.  When he left the CBI in 2006 he spent the next 12 months in the private sector as advisor to Deloitte and Barclays Capital, held a variety of non-executive board roles, and was the unpaid UK Skills Envoy. In July 2007 he was appointed Minister of State for UK Trade & Investment and became a life peer taking the title, Digby, Lord Jones of Birmingham Kt.  Now, in addition to his role as an active crossbencher in the House of Lords he serves as Chairman of the International Business Advisory Board at HSBC, Chairman of the International Business Advisory Board at British Airways, Chairman of Triumph Motorcycles Limited, and is Corporate Ambassador for Jaguar Cars and JCB. He advises in a number of other paid and unpaid roles, fulfilling his vision of promoting socially inclusive wealth creation. Digby travels regularly across the UK and overseas, runs his own business and his fulfilment is complete when Leicester Tigers and Aston Villa win their matches.

 

 

John Russell, Group Chief Executive, Manganese Bronze Holdings PLC

John, who was previously Vice President of Harley Davidson Motor Company and Managing Director of Harley Davidson Europe, joined the Board of Manganese Bronze Holding PLC in March 2007 as Group Chief Executive.

Mr Russell began his career in the automotive industry at Unipart in 1972 before moving to Peugeot Talbot Motor Co in 1980. He spent six years at Peugeot, initially as UK Parts Marketing Director, and then as UK Marketing Director. This was followed by ten years at the Rover Group where he progressed from Marketing Director for Land Rover to Rover Group Board Director responsible for Sales, Marketing and Overseas Manufacturing. Prior to joining Harley Davidson he was Director General of the Walpole Committee, an organisation that promotes British luxury brands, and Interim CEO of Bombay Dyeing, a Mumbai, India, based textile manufacturer.

 

 

Stewart Towe CBE

Stewart is Group Managing Director of Hadley Industries Holdings Ltd.

Stewart trained as an Accountant with the Birmingham firm of Farmiloe & Co. In 1976 he moved into industry on completion of final exams as Group Accountant. He was appointed to the Main Board in 1978 taking responsibility for the commerical and financial development of the Group. Stewart completed the buy-out of the business from the Hadley family in April 2006.  Hadley have grown from £1 million annual turnover in the mid 1970's to over £100 million annual turnover in 2011. Growth has been primarily by product development, not acquisition. Hadley now have manufacturing plants in the Middle East, Far East and Europe and licensees throughout the world.

Stewart was awarded a CBE in 2008 in recognition of the leading role he has played in regional affairs – most notably within the Black Country - and through achievement and service to the community.

He is highly proactive at the public/private sector interface; encouraging businesses to become involved with regeneration and education throughout the region. Stewart was appointed as Business in the Community's Regional Ambassador for the West Midlands in June 2007 and was nominated as High Sheriff of the West Midlands in 2012. Since October 2009 Stewart has Chaired Business in the Community for the West Midlands Region and in December 2010 became the Chair of the Black Country LEP. Stewart is also Chair of the Governors at Bromsgrove School and Alexandra High School & Sixth Form Centre in Tipton. In addition to being a Governor at the University he is also a Governor at Aston University and Sandwell Academy. Stewart is also a member of the CBI Manufacturing Council.

 

 

Hilary Allen is Birmingham’s Young Professional of the Year 2011, working as an Associate for Davis Langdon, an AECOM Company.  As a Chartered Surveyor and University of Cambridge graduate, Hilary now leads the growth of Land Development Group, where she helps a number of key client accounts find commercial solutions for contaminated land. She sits on the Leadership Team of Birmingham Future, the city’s young professional organisation and is part of the working groups consulting on city issues such as High Speed 2 , Big City Plan and Vision for Movement.  In addition, Hilary sits on the Thrive committee, which is dedicated to promoting best practice in Corporate Social Responsibility in the region.

 

 

Joe Kelly, Deputy CEO Birmingham International Airport

Joe joined the Airport Company in 1998 as the Finance Director and he is now the Deputy CEO.  The delivery of the Runway Extension and expansion of the commercial portfolio are the current priority projects, which Joe is leading and he is also the Company Secretary.  Joe is also a member of the Board of Governors at Birmingham City University and sits on the Executive Committee of the British American Business Council.  Joe qualified as an accountant with Kidsons in Birmingham then spent two years with Ernst & Young in the Middle East.  This was followed by roles in banking, transport and manufacturing industries.  Joe holds an MBA from Aston University and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, the Chartered Institute of Credit Management, and the Institute for the Management of Information Systems.

 

 

 

Paul Heaven has more than 20 years general management experience and is by profession a qualified chartered accountant. Having served his articles at Clement Keys & Co and his corporate finance apprenticeship at Ernst & Young; Paul formed Blue Sky Corporate Finance (www.blueskycf.com) to serve the needs of the small to medium sized enterprise sector. Over the years Paul has become an expert in corporate finance, venture capital, private equity and asset lending and has extensive experience of acquisitions, disposals, floatation and fund raising. Paul is also a regular speaker at Corporate Finance events, a member of the West Midlands Regional Finance Forum and an expert on the funding sources available from equity, debt, grants and trade/asset finance. Paul was recently appointed as one of the eight new board members for the Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and a Mentor for the Entrepreneurs for the future (e4f) programme.

 

 

Paul Thandi is one of the region’s most influential businessmen and Chief Executive of the UK’s largest and most high-profile venue management company, the NEC Group. Paul became group Chief Executive in October 2006. Paul has exceptional experience of the exhibition industry having previously been Executive Director at CMP Information (United Business Media), a multimedia trading division in exhibitions, conferences, digital, information products and online communities. He spent the last three years at CMPi enabling the acquisition and merger strategy. Paul is responsible for driving the business forward through commercial and strategic leadership. Paul represents the NEC Group on the boards of Marketing Birmingham, CBI West Midlands Council; is Chair of Birmingham & Solihull Employment & Skills and President of Solihull Chamber of Commerce.

Paul writes of UpRising:

"I am a strong supporter of UpRising Birmingham and its mission to support and develop young adults aged 19 – 25 from diverse backgrounds in order to become the next generation of effective and connected leaders across the private, public and voluntary sector.  Birmingham is one of the youngest cities in Europe with 37% of its population aged under the age of 25. This creates a real opportunity for Birmingham, programmes like UpRising help equip the next generation with the hard and soft skills to be able to work effectively in an increasingly globalised workforce working confidently across difference and embracing diversity. In a competitive global market such as today this can only be advantageous. It is for this reason and the individuals involved, why I have agreed and am honoured to be an Ambassador for UpRising."

 

 

 

The Rt Hon Lord Philip Hunt PC OBE is a member of the House of Lords and Deputy Leader of the Opposition. He is Chairman of the Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust. He is President of the Royal Society of Public Health. He also serves as Chair of the All Party Group on Primary Care and Public Health. He is Treasurer of the Associate Parliamentary Health Group; Secretary of the All-Party Group on the Constitution and Vice Chair of the All Party Group for Energy Studies. He served for 10 years in the 1997-2010 Labour Government. He was Deputy Leader of the House of Lords and Minister of State at the Department of Energy and Climate Change from 2008-2010. He also served in the Department of Health, Department of Work and Pensions, Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Ministry of Justice.  Philip Hunt lives in Birmingham. His leisure activities are concert going, cycling, swimming, and spending time with his family (five children).  He is a keen supporter of Birmingham City FC and Warwickshire County Cricket Club.

 

 

 

Suzie Norton started her career in Westminster as a researcher and then political producer for GMTV.  After five years of 3am starts, she joined the BBC as a senior broadcast journalist for the current affairs unit back in her home city of Birmingham.  In September 2005, she became the inaugural director of Film Birmingham establishing the city's first online film location service.  From September 2007 to April 2011, Suzie was the CEO of Screen West Midlands.  During Suzie’s tenure, the agency attracted over £15million to invest in the region from various partners including a deal with Channel 4 which positioned the West Midlands as the lead UK commissioning hub for the station's digital media fund.  In October 2010 Suzie won the prestigiousVitalise Business Woman of the Year Award. Suzie is currently the Chair of the Management Steering Committee for Action for Children (Centre and South West of England).

 

Vij Randeniya is the Chief Fire Officer of West Midlands Fire Service, having served in the fire service for over 28 years in brigades across the country. He is Vice-President of the Chief Fire Officer’s association, and will serve as President in 2012-13. He also serves as the Chairman of the board of governors for Birmingham Metropolitan College.  Vij believes passionately in the need to support and develop young people, to help them to become the leaders and activists of tomorrow. He strongly supports the aims and objectives of the Uprising Leadership Programme, and is delighted to see it rolled out in his adopted home city of Birmingham. Vij sees Uprising is an innovative and forward thinking programme which will undoubtedly help the young people of the West Midlands to make a real difference to their communities while building on their potential.

Chris Webster is the CEO of Miller Construction.  He joined Miller Construction and The Miller Group in September 2010. Formerly Chief Operating Officer and Main Board Director at Amey plc, where he spent almost 20 years.  He is a Chartered Engineer, a member of the Institution of Civil Engineers, a Fellow of the Institution of Highways and Transportation and a member of The Worshipful Company of Paviors.

 

Bedford Ambassadors

Dave Hodgson is Mayor of Bedford Borough. He was first elected as Mayor in October 2009, and was re-elected for a four year term in May 2011.

Dave’s family moved to Bedford when Dave was 9 years old. His father was a local Headteacher at Westfield School and Mark Rutherford School and also served as a senior steward at Putnoe Heights Church.

Dave has lived in Bedford for over thirty years, in various parts of Bedford town both north and south and lived for several years in one of Bedford Borough’s rural villages. He is married to Christine and they live in Kathie Road, Bedford.

Dave worked at Charles Wells Brewery in Queens Park as a summer job and his first job after graduating was with Prime Computing in Bedford town centre. He has a degree in computing and business. Dave has had a varied career university lecturing and running his own business supplying secretarial services.

Dave served as a Councillor representing Kingsbrook ward from 2002 until his election as Mayor in October 2009. His portfolio responsibilities include Economic Development, Rural Affairs, Diversity and Partnerships.

In his spare moments, Dave enjoys keeping his garden under control, watching football and the odd round of golf.

 

 

David Russell

David joined the Bedford Charity (Harpur Trust) in 2002 after a career in the Royal Navy in which he commanded one surface warship and three submarines, including HMS Vanguard, the UK’s lead Trident submarine, and led the UK effort to rescue survivors from the sunken Russian submarine Kursk in the Barents Sea in 2001.  He gained a first class honours degree in law with the Open University in 2004 and has spoken at the Oxford Union.  Since he joined the Charity, it has adopted its first Strategic Plan, sponsored an Academy, revised its communications and HR strategy and developed its grant making.

 

 

Richard Fuller MP

Richard was born in Bedford and lives in the heart of the constituency.

He was raised and educated locally before leaving for Oxford University to study for his BA. Richard subsequently completed an MBA at Harvard Business School. Richard believes passionately in his home town of Bedford and is actively involved in local campaigns.

During his career, Richard has been a partner in a venture capital firm; a partner in a management consulting firm and has worked in many locations around the world including Australia, Korea, the Philippines and the United States.

Richard stood for the Parliamentary seat of Bedford in the 2005 General Election. Richard was elected to Parliament at the 2010 General Election.