Speakers

Jamie was appointed Director of Universities UK International (UUKi) in November 2022. Prior to taking on this role, Jamie led Universities UK’s research and innovation policy programme (2014-2017) before becoming Assistant Director for Policy Engagement at UUKi (2017-2022). Before joining Universities UK in 2010, Jamie was a research associate and ESRC research fellow at Manchester Metropolitan University’s Education and Social Research Institute.

Harriet has worked in tertiary education and research policy for over 15 years, in roles with a UK-wide remit at Jisc, the Quality Assurance Agency and the British Academy. She joined HEFCW in 2021, where she oversaw the research and innovation, student experience, widening access and skills and employability policy and funding portfolios. Since August 2024, she has been Director of Research, Innovation and Skills at Medr, the Commission for Tertiary Education and Research in Wales. She has a background in medieval Celtic studies.

Beñat Bilbao-Osorio is the Research and Innovation Counsellor at the EU Delegation to the United Kingdom. Prior to that, he was Deputy Head of unit and senior economist at the Directorate General for Research and Innovation of the European Commission, regional director for Latin America and the Caribbean at the Economist Intelligence Unit,  Head of Frontier Insights and Senior Economist with the Global Competitiveness Network at the World Economic Forum and an economist at the OECD. Dr Bilbao-Osorio holds a PhD in economic geography from the London School of Economics and Political Science

Dr Ben Bleasdale is the Director of Public Opinion at the Campaign for Science and Engineering (CaSE). His team conduct large-scale research into public attitudes towards R&D, with opinion nationally-representative data from over 40,000 people across the UK. CaSE translate this data into practical guidance and tools to help R&D organisations connect with new public and political supporters, with the aim of making R&D matter to more people. Ben has previously held roles at the Wellcome Trust, Academy of Medical Sciences and the Medical Research Council.

Michael Bright is Associate Director for International Policy and Stakeholder Engagement at UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), playing a leading role in advancing UKRI’s global engagement and influencing international research policy. He supports UKRI’s participation in multilateral fora such as the OECD Global Science Forum and works to strengthen partnerships that enable secure and sustainable collaboration. Michael also serves as Executive Secretary to the Global Research Council, connecting research funders worldwide. With extensive experience in building partnerships and navigating complex global challenges, he helps ensure UK research remains globally connected, responsible, and impactful.

Dr Alexis Brown is Head of Global Insights at the British Council. Prior to that she was Director of Policy at HEPI, where she published on research security and overseas R&D investment, and a Policy Manager at the Russell Group, where she managed a portfolio of policy issues related to higher education and financial sustainability.

Professor Dame Jessica Corner is Executive Chair, Research England, part of UK Research and Innovation. Previously she was: Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Research and Knowledge Exchange, University of Nottingham; Executive Dean, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southampton; Director, National Institute for Health Research Wessex CLARHC, Executive Director, Improving Cancer Services for charity Macmillan Cancer support. She held academic positions at King’s College London and the Institute of Cancer Research, London. Her own research focussed on supportive and palliative care in cancer and long term-health outcomes after treatment for cancer. She led some of the first clinical trials of nurse-led care in the world.  Dame Jessica was made a DBE in 2014 for services to health care research and education, elected a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 2015, and elected Fellow of the European Academy in 2019. In 2018, when the UK NHS turned 70, she was named as one of the most influential nurses in its history.

Helen Cross is Director of Research and Innovation at the Scottish Funding Council which annually invests over £300m in university research and knowledge exchange funding on behalf of Scottish Government. She is Deputy Chair of the REF2029 Steering Group. Prior to joining SFC in 2022, Helen worked for UK Research and Innovation since its creation in 2018, where she led a team focusing on cross-cutting policy and investment priorities. Before this Helen worked as a civil servant in the UK Government for nearly 10 years, latterly in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, where she worked on the industrial strategy, science and innovation policy.

Amy Devenney is a Research Fellow at the University of Bristol and is currently leading the Wellcome-funded COMET study team. The COMET project aims to investigate and improve the use of evidence in decision-making affecting research cultures within higher education. Prior to this, she worked at Jisc, supporting national licensing and negotiation activity through data-driven insights and evidence, and she has also held roles across UK academic libraries. 

Rebecca became Director of REF 2029 in September 2023. Prior to this she was Director of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) India, leading the representative office for the UK’s major research and innovation funder within the British High Commission in New Delhi.Rebecca has worked with research councils and UKRI since 2005, primarily for the Economic and Social Research Council, covering roles in research funding, big data, postgraduate training, governance and evaluation.

Nicholas is a specialist across Financial Communications and Public Affairs, focusing on financial services, energy, infrastructure, and education. He has advised clients in a range of critical situations, including capital raises, thought leadership, fund launches and complex political and regulatory issues. 

Tony Hickson, Chief Business Officer for Cancer Research UK and Cancer Research Horizons, leads the Commercial Partnerships team, focusing on IP commercialization, start-up creation, licenses, and corporate alliances. Formerly the Managing Director of Imperial Innovations Ltd, he oversaw intellectual property sourcing, licensing, and spin-out creation for Imperial College London's technologies. Additionally, he served five years as an executive director on the board of Touchstone Innovations PLC, a London Stock Exchange-listed investment company. With 15 years of prior experience in bioscience companies, including Wellcome Group R&D, Murex Biotech, Abbott Laboratories, and Kalibrant Limited, Tony brings a wealth of commercial and business development expertise.

Steven Hill is Director of Research at Research England. Steven was formerly Head of Research Policy at the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE), and leads on all aspects of research policy and funding. Steven is responsible for research funding, including quality-related funding (QR), general capital funding and the UK Research Partnership Investment Fund (UKRPIF). He also leads Research England’s research assessment and policy work, and is the chair of the steering group for the 2021 Research Excellence Framework (REF). Policy responsibilities include research integrity, public engagement and open research, and Steven contributes to debates and discussions at home and overseas on the enhancement and assessment of research impact. His team also includes Research England’s analysis function.

Dan Hurley is Deputy Director of Policy with leadership oversight of UUK’s work on research, innovation, growth, skills, and student experience. He also helps shape the strategic direction of the Policy Group as part of the senior management team.

Dan has worked in higher education policy for around a decade. Prior to this, he held roles in both the public and private sectors in research and analytical capacities, covering topics ranging from environmental issues to international trade.

He is passionate about representing a world-class sector that plays a vital role in improving life chances and driving opportunity and growth for all.

Adam Jackson is a Senior Civil Servant and currently Director – International Research and Innovation in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT). He is a development economist by background, having in his 20s worked as an economic adviser to the Ministry of Finance in Sierra Leone, and for the UK’s Department for International Development in Bangladesh. He subsequently worked in HM Treasury, the Department for Exiting the European Union and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. Currently, he leads the Directorate that develops our international science partnerships, research establishments and infrastructures, research security, research talent, and the government’s work with the National Academies. 

Dr Melissa Jogie is Director for Research Culture, Impact and Early Career Development and Associate Professor at the University of Roehampton. She is also the Founder and Director of ImposterPlay Lab, which provides training to reduce imposter syndrome in Early Career Researchers. She leads institution-wide strategies to enhance research culture, ethics, and impact, and is a UKRI Policy Fellow with the Centre for Homelessness Impact and the College of Policing. A British Academy Innovation Fellow and national advisor with Advance HE, she designs sector-wide frameworks that support inclusive, values-driven research environments. At this conference, she shares insights on embedding positive research culture through leadership, collaboration, and evidence-based practice that fosters integrity, engagement, and researcher flourishing across disciplines.

Professor Andrew Jones, Vice-Chancellor & President, Brunel University of London and Policy Lead for Research and Innovation on the UUK Board. He is an economic geographer whose often interdiscioplinary work has ranged across globalization, regional economic development, innovation systems and international development. Professor Jones' recent research has returned to business services and considers how globalisation in these industries is caught up in the rise and development of emerging economies, most recently in achieving service sector led economic growth in Latin America and the Caribbean. 

Fabia Jones is First Counsellor at the European Parliament Liaison Office in the United Kingdom. After beginning her career in the UK at HM Treasury and the Foreign Office, Fabia spent many years with the European Parliament in Brussels including as head of the Budgets Committee Secretariat and the Budgetary Policies Unit in the European Parliament Research Service, before transferring to the UK three years ago. 

Simon Jones is Strategic Project Lead at Prolific, where he leads the Managed Services team, supporting universities and organisations to design and deliver complex, high-quality research projects. He works closely with researchers and professional services teams across UK academic institutions, helping them develop well-designed studies that generate robust, trustworthy data.Before joining Prolific, Simon was an Associate Professor in Computer Science at the University of Bath, where he also completed his PhD in Human–Computer Interaction. His experience spans academia, research consultancy, and market research, giving him a broad perspective on rigorous human-centred research.

Uzma Khan is Vice-Principal for Economic Development and Innovation, and Deputy Chief Operating Officer at the University of Glasgow. As the Deputy Chief Operating Officer, Uzma oversees a number of professional services and undertakes a number of duties to ensure effective delivery of operations at the University.In her capacity as Vice-Principal, Uzma has responsibility for taking forward the University’s innovation and commercialisation agenda, supporting knowledge exchange through academic consultancy, intellectual property and spin-out creation and delivering a positive impact on the city, region and wider economy. Prior to joining the Higher Education sector, Uzma spent over 20 years in the civil service as a professional economist in Scottish Government advising across several policy areas and leading on Scotland’s economic strategy.

Matt is currently interim Deputy Director of Corporate Strategy, Planning, and Performance for UKRI. He oversees teams that are principally involved in aligning activities across UKRI to deliver the maximum return on investment for the Government’s investment in R&I. Previously he was Associate Director of Programmes at the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) working with an investment portfolio of research that spanned funding for skills, discovery, and applied research. He has a broad range of experience supporting research and innovation including serving for 3 years as Director of Member Engagement for the Association of Research Managers and Administrators (ARMA). 

Victoria Moody is Director of research and higher education at Jisc, the UK’s National Research and Education Network (NREN). She focuses on the design, delivery and implementation of Jisc’s strategic delivery for research and higher education, supporting Jisc to deliver sustainable support and services across our sector, supported by diverse revenue streams and partnerships. She leads a team who coordinate and support senior engagement across Jisc and with higher education, research and professional leaders in the UK and internationally. She brings expertise in research and innovation infrastructure development and leadership, and public and government sector strategy and policy development.  

Marcus Munafò is Deputy Vice Chancellor and Provost at the University of Bath, where he is responsible for academic operations across the university, including strategic planning, resourcing, and delivery of academic priorities. He is also co-founder and Executive Director of the UK Reproducibility Network (www.ukrn.org) which aims to support a coordinated and collaborative approach to improving research quality across the UK academic research system.

Stephanie is the CEO of UKRIO, a national charity established in 2006 to provide independent support on research integrity to the UK research community and the public. As CEO, Stephanie has strategic and operational oversight of the charity’s wide-ranging services and resources to promote good research practice and prevent misconduct. This includes its thought leadership activities to shape the national agenda; practical information, advice and guidance for researchers to implement good practice; and events and training to convene and address key research integrity issues.

Prior to UKRIO, Stephanie headed research departments for a range of national and global organisations, including the Equality Challenge Unit (now Advance HE), the UK’s body for equality and diversity in higher education; Engineering UK, a national charity which works on behalf of the engineering community to advance STEM education and skills; and Mission 44, Sir Lewis Hamilton’s international foundation tackling systemic issues within education, employment, and youth empowerment.

Chris is the Vice Principal for Research and Knowledge Exchange at the University of Glasgow with responsibility for the University’s research strategy and policy development. Chris is also Professor of Computational Mechanics in the James Watt School of Engineering and previously held the Royal Academy of Engineering / EDF Research Chair in Computational Mechanics. His research has focussed on modelling complex material behaviour and multi-physics problems, and has addressed critical, life-limiting structural integrity issues, most recently applied to the UK civil nuclear industry. He is a Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers, a Chartered Engineer and Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales.

Sally Puzey is Director of Research Services at Aston University, where her responsibilities include research funding, Research Excellence Framework, ethics and integrity and research strategy.  Sally works across the University to promote a positive research culture, from supporting local initiatives to putting place strategic interventions.  A biologist by training, Sally became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology in 2015 in recognition of her contribution to biological sciences.

Professor Christopher Smith is Executive Chair of the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and International Champion for UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). He has been Professor of Ancient History at the University of St Andrews since 2002, serving as Vice-Principal (2007–2009) before being seconded as Director of the British School at Rome (2009–2017), the UK’s leading overseas humanities and creative arts institute. Author or editor of over 20 books, he is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a Member of Academia Europaea.

Helen is a materials scientist who has spent most of her career fostering collaborations between universities and between universities and industry.  As Director of Midlands Innovation, a partnership of eight Midlands research-intensive universities. Helen has led Midlands Innovation to: nationally advance the status and opportunity for Higher Education and research technicians; establish Midlands Mindforge, an investment vehicle to invest in IP rich Midlands businesses and champion the role that universities can play in securing Foreign Direct Investment into regional R&D.   

Lord Vallance KCB FRS FMedSci FRCP HonFREng was appointed Minister for Science, Innovation, Research and Nuclear in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) on 6 September 2025.

He was previously Minister for Science in DSIT from 5 July 2024 to 6 September 2025.

He was Government Chief Scientific Adviser (GCSA) from April 2018 to April 2023 as well as National Technology Adviser (NTA) and Head of the Government Science and Engineering (GSE) Profession.

Rod has overall responsibility for the UKRI’s risk management, assurance, insurance, counter fraud and investigation functions. Rod is a chartered internal auditor and has a wide leadership experience covering the governance, risk management and internal control of research and innovation administration and delivery.

Greg leads UUK policy work on innovation, knowledge exchange, research commercialisation,civic and local growth and enterprise by researching evidence, developing policy proposals, engaging with members, experts and partners and lobbying officials. Whilst at UUK, Greg has led skills policy and other policy areas including leadership, management and governance, teaching and learning, teacher education and better regulation. Before joining UUK Greg worked in GuildHE for five years working on human resources, leadership and management, international, estates, teacher education and quality issues. Greg gas experience of working in a university setting up institution-wide teaching quality assurance systems, supporting the REF submission and administering student access and hardship funds.

Lorna is currently Managing Director of Research and Innovation Services at Durham University, and Chair of the Association of Research Managers and Administrators (ARMA). Lorna joined Durham in 2017 initially as Head of Research Development, having previously worked at Newcastle University in a number of roles. Lorna is a member of key national and international policy groups, contributing expertise on topics such as research security, reducing bureaucracy, and co-production. Lorna is widely recognised for her commitment to advancing research management and fostering sector-wide collaboration, and is a co-lead of the RED funded Research Professional Futures project.

Louise joined AMRC in June 2023. She oversees its policy, public affairs and communications activities. Prior to joining the AMRC, Louise was Head of External Affairs at the Francis Crick Institute managing its policy, government affairs and external communications function. She has also worked in policy and public affairs roles at Wellcome, the Medical Research Council and the BioIndustry Association. Outside of work, Louise is a patient adviser to UCLH and a member of its Person-Centred Care Committee.

As the Director responsible for Science Research and Innovation in the Department for Science Innovation and Technology Holly Yates is responsible for leadership of policy and strategy for the UK R&D system, Public R&D budgets, sponsoring UKRI, research system reform, university financial sustainability, supporting regional and national growth, and strengthening our innovation systems. Holly has been a Civil Servant since 2004 with a particular specialism in strategy roles and a strong focus on complex systems, including environmental policy, the environmental determinants of health, and the science, research and innovation ecosystem.