Political Affairs in higher education 2026

Professor Dibyesh Anand is Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Global Engagement and Employability) at the University of Westminster. A professor of international relations, he is the author of Geopolitical Exotica: Tibet in Western Imagination and Hindu Nationalism in India and the Politics of Fear, co-editor of Contemporary Colonialities: Kurds and Kashmiris, and has published extensively on postcolonial politics and international relations, including on Tibet and China, Kashmir, Hindu nationalism, and the politics of gender and sexuality. He is Co-Chair of London Higher’s EDI Network, Co-Chair of the UUK–Advance HE DVC Network, and a member of Research England’s EDI Expert Advisory Group. He is passionate about promoting both values within, and the value of, the British higher education sector.

Paul is Director of Public Affairs and Engagement at the University of Leicester. In this role he leads on the University’s Public Affairs Strategy, encompassing global, national, and local stakeholder engagement and advocacy. He is the University of Leicester’s lead for, and one of the founders of, the Universities Partnership ‘Civic University Agreement’ for Leicester, Leicestershire, and Rutland – a partnership that brings together five local authorities and three universities to support the local community.

Joshua Bell is Public Affairs Advisor at Universities Wales. With around ten years' experience in Welsh politics, he has drawn on his experience to help position the HE sector ahead of the recent Senedd 2026 election. He is a former Welsh Labour Campaign Lead, and staffer - who has also worked within PR and Public Affairs agencies, advising leading companies on their strategic political engagement within Wales.

Annie is Associate Director, Higher Education at Public First. She has spent over ten years working to influence higher education policy at a national level at the National Union of Students, Universities UK International and most recently as Head of Communications and External Affairs at University Alliance. Her work has appeared in The Guardian, The Independent, Times Higher Education and more. Annie has extensive experience of leading campaigns, public affairs and branding strategies at a senior level. She led University Alliance’s rebrand and positioning strategy in 2023 and developed a strategy for positioning the UK as a study destination globally whilst at Universities UK. She has worked on campaigns that influenced key moments in higher education policy, including the Higher Education and Research Act 2017, the 2019 International Education Strategy and higher education policy surrounding the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union.

Emily is the Chair for leads UUK's work to influence the political environment for universities and make sure parliamentarians know about the vital work members do.

She started her career working in politics, and has spent the past couple of decades running public affairs, campaigns and communications work in a range of sectors including housing, health and social care.

She loves being in a position where she and her team can create change and give a voice to a whole sector, and believes universities have an incredible story for us to tell. 

Grace Clarke joined Universities UK in January 2026 as a Senior Public Affairs Manager, a component of which is overseeing the secretariat for the All-Parliamentary Party University Group. Grace moved to Universities UK from Heathrow Airport where she focused on the campaign for a third runway. Prior to this, she worked at a political party headquarters covering three General-Elections. She was also Head of Office for two MPs, including a minister of state.

Jane is Joint Chief Executive of Principle, an award-winning social enterprise that specialises in charity policy, public affairs and campaigns. Jane has 20 years’ experience in politics and public affairs and has developed successful influencing strategies for charities including the Nationwide Foundation, the Less Survivable Cancers Taskforce and the Refugee Council.

Professor Sir John Curtice is Professor of Politics at Strathclyde University in Glasgow, Scotland, and Senior Research Fellow, National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) and the ‘The UK in a Changing Europe’ initiative. He has written extensively about voting behaviour in elections and referendums in the UK, as well as on British political and social attitudes more generally. He was co-director of the British Election Study between 1983 and 1997. He has been a co-editor of NatCen’s annual British Social Attitudes reports since 1994 and is a regular contributor to British and international media coverage of politics in the UK.

Professor Symeon Dagkas is Vice-Chancellor of the University of Chichester. His leadership focuses on widening participation, civic engagement, international partnerships and innovation in higher education. He has led major strategic developments across transnational education, regional collaboration and sport, and is a strong advocate for the role of universities in supporting social mobility and place-based economic growth. Professor Dagkas has played an active role in developing partnerships across the public, private and third sectors, including the Sussex Civic University Agreement, and has particular interests in inclusion, community impact and leadership in education.

Seb has a long background working in communications roles in the public sector and regulated industries, including the London Fire Brigade and the Local Government Association. He joined Universities UK after spending a decade in senior communications roles in the rail industry. This included as Director of Communications for the Great British Railways Transition Team, where he influenced the policy of successive governments towards the biggest reforms to rail in a generation. Before this, he worked in a membership organisation acting as the voice of the railway on a range of operational and policy issues ranging from rail fares to train punctuality and reform of the sector.

Seb has acted as a spokesperson in national broadcast media, led the industry-wide introduction of a life-saving partnership between the railway and Women’s Aid, and managed the production of various research and policy reports. He was also part of the team that devised a first-of-its kind strategy to reposition the reputation of the rail sector.  

Jo is Head of External Communications for Universities UK and has been with the organisation for seven years. An experienced communications leader with experience in public sector, political, business and advocacy environments, her role is about telling the sector's story and protecting its reputation with external audiences. Prior to UUK she led the Corporate Communications function for Virgin Atlantic Airways, and has worked in Westminster in both political party and civil service communications.

Nitasha Kaul is Professor of Politics, International Relations, and Critical Interdisciplinary Studies, and Director of Centre for the Study of Democracy at the University of Westminster. She is the author of over 155 publications, including books and research articles in journals across disciplines. She regularly assesses for major UK, European, and international research funding bodies, and as a public intellectual, she has delivered invited talks, keynotes, and seminars at universities and institutions around the world.

Hannah Larsen is the policy lead for skills, careers and education at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC). She shapes strategic policy for the Chamber network across apprenticeships, workforce development, youth employment, careers IAG, and inclusion. She is BCC’s lead for Local Skills Improvement Plans, engaging employers and influencing national policymakers across government to match training provision to local skills needs. Her work supports businesses of all sizes to strengthen pathways into and through good work, and close skills gaps. Hannah holds a postgraduate degree in Global Development.

I have a background in campaigning and advocacy, having supported UUK’s public affairs team for several years. In that role, I focused on influencing legislation, building UUK’s network of champions in parliament, and engaging with a wider range of stakeholders to advance the sector’s priorities.

As a policy adviser, I now contribute to priorities across growth and local innovation, leading UUK’s work on the Industrial Strategy and strengthening the UK’s research and innovation ecosystem. I’m passionate about supporting universities to play a central role in driving progress that benefits both society and the economy.

As Wonkhe editor Debbie is responsible for Wonkhe’s commentary and analysis on higher education across the website, email briefings, podcast and events. Debbie is interested in the social impact of HE, learning, teaching and curriculum, institutional change and innovation, and in bringing to light diverse and under-represented voices in the HE policy debate.

She has previously worked in policy and communications roles at Universities UK, the University of Bedfordshire and the National Union of Students. She is an honorary fellow of the School of Education at the University of Birmingham, a fellow of The Post-18 Project, and a member of the Board of Trustees of the National Institute of Teaching.

Katie is the Founder and Chair of iNHouse Communications, the only female-owned and managed corporate affairs agency in Westminster.

In a career at the crossroads of politics and the media for over a quarter of a century, Katie has advised successful mayoral candidates as well as becoming the first female Director of Communications at No.10 Downing St.

Before this, Katie served in a number of senior roles, including Deputy Head of Press for ITV News and Head of Press for Channel 4 News. She is a former Non-Executive Director for an NHS Trust, was appointed to the Board of a Garden City and a former Cabinet Member for over a decade in a London borough, with responsibility for Community Affairs and Children’s Services.

Katie is currently a board member of the think tank Re:State and the Founder of the Political Podcast Awards. She now provides crisis management, campaigning expertise and strategic counsel to a range of clients. In addition, she regularly writes for outlets such as The Times, City AM, POLITICO as well as commentating on politics on TV & Radio.

Lenny has over 20 years’ experience working in Public Affairs developing campaigns for a range of clients and working inhouse at organisations including the University of Sussex and RSPCA. He has led campaigns raising the profile of organisations that have achieved legislative and regulatory change.

Dr Charlotte Snelling is Policy Manager at Universities UK leading on regulation, quality and standards, freedom of speech, and consumer protection. Before starting at UUK in April 2018, she was a research fellow at the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) for over two years working on housing, welfare and public services. She has held policy and research posts in the Cabinet Office (Constitution Group), Scottish Youth Parliament and Jubilee Scotland. She was awarded a PhD in Politics from the University of Edinburgh in 2016 where her thesis examined the impact of higher education on young people’s political engagement.

Rachel Sylvester is political editor of The Observer and was previously a columnist at The Times. She chaired The Times Education, Health and Crime and Justice Commissions.

Vivienne Stern took up the role of UUK Chief Executive in September 2022. She was previously the Director of Universities UK International (UUKi) which represents UK universities around the world and works to enable them to flourish internationally.

Vivienne has over 20 years’ experience of working in higher education policy and politics at national and international level. She is a member of the GREAT Private Sector Council; a Trustee of the Council for At Risk Academics; and is a member of the Soft Power Council. She was awarded an MBE for Services to International Education in the New Years’ Honours List 2022.  In 2021 Vivienne received the European Association of International Educators’ “Vision and Leadership” award and the PIEoneer “Outstanding Contribution to the Industry” award.

Vivienne is a graduate of the University of Cambridge, where she studied English Literature.

Nick advises clients on corporate affairs in the UK and internationally. He works with FTSE listed businesses and trade associations on managing their reputation with key audiences and responding to political challenges. Nick has advised clients in over 20 countries around the world.

Nick has worked on the front lines of UK and international politics, including on elections in a number of Commonwealth countries and as Head of Ground Campaigns at Vote Leave during the UK’s referendum on EU membership.

Since the referendum Nick has run communications and policy-change campaigns with a particular focus on identifying and mobilising third-party voices into political debate.

Greg leads UUK policy work on innovation, knowledge exchange, research commercialisation, local growth and enterprise by
researching evidence, developing proposals, engaging with members and lobbying officials. Previously he led on skills policy
including technical skills reform, degree apprenticeships and graduate skills. During his career at UUK Greg has led policy in
areas such as leadership, management and governance, teaching and learning, teacher education and better regulation. Before
UUK Greg worked in a university for seven years on quality assurance and teaching and learning and in GuildHE for five years
working on human resources, leadership and management and quality issues.

Lauren joined Universities Scotland in 2023 and has led on Scottish engagement for the General Election in 2024 and the most recent Scottish Election. Lauren has worked for politicians at Westminster and Holyrood, in both the North East of Scotland and Glasgow, and has built relationships across Scottish politics for over a decade. She currently lives in the east end of Glasgow and volunteers to improve the lives of girls who live in one of the most disadvantaged parts of the country.

Petra Wilton leads CMI’s thought leadership, innovation and public policy work, sharing practical insights to support better management and leadership, and professional pathways for the next generation. She regularly represents managers' views to government, business, education and the media. Petra has established the CMI’s AI Council and Innovation CoLabs with employers, providers and young learners, which are supporting the development of leadership for AI qualifications and a wider youth offer for future leaders.