Board of Governors

Richard Bacon is an expert on governance spanning the public and not-for-profit sectors. He led the public sector assurance team at PwC, working most recently with teaching and research-intensive universities. He chairs the Audit Committee of the Royal Society.

Richard is also a keen musician, singing with the Bristol-based choir Exultate, and occasionally with the Choir of Bristol Cathedral, where he is Chairman of the Choral Foundation. His involvement at the cathedral has led to a number of governance assignments in the Church of England and in Wales and he is Chair of the Bristol Diocesan Board of Finance.

Jenny (CBE, FRAeS, FCGI, DEng) is a past President of the Royal Aeronautical Society. Jenny's long and successful career in the aerospace industry began in 1971, as a Mechanical Engineering undergraduate apprentice with British Aerospace. Jenny's career encompassed flight software for the world's first fly-by-wire aircraft, the Airbus A320 in the 1980s; wing control surfaces and landing gear systems for the Airbus A320 and A340 in the 1980s/early 1990s. Thereafter holding increasingly senior positions, Jenny led large engineering teams working on improvements to Airbus in-service aircraft, and on Nimrod and Airbus A400M wing designs.

Her career culminated in industrial responsibility for determining the future of UK civil aviation through its forthcoming technology programmes when, working with Government and other industry leaders, Jenny established the huge multi-million pound UK Aerospace Research and Technology programme, designated 'Next Generation Composite Wing'.

Jenny works tirelessly as an active supporter of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) development in schools. She is keen to encourage diversity in the aviation industry and to dispel engineering stereotypes. In May 2013 she became the first-ever female President of the Royal Aeronautical Society, of which she is a Fellow. She was Chair of its Education and Skills Committee and the RAeS Diversity and Inclusion Strategy Group. She will chair the RAeS medals and Award Committee from 2020. She is a member of the RAeS Nominations Committee and represents the Society on the Tribology Trust Awards Committee. 

In 2019 Jenny was awarded a CBE for her services to Aerospace Engineering. She was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Engineering from University of the West of England in July 2013, an honorary Doctorate of Science from Kingston University in 2016 and is a Fellow of the City and Guilds of London Institute (October 2013).

Laura has recently retired from her role as a partner at Burges Salmon LLP, where she spent all of her 30-year career as a lawyer, and where she led a team of competition and regulatory lawyers. She spent four years on the firm’s Board where she had oversight of all the People aspects of the business. She was also a trustee of Bristol Charities from 2009-2018, and was also Vice-Chair.

Laura is currently a Committee Member (non-executive director) of Exeter Racecourse (owned by Jockey Club Racecourses).

Carolyn is an experienced, highly skilled senior executive and Non-Executive Director with significant experience in the NHS and Higher Education in England and Wales. Originally qualifying as a Registered General Nurse, she later developed a clinical career – including a period of time in Western Australia – before moving into training and senior management. Carolyn held a number of senior roles in the NHS in Bristol before moving into Higher Education in the University of Bristol and latterly Cardiff University as College Registrar.

Carolyn has now developed a portfolio career which includes the role of Magistrate, Chair of the South East Wales Student Mental Health Project, and Chair of the Welsh Wound Innovation Centre. She also holds various voluntary roles in the local community.

Carolyn has now developed a portfolio career which includes the roles of Chair of the South East Wales Student Mental Health Project, Independent Member of Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board and Independent Member of the Joint Committee of The Welsh Health Specialised Services Committee. She also holds various voluntary roles in the local community.

With over 25 years international strategic human resource expertise at an executive level within start-ups, private and public sector organisations (including the National Health Service and PricewaterhouseCoopers), Domini is a passionate people developer and life-long learner with strong leadership and management acumen.

Domini is both a Chartered Member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (MCIPD) and a Senior Certified Professional with the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM-SCP). In addition, she is certified as a Prince 2 project manager, Prosci Change Manager, British Psychometric Society Assessor and an executive coach.

Outside of the work environment, Domini is a proud mother of three brilliant young men and works with the Home for Good charity and with Elim Bath Church. She is also the Vice Chair on the Roundhill Primary School Governing Board. She is passionate about Trinidad and Tobago cuisine, travelling and mentoring young people.

Ian is an actuary with over 25 years of experience in financial services and is currently Chief Operations and Technology Officer of St. James’s Place, where he has extensive responsibilities and experience across technology, transformation, financial services operations as well as governance and regulation.

He is a Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries as well as being a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, of The Institute of Leadership and Management and of BCS, the Chartered Institute of IT.

Ian is a Trustee and Director of The Holiday Homes Trust, a Director of The Scout Association Trust Corporation and a Director of The Monsters Foundation.

Grant Mansfield is the Chief Executive and Founder of Bristol-based Plimsoll Productions, one of the largest and fastest growing independent TV production companies in the UK.

Before launching the company, in September 2013 he spent three years in LA as CEO of Zodiak USA, leading a large creative team producing shows for a wide variety of US Networks. Previously, as Managing Director of RDF and before that Director of Programmes at Granada TV, Mansfield was the creative lead for two of the UK’s most successful production companies, producing shows as diverse as “I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here”, “Coronation Street”, “Cold Feet”, “Ladette to Lady” and “Secret Millionaire”.

He began his documentary career at the BBC in Bristol where he created and produced some of the corporation's most popular documentary series, including “Driving School”, “Vets in Practice” and “War Walks”.

Plimsoll Productions’ rapid growth has been recognised with national awards from the Sunday Times and the British Chamber of Commerce. Grant Mansfield was recently voted the Daily Telegraph’s SME Business leader of the year. In 2019 Grant led a process to sell a minority stake in Plimsoll to private equity Group LDC. In 2022 he spearheaded a majority stake sale to ITV Studios in a landmark deal, valuing the company at £131 million.

Jamie has over 30 years’ experience in internal audit, risk management and compliance within both the public and private sectors. This includes 12 years in accountancy practice where he led engagements with the majority of higher and further education institutions in the south west, including UWE Bristol. As a former student, and proud Bristolian, Jamie has a real passion for UWE Bristol and for the HE Sector in general.

In December 2019, Jamie left his role with the global professional services firm, Vistra, where he led the audit assurance and risk management functions, to form Bristol Risk Solutions, providing business continuity, cybersecurity, governance, business transformation and assurance services.

Jamie is Treasurer of Christ Church Downend, where he is also a Sunday School Teacher, and an ardent fundraiser for Haven Home Orphanage in Visakhapatnam in south-east India, which he has visited a number of times.

Tim is a partner at international law firm Osborne Clarke LLP. Tim is based in the firm's Bristol office, where he specialises in investment funds with a particular focus on the real estate sector.

Until recently, Tim was practice group head for the Projects, Real Estate and Finance practice and a member of Osborne Clarke's Executive Board, a post he held for six years. Prior to that he was Head of the Financial Services sector.

Tim is a keen (if rather slow) runner and indoor rower and has an interest in all things military, having been a Naval Reservist for 15 years.

Margaret is a former Director of Education at Bath & North East Somerset, with extensive experience working in local government, schools and other education settings to improve the education outcomes for children and young people. She has led and managed a diverse range of education support services, including school improvement, the Virtual School, Schools Finance and Capital, Admissions and Place Planning.

Margaret also has been an accredited Ofsted inspector. She is a non-executive director, an experienced governor and current Chair of the Gatehouse Green Learning Trust (GGLT). She also co-chairs the Bristol Education Race Equality Steering Group and is Vice Chair of Bristol Mayor’s Commission on Race Equality (CoRE).

As an Independent Education Adviser, Margaret works with schools and other settings on all aspects of school improvement, including strengthening leadership and governance, advising on developing a culture of equity, She is passionate about how education can transform lives and be a gateway to greater opportunities, social engagement and improved health in addressing the under representation of minoritised groups.

Dave is a Vice Chairman of Deloitte LLP and is an elected member of the Deloitte North and South Europe Board. In this capacity he chairs the UK/Swiss Partnership Council, chairs the Governance and Compensation Committee, and is a member of the Partner Matter and Fairness Committee, Nominations Committee, Compensation and Partner Units Committee, Remuneration Committee and Transformation Committee.

Dave leads the Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Growth Industry Sector for Deloitte in the UK.

Dave is a Chartered Engineer and spent his early career as an engineering officer in the Royal Air Force. Since joining Deloitte as a consultant in 1994, he has worked across all industry sectors – in the UK and internationally – using his extensive technology and business transformation experience to drive innovation with purpose. Dave is passionate about developing talent and creating inclusive teams that embrace diversity and value strong ethics and moral courage to deliver impacts that matter.

Outside work Dave is a family man, married to Alison and the proud parents of a daughter and two sons. He is an avid motorsport fan (both watching and participating), and enjoys music festivals and off-grid adventures in his campervan. He is currently training as a sound healing practitioner with the College of Sound Healing. 

Dave is a member of the Institute of Coding Governance Board and is a Mentor in Residence for the UWE Team Entrepreneur Programme, where he has supported a number of student business founders.

Kalpna has had an award-winning, 20-year career in the BBC, where she was Head of Factual TV Production, overseeing a £100m global business, including the BBC’s world-renowned Natural History Unit. She continues to work with the creative sector in an advisory and consultancy capacity. Alongside this, she has established an impressive portfolio career underpinned by her business track record and her passion for social justice and equality.

She is CEO and founder of BeOnBoard, a national ED&I leadership development agency. BeOnBoard partners with businesses to recruit diverse board members and implement ED&I action plans throughout their organisations.

She has been Chair of Trustees for Frank Water, trustee for Knowle West Media Centre and board member and Chair of the Skills Group for the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) Board. She is the author of two best-selling books, and in 2015 she founded 91 Ways to Build A Global City, an innovative charity that seeks to bring together Bristol’s 91 language communities by sharing their different food cultures. The charity has already won three national awards and is being templated in other UK cities.

Andrea pursues a portfolio programme of work following 43 years in the NHS, the last 20 of those at CEO level. Her most recent role was Chief Executive of North Bristol NHS Trust, a £700m turnover organisation employing over 10,000 staff. Andrea oversaw the move of two hospitals into a state-of-the-art, brand new hospital at Southmead. 

Andrea originally qualified as a nurse and midwife. Following a four-year stint as a mature student, she returned into NHS management and worked across a range of settings, including membership of the NHS Management Board.

Andrea is an EMCC qualified coach/mentor, with clients from the NHS and public sector, and is a member of a Bristol/Bath-based critical coaching group.

She is also a Non-Executive Director on the Board of Oxford Health NHS FT, a combined specialist mental health and community services trust covering the population of Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, West Berkshire and providing specialist care in Bath, Swindon and Wiltshire.

She thrives on the discipline of regular yoga and enjoys cycling, walking, cooking and the arts.

Jim Smith first came to UWE Bristol in 1993 as a student – first on an MSc, then a PhD in Artificial Intelligence (AI). In 1996 he joined the staff, first as a Research Fellow, then Senior Lecturer before progressing to his current post of Professor of Interactive Artificial Intelligence. His research focuses on various aspects of the interplay between people, AI, and privacy, from blue-skies theory through to applied collaborations with industry and government agencies. Alongside this, he has extensive experience of teaching AI to different student groups, of module and programme development, and is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. He is passionate about applying advances in technology and AI to improve the student experience, whether through developing innovative forms of assessment or through using practical examples from his collaborations to help students understand and prepare for a world where AI/technology places an increasing role.

His ongoing involvement in undergraduate and postgraduate teaching and a range of management and committee roles during his journey through UWE have given him a wide perspective on both student and staff experience. Outside UWE Bristol, he was a nursery and primary school governor for 12 years and now sits on the board of Midsomer Norton Schools Partnership. Taken together, this has given him an almost cradle-to-grave view of how people progress through education.

Kolawole Samuel is the current President, Director and Chair of the Board of Trustees of The Students’ Union at UWE. He is a dynamic and driven individual who brings a wealth of experience and passion to his new role. Kolawole Samuel is also an Advisory Board Member, One City Living Rent Commission (Bristol City Council), which was established by the Bristol City Council and the City Office to explore ways of making Bristol an affordable, living-rent city and empower tenants’ rights in the private rented sector.

Prior to his current positions, Kolawole Samuel was an active and engaged student leader. He served as the student representative for his department as an undergraduate, advocating for the needs and interests of his fellow students. His dedication and leadership skills earned him the position of department representative for Animal Production and Health in the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences.

Outside of academics, Samuel has a strong entrepreneurial spirit and has successfully run multiple businesses over the last few years. He is committed to using his business acumen to create opportunities for others and drive positive change in his community. He is the founder of the Kolawole Samuel Olure (KSO) Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting human capacity development and leadership building among young people in his hometown of Ipetu – Ijesha Osun State, Nigeria.

Kolawole Samuel joined UWE Bristol to study Environmental Health. He is a proud member of the Nigerian Students' Society at UWE Bristol, where he actively promotes cultural diversity and unity among students from different backgrounds. He believes that embracing diversity is essential for fostering an inclusive and welcoming campus environment. His passion for human capacity development and leadership building is evident in his involvement with the KSO Foundation. Through this organization, he empowers young people with the skills and knowledge they need to excel in various aspects of life and become future leaders in their communities, and helping the people in his community to cater for their needs.

In addition to his academic and entrepreneurial pursuits, Samuel is a firm believer in the importance of physical and mental wellbeing. He enjoys participating in mental and physical activities, which he believes are essential for maintaining good health and a balanced lifestyle.

As the President of The Students’ Union at UWE, Sam, as he is popularly called, is determined to champion the values of equality, diversity and inclusivity on campus. He aims to create a supportive and inclusive environment for all students, ensuring that their voices are heard and their needs are met. In his free time he enjoys reading and continuous learning, always seeking to expand his knowledge and stay up-to-date with current affairs. He is also keen on environmental sustainability and is interested in exploring ways to promote green initiatives on campus.

Sam is a compassionate and driven leader who is committed to making a positive impact on the lives of others. With his diverse experiences, entrepreneurial spirit and passion for human development, he is well equipped to lead The Students’ Union at UWE to greater heights and create a positive and inclusive student experience for all.

Previously Vice Chancellor of the University of South Wales (2010-2021), since her retirement she has focussed her non-executive roles to support education and charities. Her current board memberships include Board of Trustees Nelson Trust, Solent University Southampton and the University of the West of England. She is also an associate of Advanced HE with a particular interest in the development of leadership for women and good governance practices. She was awarded a DBE for services to higher education in the 2022 New Years Honours awards.

In January 2023 she was appointed by the Welsh Government Minister for Education as the first Chair of the Commission for Tertiary Education and research, a new arm’s length body responsible for the oversight and funding of all post sixteen education and research in Wales.

Julie became Vice-Chancellor of the University of South Wales Group on 11 April 2013, having previously held the role of Vice-Chancellor of the University of Glamorgan from April 2010. Following completion of an honours degree in economics, she worked for the Tube Investments group for ten years in a variety of management roles. She has a strong reputation of academic leadership, including the merger which resulted in the formation of the University of South Wales, curriculum design, widening access, innovation, partnerships and quality.

Steve has been the Vice-Chancellor, President and Chief Executive Officer of UWE Bristol since 2008. The Vice-Chancellor is the academic leader and chief executive, responsible for the strategic oversight, financial sustainability and academic direction of the University. More information can be found on the Vice-Chancellor’s profile.