UCEM ONLINE ACADEMY - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Member of the BOARD of TRUSTEES
- Student Trustee
Adam is an apprentice at Colliers and is completing the Chartered Surveyor Programme with UCEM. Colliers is a real estate services and investment management company. Adam, as UCEM Student Trustee, is also a member of the Remuneration Committee.
Job Titles:
- Independent Trustee
- Member of the BOARD of TRUSTEES
Alastair joined the Duchy of Cornwall in May 2013. As Secretary, he was responsible to the 24th The Duke of Cornwall, now King Charles III, and is currently responsible to the 25th Duck of Cornwall, The Prince of Wales. Alastair is also responsible to Prince's Council for the running of the Duchy. Alastair was previously a partner with Carter Jonas where he specialised in the management of rural property portfolios across England and Wales with one of his most notable responsibilities being the portfolio belonging to The Society of Merchant Venturers. Alastair was, for some time, actively involved in the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors having been President of the Rural Division, Chairman of the Faculties and Forums Board and then Chairman of the Strategy and Resources Board. Alastair was appointed to the UCEM Board of Trustees in December 2017 for an initial three-year term, which was renewed in 2020. He sits on the Finance and Audit Committees and is Chairman of the Property Working Group.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director Innovation and Partnerships
Aled's role focuses on developing UCEM research capacity, output and excellence, as well as commitment to working through partnerships, aligning and coordinating education for sustainability across the institution. He is developing deeper and more substantial partnerships to have a wider impact on education, industry and society.
Aled has contributed to the development of Built Environment education with enthusiasm and effectiveness and has over 20 years' experience in the sector including LJMU, University of Salford and being seconded to the Higher Education Academy as Discipline Lead (Built Environment).
Aled's external roles include: CIC Champion, Education and Co-ordinator, CIC Climate Change Action Plan (Education & Qualification Workstream); Chair, Council of the Heads of Built Environment (CHOBE); Member of the Construction Leadership Council (CLC), People & Skills Network which has led to him Chairing the CLC Education Sprint Group; Member of the Construction Skills Delivery Group which contributes to the government's ‘Project Speed' initiative.
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the BOARD of TRUSTEES
- Chairman of the UCEM Board of Trustees
- Fellow of RICS
- Partner at HKA
Amanda is Partner at HKA where she is the CEO for the EMEA Region and is a member of the global ExCom. With over 35 years in the Built Environment sector, she is a senior business leader and is listed in Who's Who as a senior property professional in real estate, infrastructure and construction.
Amanda is Chair of the UCEM Board of Trustees and is Chair of RICS Construction and Infrastructure Market Forum. She is also a Senior Special Advisor to the Construction Leadership Council, and is a member of the Mayor of London's Infrastructure Advisory Panel. In 2016, she was the Global President of RICS, becoming the longest serving President in 123 years.
Previously Amanda was an Executive Director at CBRE where she was on the Board and Chaired the Strategy Board. She was a Partner at EY LLP (Head of Infrastructure Advisory) and was a Partner at PwC LLP. She was also a Non-Executive Director of Countryside Partnerships LLP.
Amanda is a Fellow of RICS, ICE, APM, CMI, Institute of Consulting and the RSA. She is a Certified Management Consultant and Companion of the Institute of Management.
Amanda is a published author and speaker on areas such as strategy, digital, cities, placemaking, real estate and the war of talent. She is a strong voice on diversity and inclusion in the sector and is also a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Chartered Surveyors. Finally, Amanda received an Honorary Doctorate of Science from the University of Westminster in November 2019 for her outstanding contribution to building safety and diversity and inclusion in the Built Environment, and also an Honorary Doctor of Professional Practice from The University of Wolverhampton
Amanda was appointed to the UCEM Board of Trustees in December 2018 for an initial three-year term, becoming Chair of the Board in December 2020.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director - Digital and Regulation
Andy Youell has three decades experience working in Higher Education including spells with the Higher Education Funding Council and the Higher Education Statistics Agency. He has worked with government departments and bodies across the UK and was previously a member of the DfE Information Standards Board. He has also worked as a consultant advising HE providers, systems suppliers and governments across the world.
Ashley joined UCEM as Principal in 2013 and has led the institution through some significant milestones during his tenure, including prolific growth in student numbers, securing full independence, gaining University College title and most recently the award of indefinite Taught Degree Awarding Powers. He is passionate about the critical role which technology can play in widening access to education and is proud to lead the University College of Estate Management as it strives to become the Centre of Excellence for Built Environment Education and the world's most sustainable university.
UCEM is the leading provider of supported, flexible and accessible online education and is the largest provider of built environment apprenticeships in the country, with some 2,000 apprentices currently studying with us. Ashley is particularly passionate about sustainability and has put this at the heart of UCEM's core purpose and aims, setting out ambitious aspirations to embed its principles across the whole institution.
Ashley spent six years as a Non-Executive Director of BRE Group, and is currently a Member of the GuildHE Executive, Vice-Chair and Trustee of JISC, Chair of Building People CIC and is the newly appointed Chair of Young Citizens.
Ashley holds a BA (Hons) in Economics from the University of London and previously held senior roles as Director of Global Learning Services for Microsoft, and Chief Executive Officer of InfoBasis Ltd, a global Talent Management software company.
Chris qualified in law from The University of Sheffield in 1993 and has worked for Taylor Wessing since 1997. He is a partner in the Real Estate group and a member of Taylor Wessing's Executive Board. He advises investors, developers, lenders and end users. His experience includes forward funding, portfolio transactions and development agreements for lease. Chris was appointed as a UCEM Trustee in September 2018 and is also the Chair of the Nominations and Governance Committee.
Job Titles:
- Independent Trustee
- Member of the BOARD of TRUSTEES
Christopher has almost 20 years' experience in higher education and is currently University Secretary and Director of Strategic Delivery at Ravensbourne University London. In this role Christopher leads a multi disciplinary team covering all matters of governance, quality assurance and legal compliance; as well as leading the organisation's project management office and data and insight teams. Prior to joining Ravensbourne, Christopher worked at BPP University where he started as a law lecturer and ended as Dean of Academic Quality, where he also held responsibility for quality assurance and governance. Outside of work, Christopher sits on the Board of the University College of Osteopathy, where he is Chair of the Nominations Committee. In addition to his NED work, Christopher is also an External Observer for the Council of the Inns of Court and a member of the Strategic Advisory Group (Governance) at AdvanceHE. Christopher read law at University and was called to the Bar of the Middle Temple in 2005. He gained a PGCert in the Management of International HE in 2015 and is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA). He was Deputy Chair of the University of Salford's Students' Union from 2017-2018 and was part of the writing group for the advice and guidance on the new QAA Quality Code. Christopher joined the Board of UCEM in December 2017 and chairs the Audit Committee, as well as sitting on the Nominations & Governance Committees and being the Board lead for safeguarding.
Job Titles:
- Independent Trustee
- Group Property Director of Next Plc
Dominic is the Group Property Director of Next Plc. Previously he was a Director of Land Securities Plc. He is a member of the RICS and has held Trustee positions in the Charitable and Education sectors. Dominic was appointed as a UCEM Trustee in November 2021 and is a member of the UCEM Finance Committee and Property Working Group.
Job Titles:
- Trustee
- Vice Chair of the BOARD of TRUSTEES
Dr Stephen Jackson became a UCEM Trustee in 2016. He retired from the Quality Assurance Agency on 31st August 2016 where he had been Associate Director (International) and previously the Director of Quality Assurance, with overall responsibility for the management and delivery of review activity. This included universities and other higher education providers, the review of higher education in further education colleges and the review of private higher education colleges. He joined QAA in October 2002 from Liverpool John Moores University, where he was Director for Partnerships and Widening Participation. Previously, Stephen held the post of Assistant Provost with responsibilty for learning and teaching. He taught Human Geography for many years at the City of Liverpool College of Higher Education and at Liverpool Polytechnic. Before joining QAA, Stephen worked for both the Higher Education Quality Council and QAA as an auditor and review coordinator. Stephen was appointed as UCEM's first ever Vice Chair in March 2019. He was the Chair of the Audit Committee from its inception in 2017 until summer 2023. He is a member of the Nominations and Governance Committee and the remuneration Committee and is a member of and Chair Designate of the Academic Review Committee.
Wendy has held responsibility for a number of key areas since joining UCEM as Vice-Principal in 2016, including Professional Services, Apprenticeships and the project team for UCEM's flagship Project Transform: the Student Success Project, which launched in 2020. She is currently responsible for the leadership and management of the School of the Built Environment, Apprenticeships Compliance and Academic Resource Management.
Wendy has nearly twenty years' experience of working in higher education following the achievement of her PhD in 2002. She started her career as a Post-Doctoral Research Associate at a Russell Group University, which incorporated the teaching and supervision of undergraduate and postgraduate students. She then held positions that focussed on the leadership and management of the professional services that support the student lifecycle from admission to graduation, as well as quality assurance and enhancement services and the provision of external data returns. Wendy held these positions at a range of providers delivering higher education, including a second Russell Group university, a small and specialist HE provider, and an Ofsted Outstanding Further Education College delivering higher education in partnership with a university.
Wendy has also held the role of Independent Director/Trustee of the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA) since April 2017 and was appointed to the Board of Trustees of the New Model Institute of Technology and Engineering (NMITE) in September 2021.
Job Titles:
- Independent Trustee
- Head of Policy
Gareth is a Head of Policy and Inward Investment at Thames Valley Chamber of Commerce (TVCC) and a member of the senior management team. Gareth also holds the role of Partnership Manager with the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) and in this capacity acts as the in-region representative for DBT supporting foreign direct investment. He is a development planning, project management, policy and inward investment specialist who holds dual qualifications to the RICS (P&D) and RTPI. Gareth is also a member of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) Planning Expert Panel.
Previously, experience has included working on a wide range of international projects. He was resident in-country as Director of Planning & technical lead, overseeing all planning content into the programme management of a comprehensive $50bn+; 180,000 major housing units & 383 infrastructure project in North Africa; economic feasbility studies for Enterprise Zone schemes in Egypt and Kazakhstan; preparation of a Provincial Structure Plan in Iraq, as well as securing an additional three commissions. Earlier work includes a range a projects for the world aid agencies funded projects.
Gareth holds qualifications from Oxford Brookes, University of Wales, College Cardiff and completed his DipSurv at the University of Reading/RICS. He also holds a Certificate in Green Buildings from the University of Tennessee, USA and has previously acted as a qualified NVQ Assessor, supporting RICS candidates seeking membership to the RTPI.
Gareth was appointed to the UCEM Board of Trustees in July 2022 for an initial three-year term and serves on the Nominations and Governance Committee.
Job Titles:
- Chartered Accountant
- Independent Trustee
Graeme is a Chartered Accountant and has a portfolio of part time CFO, non-executive and board advisory roles. From 2010 to 2021, he was a full time CFO for four private equity backed companies including The Property Software Group, which Zoopla acquired in 2016 for £75m. Prior to that, he worked in senior finance roles with companies ranging from a start-up to FTSE 100 companies including 3i and Thomson Reuters.
Graeme qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1995 and has a BSc (Hons) in Maths and Business Studies from the University of Warwick. He has lived and worked in Australia, Hong Kong and the USA. He lives in London with his wife, two daughters and black labrador.
Graeme was appointed as an Independent Trustee of UCEM in March 2023 and chairs the Finance Committee and Remuneration Committee.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BOARD of TRUSTEES
- Staff Trustee
Harps has a BSc (Hons) in Biological Sciences from the University of Birmingham, a Postgraduate Diploma in Antenatal Education and is an accredited member of the Association of University Administrators. She has worked in various education settings in both the UK and USA. Harps chaired the Maternity Services Liaison Committee at the Royal Berkshire Hospital. Harps is passionate about helping people reach their full potential. Having joined UCEM in July 2021, her current role is Student Lifecycle Officer, which focuses on continuous improvement of the Student Experience. Harps was appointed as UCEM Staff Trustee in July 2022 and is also a member of the Audit Committee.
Job Titles:
- Dip AHEA - Deputy Principal and University College Secretary
Jane has over 25 years' experience working in Higher Education, including leading Professional Services Teams, and Academic Quality. In her current role as Deputy Principal Jane has oversight of the institutions strategy and planning, performance monitoring and regulatory compliance with the Office for Students. Jane's remit also includes oversight of all HR matters including the employee engagement and wellbeing survey strategy and she led the institutions response to the Pandemic with a specific focus on Staff Wellbeing throughout.
Jane is the University College Secretary to the Board of Trustees and its sub-committees, which involves providing guidance to Trustees on best practice in Corporate and Charity Governance, ensuring the Boards and sub-committees fulfil their governance requirements, and the recruitment and induction of trustees. As University College Secretary Jane is responsible for the updating of UCEM's Charter, Bye-Laws and Regulations and management of UCEM's policies on risks and public benefit.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BOARD of TRUSTEES
- Staff Trustee
Jon Hubert is a lifelong learner, via industry and academia, over four decades on two continents.
Jon left school with 2 ‘A' Levels and worked in the private sector for 26 years, providing technical training and support services in the IT sector. He embarked on a career change in 2008, enrolling at the University of West London (UWL) to read for a degree in Architectural Technology. Graduating with a First, UWL invited Jon to learn and teach as a contract lecturer in the built environment; that induction led to a role at UCEM, beginning 2015.
Jon has held various teaching positions at UCEM, from Programme Leader for Building Surveying and now Building Control, to managing the delivery of student project modules at both UG and PG. Alongside these duties, Jon continues his pursuit of knowledge by means of a PhD programme at the University of Portsmouth on the evaluation of building performance.
Jon was appointed as UCEM Staff Trustee in January 2023 and also sits on the Academic Review Committee.
Job Titles:
- Head of Marketing Communications and Brand
Laura Bell is a chartered surveyor who graduated with an MSc in Real Estate from UCEM in 2018, winning the Chase & Partners Prize for Best Overall Performance and being nominated for the Academic Excellence Award at the UCEM Property Awards 2019. She currently works for Legat Owen in Chester as a commercial surveyor, primarily acting for Tesco in their acquisition of new Tesco Express stores in the north-west of England and North Wales, while also undertaking a range of professional work for a variety of other clients. She also works part time for a family property investment business where she sits on the Board as a Director. Laura Bell was appointed onto the new UCEM Board Apprentice Scheme in November 2021, having always been interested in the higher education sector and passionate about supporting others to find their way into and achieve their goals within the property industry, whatever their background.
Lynne joined UCEM in January 2014 to develop our academic programmes into a fully online offer and has had responsibility for a number of key areas since including Digital Education, Learning Technology and IT. She is now Vice Principal Student & Registry Services and leads the professional services of Academic Registry, Academic Quality & Governance and Student Services.
Lynne has over 20 years' experience of working in online education. She has worked in Higher Education, commercial training and IT throughout her career and has also taught at the OU as an associate lecturer in Psychology. She has degrees in Information Technology and Psychology and a MA in Online and Distance Education.
Job Titles:
- Independent Trustee
- Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing
- Head of Corporate Affairs and Marketing for LendLease
Misa von Tunzelman is Head of Corporate Affairs and Marketing for LendLease in Europe. She has over 25 years Marketing experience and has worked in the Property sector since 2004.
Misa is involved with several charities and causes. In addition to her role on the UCEM Board of Trustees, she holds a voluntary board position for Freehold CIC, a Property Industry network for LGBT+ professionals and is a trustee of Eastside Young Leaders Academy, which seeks to increase opportunities and inclusion for young black and Asian people in London. She also chairs the judging committee for the Worshipful Company of Chartered Surveyors' charity fundraising annual Property Marketing Awards.
Misa is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing and holds a degree in Sociology and Cultural Studies from the University of Sussex and PostGraduate Diploma in Marketing. Prior to joining Lendlease, she worked in Marketing and Communications roles at BNP Paribas Real Estate, JLL, EY and the Imperial War Museum. Misa was appointed as a Trustee of UCEM in June 2018 and sits on the Nominations and Governance Committee. She is also the Lead UCEM Trustee for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.
Nick Braisby is an experienced senior university leader with a proven track record of successful delivery of strategic and organisational change combined with sector leading educational outcomes. Nick has been Vice-Chancellor of Buckinghamshire New University since December 2018. He joined Bucks as Deputy Vice-Chancellor in September 2017 from the University of West London where he had held the role of Pro Vice-Chancellor since 2013. Nick is a chartered psychologist and associate fellow of the British Psychological Society. He has held posts at London South Bank University, the University of Winchester, the Open University and London Guildhall University. Nick studied natural sciences at the University of Cambridge and then read for a PhD in cognitive science at the University of Edinburgh. He obtained a British Academy postdoctoral research fellowship held at the London School of Economics. Nick was appointed to the Board of Trustees in November 2020 and also sits on the Finance Committee.
Becky is currently the Senior Estates Manager at Entain where she undertakes the general surveying matters affecting the company's global office estate. She studied with UCEM from 2016-2018, graduating with a MSc in Real Estate, and is also a member of the RICS. Becky has had a varied experience working in house for large corporate occupiers since starting her surveying career in 2014, working for Lidl, Boots and Capita prior to joining Entain in April 2021. Becky also holds a BSc in Architectural Studies from Cardiff University. Becky was appointed as UCEM Board Apprentice in November 2021 for an initial one year term which was then extended by a further year.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director Business Development and Apprenticeships
Stephen has responsibility for all aspects of business development, including marketing and admissions, employer engagement, international development and corporate training. He also leads on new product development, identifying opportunities for UCEM to expand its range of programmes to meet demand from the built environment industry. His role was recently expanded to cover the delivery of apprenticeship programmes, which have been the largest driver of growth for the institution over the last five years.
Stephen joined UCEM in 2011 and has twelve years' experience of further education from previous roles. He is also a trustee of the Chartered Surveyors Training Trust and a Non-Executive Director of Propertymark Qualifications.
Stephen studied Modern Languages at Oxford University and completed an MBA by distance learning with the Open University.
Job Titles:
- Executive Director
- Finance
Tim Mills joined UCEM in February 2019 as a contractor and took up a permanent position in July 2019 as the Finance Director. Tim is responsible for statutory/management accounting, financial operations, business partnering, investments, planning and forecasting, audit, financial controls and facility management. Tim is part of the Finance sub-committee, that is made up of employees and members of the Board of Trustees.
Tim has held senior finance roles in oil and gas, assurance and management consultancy firms. He holds a BA (Hons) in Accounting and Finance and is a Chartered Management Accountant (ACMA).