Speakers

• ANDREW DUTTON

  Executive Director – International, A4e Ltd

  Andrew joined A4e two years ago as a member of its Group Executive Board. Since joining the business Andrew's main focus has been on the development and integration of over £900m of new contracts. On 01 April 2010 Andrew became accountable for all aspects of A4e's International business covering Australia, France, Germany, Poland, Israel, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland. As a member of the Executive Board Andrew is also accountable for driving A4e's. Strategic Accounts and Partner Relationships, its product development and technology strategy.
  
  Andrew holds a Masters Degree in Marketing and has extensive senior management experience in outsourcing in the public and private sector. After leaving University Andrew joined Thames Water Plc’s Graduate Programme working predominantly in its International business. Subsequently Andrew joined Vertex Customer Management - one of the UK's leading customer management outsourcing businesses and a subsidiary of United Utilities a FTSE 25 company. Andrew ultimately served on the Board of Vertex as its Chief Operating Officer accountable for running contracts with an annual turnover of £375m in the UK, Canada and India. Before joining A4e Andrew worked with Findel Plc where he was the Divisional Managing Director of its outsourcing business for the delivery of medical services. Andrew is married with three children and lives in Wilmslow, Cheshire.

  

• CHRIS GRAYLING MP

  Minister for Employment, Member of Parliament for Epsom and Ewell

  Chris Grayling is the new Minister for Employment, he has been MP for Epsom and Ewell since 2001, and lives in the constituency with his wife Sue and their two children.
  
  Between 2003 and 2009, Chris held a number of Shadow frontbench posts including Shadow Higher and Further Education Minister, Shadow Leader of the House, Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions and Shadow Home Secretary. Following the formation of the coalition government in May 2010, he was appointed Minister of State at the Department for Work and Pensions.
  
  Born in 1962, Chris grew up in Buckinghamshire. He was educated at the Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe before going to Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, to read history. After university, he joined the BBC's News Training Scheme, and worked as a producer on BBC News and Channel Four's programme Business Daily.
  
  After a few years in television production, he decided to move to the business side of the media industry, and ran a number of small and medium-sized production businesses before moving to become a director in the Employee Communication practice at international communications firm Burson Marsteller. He ended his time there as the firm's European Marketing Director.
  
  Chris first became active in local politics when living in Wimbledon, South London, and became both an officer in the Wimbledon Conservative Association and a Conservative councillor on the London Borough of Merton. He fought the marginal seat of Warrington South in the 1997 general election

  

• REBECCA SUDWORTH

  Senior Civil Servant, Department for Work and Pensions

  Rebecca Sudworth is a Senior Civil Servant in the Department for Work and Pensions, responsible for government policy on disability and work. This includes employment programmes that support people on incapacity benefits back into work, and specialist support programmes for people with the most severe and complex disability-related barriers to work.
  
  Rebecca joined the civil service in 2001 as a senior policy analyst in the Treasury. Her work at the Treasury covered a wide range of public policy areas, including short, focused policy projects on areas of Government policy relating to the UK productivity agenda, time spent working on Euro preparations and a spell working on national insurance and contributory benefits.
  
  Before becoming a civil servant, Rebecca worked in publishing and also in the charity sector.

  

• SUSAN ANDERSON

  Director of public services, CBI

  Since 2008 Susan has led the CBI's campaign on public service reform, setting the overall campaigning strategy in conjunction with members of the public services strategy board. She oversees the public services directorate which develops policy ideas on public service transformation in consultation with members of the CBI’s Public Services Strategy Board.
  
  Susan was formerly director of human resources policy, taking responsibility for education and training issues, pay and benefits, employee rights and relations, and Social Europe. She is also a council member of ACAS (the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service) and a commissioner on the Low Pay Commission.

  

• RICHARD EXELL O.B.E.
  

  Senior Labour Market Economist, Trades Union Congress
  Richard Exell works for the Trades Union Congress, where he is a senior labour market economist. He has written a number of TUC publications, including The Costs of Unemployment (http://www.tuc.org.uk/extras/costsofunemployment.pdf) and The Future Jobs Fund (http://www.tuc.org.uk/welfare/tuc-17271-f0.cfm). Richard is a member of the statutory Industrial Injuries Advisory Council and was the UK member of the trade union team that negotiated the European Directive on parental leave. Richard is 54 years old, a graduate of Bristol University, and is married with a daughter, Madeleine, aged 17. Richard blogs at touchstoneblog.org.uk

  

• PAT SAMUEL CBE

  Deputy Director, Public Sector Partnerships, Office of the Third Sector
  Pat joined the Office of the Third Sector in July 2007 as Deputy Director, Public Sector Partnerships. Previously, Pat had been the Head of the Charity and Third Sector Finance Unit in HM Treasury from 2003, responsible for a wide range of third sector policy issues and for third sector aspects of the 2004 and 2007 Spending Reviews. Pat has had a long Civil Service career, having first joined the Treasury in 1985 where she worked on a range of policy areas in both domestic and international policy and financial management.
  
  Pat started her career as a secondary school teacher. She has been a School Governor and is currently a Trustee of The Diana Award, a charity that promotes and celebrates community service for young people.
  
  Pat was awarded the CBE in the 2009 Birthday Honours List for public and voluntary service.

  

• MICHAEL DAVIS

  Director of Strategy and Performance, UK Commission for Employment & Skills
  Michael Davis is Director of Strategy and Performance at the UK Commission for Employment and Skills. The UK Commission is the lead advisor to UK governments for skills and jobs. Established in 2008, its remit is to advise UK governments on the policies and strategies needed to achieve the ambition of being amongst the top eight countries in the world for skills, jobs and productivity.
  
  Before joining the UK Commission Michael was the Managing Director of CFE - an independent, not for profit, national specialist in public policy for skills, employment and economic development. Prior to that Michael worked for the former TEC National Council, Manchester Training and Enterprise Council, and in accounting and business consultancy.
  
  Michael is Chairman of Lastolite Ltd, a world-leading manufacturer of backgrounds and lighting control systems for the photo, video and cinema industry. He is also Chairman of Leicester College, one of the largest further education colleges in the UK. The college has over 26,000 learners across three campuses and business premises, and over 200 outreach centres. Michael holds a BA (Hons) in Economics from Lancaster University and is a fellow of the RSA.

  

• MARTINA MILBURN

  Chief Executive, The Prince's Trust

  Martina is Chief Executive of The Prince’s Trust, the UK’s leading youth charity. Since joining The Trust in 2004, she has spearheaded a support-network for young offenders and launched the charity’s first public fundraising and advertising campaign, trebling the public’s understanding of the charity’s work.
  
  Prior to joining The Trust Martina was chief executive of the BBC Children in Need Appeal from 2000, overseeing nine regional offices. She sat on the trading subsidiary Children in Need Ltd and was a member of the BBC's Corporate Social Responsibility Board.
  
  Martina trained and began her career as a journalist, established the Press and Communications function for the Catholic Fund for Overseas Development (CAFOD) and worked on a freelance basis for a range of charities.
  
  She then held the post of Chief Executive of the Association of Spinal Injury Research, Rehabilitation and Reintegration (ASPIRE) - a service delivery charity - for seven years, growing the staff from five to 100. In this role Martina was responsible for the development of Europe's first integrated arts, sports and rehabilitation centre.

  

• LORD ARCHY KIRKWOOD

  Former Chair, Work and Pensions Select Committee

  Archy Kirkwood was MP for Roxburgh and Berwickshire for 22 years, standing down at the May 2005 General Election. First elected in June 1983, he became the Liberal Party's spokesman on Health, Social Services and Social Security. In 1992, he became the Chief Whip of the Liberal Democrat parliamentary party. In 1997 Archy became Chair of the Social Security Select Committee (now Work & Pension Committee). He served on the House of Commons Audit Committee and on the House of Commons Commission and was knighted in 2003 for services to Parliament. Archy was made a life peer in 2005.