Clare Forster
Chair of Academic Venue Solutions

Clare has been the Chair of Academic Venue Solutions for the past 3 years and has worked with the Board of Directors and the AVS team to steer the organisation through the pandemic and overseen the launch of new initiatives.

Clare is also Conference Office Manager at The University of Salford, a post which she has held since 2005. Prior to working in HE her background was in Hospitality in the private sector: hotels, restaurants, conference centres and theme parks- spending 6 years at Granada Studios in Manchester.

Rachael Lee
Membership Director, Academic Venue Solutions

Rachael works with the company’s volunteer Board of Directors and business partners to deliver the service required to provide members a platform to increase their business, whilst supporting a programme for networking and engagement events.

She is responsible for leading and directing the team to ensure the efficient and effective implementation of the business plan to meet the agreed objectives.

Meet our facilitator, the other Michael Jackson...

As both a keynote presenter and facilitator, Michael Jackson has presented at over 2,700 conferences and events in 46 countries. This informative and inspiring communicator has impressed audiences ranging from world leaders and global CEO’s to factory floor workers.

Passionate about what he does, Jackson facilitates and delivers unique, memorable and personalized events combining immediate, up to date stories of market-relevant business information with the current and future dynamics of business change. He also strongly believes in audience engagement, much-preferring dialogue over monologue at his events. You can find more about him at www.theothermichaeljackson.com.

We’re delighted to have him join us at our Academic Venue Solutions Annual Conference in December.

'The Next Revolution: Making Sense of the Future'

Thursday 1st December @ 10:30 - 11:30

Innovation today is relentless, Michael emphasises this by giving you the chance to focus on navigating your own path through these fast-changing landscapes. In a market where old businesses are giving way to young ones, where value is now measured by growth rather than share holder returns, Michael challenges the audiences to drive into own their futures instead of merely allowing technology to provide the direction.

Asking a pertinent question as to whether customers will want to connect with businesses in the same way now as they did before the pandemic and allowing audiences to interact with him live on stage, Michael raises the bar on a traditional conference speech.

This dynamic level of interactivity is an eyeopener, and the level of information resulting from the experience allows you to feel listened to and heard. He explains how the proper alignment of people and technology help to deliver the correct levels of a company’s self-identity, brand promise and market position. How vital it is for businesses to embrace the power shifts that have taken place within the business sphere and, perhaps most importantly, provides methods for delegates to take control of these changes and drive their business into a bold new future.

James Gregory
MRG, Senior Practice Manager

James leads MRG’s Commercial Services Practice and his specialist area is senior management and director level consultancy services in: Catering, Venues, Events, Retail, Accommodation, Conferencing & Sales.

With a 10-year track record recruiting across the consumer sector, James has partnered a myriad of well-known private sector organisations such as Premier Inn, Regus, The Mondrian Hotel London, Costa Coffee and Marks & Spencer.

Since joining MRG, James has successfully worked alongside industry leading Higher Education Institutions such as UCL, Queen Mary University London, London Metropolitan University, and University of Leeds. His wide-ranging network of candidates and clients allow him to call on recommendations and referrals across the UK and Ireland in both the public and private sector, leading to diverse shortlists that bring new and emerging talent into the Higher Education Sector.

Heather Lishman

A graduate of the University of Surrey, Heather had roles with DeVere, InitialStyle Conferences and Quality in Tourism before forming her own business in 2010 providing services to a diverse range of hospitality organisations.

Now working as Association Director of ABPCO she has used her business skills to focus on ‘Promoting Excellence in Association Conferences and Events’ and to grow the engagement, membership and the external voice of the association.

Rebecca Cadman-Jones

Melissa Sobo

Melanie Loizou

Mel is on a mission to help individuals, teams and organisations transform from those that can’t to those that can. Author of the book ‘When Fish Climb Trees; Can Do Leadership in a World of Can’t’ and host of the Dive Deep, Climb High podcast, Mel set up her business in 2015, enabling leaders and teams working within higher education, to successfully navigate the challenging world of change. 

A Master NLP Practitioner (Neuro Linguistic Programming), Mel has a Master’s in Marketing and is a qualified creative kinesiologist and sound therapist. Working with her clients, Mel has a no-nonsense, practical, yet creative approach which helps them unleash their own power and potential,  and recognise that sometimes the apparently impossible is absolutely possible.

Anne-Marie Rifai

Anne Marie is currently undertaking research at the University of Warwick Centre for Lifelong Learning into the effectiveness of the regular practice of mindful meditation, mindful breathing and mindful movement.

Her current focus is on the potential role of an online mindfulness platform, structured to provide both group and personalised mindfulness and wellness experiences in the context of the workplace, especially for those navigating the challenges of hybrid and home working. Anne Marie has worked for several years in the field of education, language and communication and, as a teacher and practitioner of mindfulness, tai chi and qigong, takes a contextualised and accessible approach to wellbeing.

Helen Earwaker
Sales and Marketing Manager
Royal Holloway, University of London

Helen has 24 years’ experience in event management, sales, and marketing and has been at Royal Holloway for eight years. Previously a New Business Sales Executive at the university, Helen now heads up a team of sales executives who arrange commercial events of all types, with specialisms in filming, language schools and residential conferences.

Helen has longstanding relationships with clients from the academic, association, and corporate sectors, as well as with film producers and location managers.  Helen is responsible for leading the team in working proactively to maximise commercial income for the university whilst meeting their client’s complex requirements.

'Filming - How to maximise filming as an income stream'

Friday 2nd December @ 09:10 - 09:55

Laura Williams
University of Brighton

Laura works for University of Brighton, Southcoast Conferences and Events delivering and growing their event management services and has worked in higher education for 9 years. She has a passion for delivering creative events and works on the University’s arts and media summer degree shows as well as other core university events.

Laura has just completed a Masters in Business Administration which focussed on the commercialisation of Higher Education and has been able to use this to research into the experiences and integration of commercial services in higher education.

'Commercial integration in HE: A Research Reflection'

Friday 2nd December @ 09:55 - 10:40

Our teams are tasked with being commercial in a non-commercial environment – how does this impact how we do our job? We know the challenges we face as commercial departments operating in higher education but surprisingly, there is very little research out there looking into this phenomena. In a backdrop of intense competition within the sector and government-decreed caps on tuition fees, universities are in tricky financial position and are looking for alternative revenue streams – there has never been a more pertinent time to have this discussion.

This session looks at the research done by Laura as part of her MBA qualification which seeks to understand the experiences of commercial departments operating in HE and how they can be more effectively integrated into the overall organisation. Laura will share the findings and recommendations from the research but this is just the first step. The session will aim to be a jumping off point to share other recommendations as a collective to help develop best practice for our commercial teams.

Andrew Perolls
Greengage Solutions

Andrew Perolls is founder and CEO of Greengage Solutions. Uniquely positioned as a meetings and business travel expert as well as an environmental sustainability specialist. He set up the company to provide independent advice and support to businesses wanting to embrace a greener approach.

Andrew’s previous experience includes UK and international roles at Board level including BCD Meetings & Events, Reed & Mackay and CTM. 

Justine Meek
Agency Relationship Manager, Warwick Conferences

Justine is passionate about sustainability; she is part of the sustainability working group at Warwick Conferences. The group are responsible for promoting and implementing the organisation’s sustainability initiatives towards their long-term goals.

She is also part of beam’s sustainability action group, supporting members towards a sustainable future and working to help reduce the event industry’s impact on the environment.

Sarah Smith
Business Development Manager, Allwag Promotions Ltd.

Sarah has worked in the print industry for 15years and has a passion for helping organisations to become more sustainable when planning their events with merchandise proving to be an effective part of the marketing mix.

Working for a company who are continually evolving their approach internally as well as managing a complex supply chain, Allwag Promotions are committed to becoming carbon net zero by 2030 and working with their clients to support their social and environmental goals.

Natasha's Law
Friday 2nd December @ 11:55 - 12:55

The death of 15-year-old Natasha Ednan-Laperouse touched the country’s heart. Natasha was allergic to sesame seeds and on 17th July 2016, she died from a severe allergic reaction caused by her unwittingly eating a baguette containing sesame seeds bought from Pret a Manger before boarding a BA Plane. Her high-profile inquest in 2018 was reported and followed around the world. The coroner’s hard-hitting conclusion was that her death was entirely preventable.

Nadim and Tanya Ednan-Laperouse, Natasha’s parents, founded The Natasha Allergy Research Foundation in the wake of Natasha’s death, determined that no other family should have to suffer the same devastating and unnecessary loss that they did.  Together with their son, Alex, they campaigned for Natasha’s Law, and with overwhelming support from the public during consultation, this major change to UK food labelling laws came into force in October 2021.  It means that all food ‘pre-packed for direct sale’ must now have a label that details all ingredients and allergens.

The charity funds bursaries to train more needed MSc and PHD students in allergy at Southampton University and doctors, nurses and dieticians have already benefitted from them. In May 2022, Natasha’s Foundation announced the first Natasha Clinical Trial, a pioneering £2.2M 3-year medical study across 5 University Hospitals designed to help treat children and young people with food allergies with the aim of having Oral Immunotherapy available within the NHS for everyone.

Today, Nadim and Tanya are Trustees of the Natasha Allergy Research Foundation, and they give a voice to the 2-3 million people in the UK living with food allergy.  With a mission to make allergy history, Natasha’s Foundation works to increase education and awareness around the dangers that food allergies present and is the only UK charity dedicated to funding allergy medical research.