Judges

For the past two years I’ve led the early careers and professional development team for BAM in the UK. I’m committed to helping all our apprentices, graduates and entry-level professionals and beyond grow & thrive so they can go on to have successful careers in the construction industry.

My career to date spans Learning & Development, Talent Management and HR Business Partnering which gives me a holistic view of how to best support people at every stage of their career journey.

I’m passionate about helping people reach their potential and I’ve built my career around making that happen. I focus on creating inclusive, supportive environments where individuals can grow with confidence, both personally and professionally. Whether it’s through structured learning programmes, career development pathways, or one-to-one support, I love designing people strategies that make a real difference.

I thrive on turning strategy into action whether that means launching new initiatives, enabling managers to grow their teams or embedding a culture of continuous learning and development.

I’m especially committed to improving access to opportunity by championing social mobility and helping people build the skills and the confidence they need to succeed.

Andy Hall is the Technical Education and Skills Senior Manager at the Careers and Enterprise Company.

Andy is responsible for co-ordinating CEC’s Technical Education and Skills strategy and in working with partners to ensure that employers, educators and learners are supported in engaging with vocational routes.

Prior to this role Andy worked for the British Council, leading research, policy dialogue and technical assistance to support governments around the world to improve their TVET systems, and for WorldSkills UK, leading on the co-ordination of the programme of national competitions.

Dan is an early careers thought leader in his 15^th cycle of hiring and helping employers to hire.

Dan led the recruitment in-house at Capgemini and Cognizant, whilst enjoying stints in initially at AMS and later at QA, where he helped employers to scale their apprentice hiring post-Levy introduction.

Since 2023, Dan has been leading on developing early careers solutions, marketing, and partnerships at Group GT

Dr Mandy Crawford-Lee has considerable experience of leading and negotiating skills policy, strategic planning and performance management in economic development, vocational education and training reform. She is a sound and respected resource for those involved in the development and delivery of apprenticeships at the higher level having led national policy, managed the Coalition Government’s successful Higher Apprenticeship Fund and revised the Specification of Apprenticeship Standard in England (SASE) leading to the opening up of pathways in higher level learning for apprentices beyond Level 3 and into a work-based route through to professional, senior technical and managerial occupations and, where appropriate, professional accreditation. 

Having worked extensively with government departments, providers in further education, higher education institutions, awarding organisations, professional bodies and public and private sector employers, Mandy has developed effective business and commercial partnerships. Mandy specialises in research, leadership of strategic projects and in skills policy advice, development & implementation including advocacy and lobbying. Higher and degree apprenticeships and higher technical, professional education and skills are Mandy’s sphere of influence. A doctoral graduate from Middlesex University, UK, her professional field of interest is discursive shifts in apprenticeship reform in England and higher technical skills policy, recognising and reflecting the role of universities in delivery. 

Having worked with the University Vocational Awards Council (UVAC) since 2012, both inside and outside of Government, Mandy became its director of policy and operations in 2017 and, in October 2021, its first female chief executive. UVAC on behalf of its 85 university members, has been championing degree apprenticeships since their introduction, and the value of higher technical and professional education for over twenty years and is regarded as the most authoritative voice on all strategic and operational aspects of higher and degree apprenticeships in England. 

James Adeleke, a Nigerian-born, dyslexic social entrepreneur, is on a mission to change the world.

He is the CEO of Generation Success, an award-winning social enterprise that works with more than 70 employers in the UK and Ireland to tackle social inequalities in society and connect diverse talent to careers through mentoring, training, events and early career recruitment services.

He has been involved in a number of projects, reports and commissions centered around enterprise and employability. He has spoken in Parliament and City Hall on social mobility, diversity and employability. He is a Co-opted member of the Education board at City of London Corporation, a school governor at Newham Collegiate and independent member of the Student Association Board at Arden University.

He won the Entrepreneur of Excellence Award in the National Diversity Awards 2022, was announced as EY’s Accelerate Entrepreneur of the Year 2021, and named in the Diversity Powerlist 2023 by Inclusive Awards. Most recently he has been shortlisted for Most Inspiring Business Person of the Year at the 2024 National Entrepreneur Awards.

Meena is a dynamic leader and former FTSE 100 HR Director with a distinguished career spanning global financial institutions including Barclays, UBS, and Standard Chartered.

She now brings her expertise to multiple leadership roles: as CEO of City HR and The Careers Company, she is passionate about driving inclusive career development and enhancing the success of diverse talent across industries.

Meena is committed to public service and education. She is a Non-Executive Director at Central & North West London NHS Foundation Trust, and a Trustee for both the Community Schools Trust and the HYFA Foundation.

Recognised for her influence and impact, Meena was named one of Cranfield’s 100 Women to Watch for FTSE 350 NED roles in 2021 and features on the Trustees Unlimited Inspire List.

For the past 10 years Mike has developed multiple award winning Recruitment, Apprenticeship and Diversity programmes in his role as Director for Early Careers at Barclays. 

His passions are social mobility ,diversity and mental health and during his time at Barclays he developed an Apprenticeship programme that supported over 3000 long term unemployed people into work across all areas of the Barclays business.  

His work earned him a place on the Governments Apprenticeship Delivery Board and his programmes have won 24 National Awards including from CIPD, BITC and Personnel today. 

For three years he chaired the financial services trailblazer group developing new Apprenticeship Standards for the financial services sector. 

For two years Mike was a route panel chair within the Institute for Apprenticeships (IFA) where he has responsibility for chairing the employer panel that approves  all new Apprenticeship Standards and T Levels for Legal, Accountancy and Financial Services 

He is passionate about wellbeing and mental health and has led research into mental health amongst apprentices and graduates as well as employer attitudes and strategies. He now runs his own business, Generation Healthy Minds working with a range of large and SME UK employers to help support their apprentices and graduates to stay well and thrive.

Richard has spent his working life in training and skills development as an employer, training provider and systems provider.  As a time served engineering apprentice, he applies his practical problem-solving skills to resolve complex problems.

His current role at Skills Federation allows him to engage with people working across assessment and training organisations, by providing high quality software solutions.  As the architect of ACE360, he has a deep understanding of the apprenticeship market and how it should evolve to ensure Apprentices reach their potential for their employer and the wider economy.

Siobhan is an experienced public speaker who specialises in creating greater awareness for apprenticeships.

Having worked most of her career supporting young people within education, Siobhan has developed a real passion for the early careers landscape and the unique skills and opportunities it can develop for an individual.

Now working for UCAS, she uses her position to advocate for apprenticeships.

Siobhan engages with a range of stakeholders within early careers, both with raising awareness in barriers that the UCAS audience face in accessing apprenticeships and in assisting organisations to have meaningful engagement with potential applicants across the country. Siobhan is dedicated to assisting UCAS with creating stronger parity between traditional full time HE routes and apprenticeships, so that the public can make more informed decisions about future pathways.