Board of Governors’ Membership

Professor Anne-Marie Kilday is Vice Chancellor and Professor of Criminal History at the University of Northampton and joined the University on 1 August 2022.

Dayo Adedapo is a talented and experienced senior risk leader in financial services with experience in the infrastructure and fintech industries. Earlier in his career while working for Network Rail and consulting for Arup he has led high performing risk teams and held responsibility for directing risk management activities on a number of major infrastructure and transformation programmes.

More recently, Dayo has been working for HSBC, firstly leading the implementation and embedding of a new Operational Risk Management framework in their Digital Bank and subsequently leading risk governance and oversight activities for the Wealth and Personal Banking division for resilience and cyber security risks specifically.

Dayo is very passionate about equality and fairness and believes higher education can be a strong tool in addressing many issues in the world today. Dayo also chairs the board of trustees for a local charity.

Fajar has worked in multinational companies for over eight years in leadership roles demonstrating her unwavering commitment to excel as a Senior Sales Manager.  Recognized as one of the “13 Incredible Geniuses of Pakistan” in 2015, her journey is nothing short of inspiring, with accolades that include features in three books chronicling her success stories. Beyond her corporate triumphs, Fajar has shown remarkable dexterity in giving back to the community through her NGO, Voice Up. Her fierce advocacy for human rights has also earned her esteemed memberships with the UNO – Inter Agency Network of Gender and Youth Equality , Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and National Youth Assembly of Pakistan.

Now, as the Vice President of Education at Northampton’s Student Union, she is steering pivotal campaigns that aim to foster a nurturing and inclusive educational environment. By focusing on initiatives such as Academic Representatives Incentives, Career Development Workshops, and facilitation of Job and Placements at the University, she aims to forge a future where every student can soar to new heights. Additionally, her Fundraiser campaign stands as a testament to her commitment to ensuring that higher education remains accessible to home students who face financial constraints.

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Bio to follow

Andy is a graduate of Sheffield Hallam University, where he was also a Student Union Vice President. Since then he has a work history spanning central and local government, the NHS, the not for profit sector and working closely with the Higher Education sector. He was previously CEO of the British Dietetic Association for nearly 20 years and has over 10 years’ experience as a governance expert: advising the not for profit sector both in the UK and internationally.

He holds several trustee and non executive Director and advisory positions on Boards of charities and companies in the UK. He has worked in the health sector for over 25 years, is a visiting lecturer on governance and ethics and speaks both nationally and internationally on Board development and governance for professional and membership bodies. In addition, he has been involved with key strategic government projects and reviews in recent years. He was involved with the implementation of the Nightingale Hospitals at the start of the COVID pandemic and was a member of the Board leading the review of NHS Hospital Food.

Andy has a long history with Northampton, having lived in the area previously but is still a regular supporter at Northampton Saints RFC.

With over eighteen years experience working in education, Judy has held leadership roles in secondary, further and higher education. Currently Programme Lead of MA Education and MA in Childhood and Youth programmes at The Open University, Judy is also a member of Senate.

Beyond her substantive role as an academic, Judy supports schools in her capacity as a Chair of an upper school governing body in Bedfordshire. As a Bedford leader of governance, Judy is a member of the governance strategic partnership group which involves supporting governing boards, Chairs and governors across Bedford Borough.

Judy has a doctorate in educational leadership and management, master’s in education and is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

Leighton Chipperfield is Chief Executive of the Royal Economic Society. He has spent the past 25 years in roles spanning academic and clinical research, policy and education, including leadership positions in the private and charitable sectors.

He began his career in academic publishing, latterly as Publishing Director managing teams in the UK and US publishing high-impact scientific and medical research. In 2012 he moved to the Microbiology Society to transform their commercial and publishing business, before commencing his role at the Royal Economic Society in 2017.

In addition to his roles at the RES and the University of Northampton, Leighton is Treasurer and a Non-Executive Director of The Evidence Quarter and a Trustee of the Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescence. He holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Voluntary Sector Management from Cass Business School and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.

A long-standing resident in Northamptonshire, Roland moved to Northampton for his first “proper” job in the mid-90s, after graduating from Nottingham Trent University. Roland now lives in South Northants with his wife and youngest daughter, his eldest daughter having recently departed to University in Wales.

Roland is a Retail sector lawyer, with over 25 years’ experience in commercial law, focused primarily on Real Estate and Projects. He is currently a Partner in a large Regional law firm, but has previously worked in a large global firm, building and growing a large diverse team of lawyers to support private and public sector clients. His current role includes Board responsibilities and leadership roles for a Sector of the firm and also supporting Innovation projects within the firm.

Roland has been interested in Education for many years and has been a School Governor (in secondary and primary schools and multi-academy trusts) for over 10 years. He is currently the Chair of Governors at Northampton School for Girls, where he has been pleased to be a Governor for over 4 years. He is pleased to support UON as he has increasing exposure to the HE Sector through work and private life and is a strong advocate for many of UON’s values.

In his spare time Roland tries valiantly, but often fails, to perfect his golf game, and is an active and regular Badminton club player in Northampton, trying desperately to delay the onset of advancing years. Roland is a keen skier and has a passion for motorsport and all things automotive, with a keen interest and knowledge of classic cars and a motor racing career that has, this far, produced very few trophies!

Hafiz is currently serving as Vice President Education in the University of Northampton Students’ Union, a role that has earned him a position on the university’s Board of Governors. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Commerce with a specialisation in Finance and is pursuing an MSc in Business Analytics at the University of Northampton. He is currently on a study break to focus on his responsibilities in this role.

Originally from India, Hafiz has a background in community service and leadership, having volunteered for two years with both the National Service Scheme and the National Cadet Corps.

As Vice President Education, Hafiz is passionate about advocating for students, ensuring their voices are heard, and working to enhance their academic experience at the university.

Harriet is an experienced finance practitioner having worked in a variety of not for profit organisations, acting as an enabler and business partner to embed commercial disciplines and drive evidence based decision making, Harriet has led finance and wider support functions including technology and digital, data, governance, property and HR teams to deliver efficient and effective business operations. Harriet is a Chartered Accountant by training and is currently Director of Planning and Resources at the Royal College of General Practitioners.

Rachel is proud of the fact she came to higher education through the non-traditional route. Achieving her MBA from Cranfield University without having an undergraduate degree helps her to bring a different perspective to the university and the importance of education at any age and experience level.

This isn’t the first volunteer role that Rachel has held, she previously held a governor role for a first school based in Milton Keynes; she was a former police Special Superintendent in Oxfordshire and has even been a volunteer dog walker at a local animal rescue centre! Being able to actively contribute to her local community is really important to her and Rachel is delighted to be part of the governing board, helping the university to achieve its goals for the students, colleagues and community.

A 20+ year career with a significant portion of that spent in the financial sector and more recently in the retail technical sector, Rachel has held a number of roles across business functions which helps to bring a broad and rounded experience to the board. She has a particular passion for people and, the employee experience, as well as diversity, equity and inclusion. An experienced programme manager day to day, Rachel is focussed on outcomes – she never shys from rolling the sleeves up and helps to make things happen together.

Deborah Parker is a Senior Human Resources professional with more than 20 years working in the HR field.  She has worked across a range of industries from banking, brewing and logistics within globally well-known household brands.   She is currently Vice President HR for an American-owned global chemical cleaning company where she has responsibility across the European region.

Where people are seen as the key differentiating asset in any business, Deborah has a keen interest in the role that the University can play preparing people for the workplace and fostering strong links with local employers.

Deborah has a BA in Comparative American Studies from the University of Warwick and gained her MA in Human Resource Administration from the University of Northampton.

Tendai is a Chartered accountant with over 10 years of experience in audit and accounting. Working in various jurisdictions and across diverse industries arms her with a wealth of knowledge in finance and risk management. She has worked at ‘Big 4 Audit firms’ where she gained considerable international experience leading various complex multi-location audits. In her current role, she oversees operational and regulatory audits for members of the general insurance industry.

Her passion is equipping young people with financial education to give them skills, tools, and confidence to make wise financial decisions. She is a volunteer with a local charity conducting career workouts with young people to help them shape their future aspirations.

Jon is a higher education consultant with extensive experience in quality assurance and developing practice in learning and teaching. His most recent academic roles were as Professor of Bioscience Education and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Student Experience) at the University of Leicester.

Jon has led on a range of projects, including assessment and feedback, academic integrity, belonging and retention and the student experience. In 2011 he was named UK Bioscience Teacher of the Year, a National Teaching Fellow in 2012 and Principal Fellow of AdvanceHE in 2013.

Jon is actively engaged with various HE organisations including as a member of the TEF Panel, as a longstanding QAA Reviewer and UKPSF Accreditor for AdvanceHE.

Michelle has an extremely broad working experience, both across industries (medicine, banking and social finance), and geographies (London, Hong Kong, Singapore, the US). She is committed to making a positive change in society, and strongly believes that education can help address inequalities in the world.

Currently, she is Chief Investment Officer at a social finance company that uses innovative finance to increase access to healthcare products in underserved communities. Michelle has a key leadership role providing strategic oversight and direction, and is also responsible for all deal investment activity.

Michelle was previously an accomplished managing director in the corporate finance team at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, and is a proud recipient of a BA (Physiological Sciences) and a BM, BCh from the University of Oxford.

Paul is an expert in corporate communications and brings to the Board significant experience in fields such as change communications strategy, employee engagement, stakeholder management and media relations.

In a career that has taken him around the world, Paul has worked with market leaders across many industries, including aviation, precision engineering, financial services, insurance, telecoms, utilities, e-commerce, health and social care.

After a successful career in journalism and public relations in the UK, Paul lived and worked as a PR consultant in the Far East (Tokyo, Hong Kong, Brunei, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur) and the Middle East (Bahrain, UAE, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar), before returning to the UK, where he held a number of senior in-house corporate communications roles with multi-nationals.

Since 2008, Paul has run a successful consultancy specialising in supporting FTSE 100 / 250 companies experiencing operational, organisational and cultural change, where reputational management and employee engagement are key.