Huan runs English UK's membership team and is responsible for all aspects of membership services. He also oversees English UK's public affairs and lobbying, managing external stakeholder relations, including the ongoing Accreditation UK partnership with the British Council. Huan was well-known in the ELT sector both in the UK and abroad before joining English UK in 2012, previously he was TESOL manager for Trinity College London, responsible for TESOL qualifications, and before that training and recruitment manager for EF English First.

Ian has worked in the EdTech market for over 25 years and has worked for some of the largest education companies in the world including Tes Global, Discovery Education and RM Education. As Global Director, Sales Director or Commercial Director he has been responsible for driving growth across a range of EdTech products and services to schools, colleges, Universities and Ministries of Education globally. Ian has extensive experience of working in global education markets with a network stretching across Asia and the Middle East, as well as the UK and Europe. Ian has worked with all major school membership organisations and is a regular speaker at EdTech events around the world on subjects ranging from teacher training, the impact of UK Education on International Schools worldwide and commercial strategies in China. Above all Ian has a passion for Education and EdTech. His experience and knowledge of delivering sales and marketing growth strategies underpins the work of Lime Education.  Ian can call upon his multiple successes in defining, executing, and embedding strategic change. His network of educators, leaders and influencers across the globe gives him a unique insight and opportunity to support the growth of other businesses.

Based in Westbury in Wiltshire, Scanning Pens is the world’s leading supplier of pen scanners that support people who have reading difficulties. Jack who himself has dyslexia, for 18 years has developed and distributed assistive technology to support education and reading development. The pen shaped scanners are small digital highlighters which instantly convert printed text into speech (earphones included).  Those who struggle with reading difficulties can use these devices to develop their independent reading comprehension and ultimately their confidence.     The company has over 100 employees located in four continents and a turnover of over £10m, roughly 70% of which is derived from exports. The company focuses on the education sector and has sold to over 100 countries since 2015, earning Scanning Pens the Queen’s Award in Enterprise for International Trade in 2021. Jack’s export tip is: “Seek advice from DBT, connect with an Export Champ or two and just go for it!”  

Sarah is currently on secondment for eight months as Regional Exports Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, based out in the British Consulate General in Istanbul. Prior to moving overseas, Sarah worked as Head of International Education at the Department for Business and Trade, previously working as China/Hong Kong and South/Central Asia Lead for the UK education portfolio. Sarah has worked in a range of UK civil service roles in Whitehall (and in Wales) since 2008, having previously worked for the Ministry of Justice, Department for Work and Pensions, the Wales Office and His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs before joining the (then) Department for International Trade in 2017. Prior to joining the UK civil service, Sarah worked for the United Nations World Food Programme in Rome, and before that a private sector public affairs company named DeHavilland (which focuses on parliamentary and political reporting). Sarah holds an undergraduate degree in social anthropology from King’s College, Cambridge University, and a postgraduate degree in international development from Birkbeck, University of London.

Thea Wiltshire is the EdTech, Schools, Early Years and SEND Specialist at the Department for Business and Trade. Thea has been working in the education sector for over eight years, focusing on EdTech across schools, Higher Education, and workplace upskilling with experience including partnership development, curriculum development, and educational program planning in the UK, USA, North Africa, and the Middle East. Previously, Thea worked as an independent Schools Consultant, helping families and students from overseas navigate the UK school system. She brings a desire to champion educational innovation and a commitment to amplifying the excellence of the UK educational offering.

Emmanuel qualified from the University of Bern, Switzerland in 1998 and went on to perform a Large Animal Internship at the University of Minnesota, USA followed by an Equine Surgery Residency (surgical specialisation) at Cornell University in upstate New York. He became a Diplomate of the American and European College of Veterinary Surgeons in 2004. Following his residency, Emmanuel worked as equine surgeon in private equine hospitals in New York, Switzerland and the UK before accepting the position of Head of the Equine Hospital and University Equine Surgeon at The Queen's Veterinary School Hospital of the University of Cambridge in 2009. In 2011 Emmanuel started undertaking consultancy work for private equine practices in the Southeast of England and also founded VetPD – Veterinary Professional Development. Over the past 13 years VetPD has become the market leader in and go-to provider of high-end practical and online equine veterinary continuing education worldwide with events held in 26 different countries. Around 35% of VetPD’s yearly turnover is generated in North America.

James Foster joined Lincoln College in 2016 and is the Managing Director of International and Commercial and the Group’s Deputy Chief Executive. James is a Board Director of Lincoln College International LLC, a Saudi registered education company. He has worked closely with Colleges of Excellence, TVTC and other stakeholders to provide education and training across several colleges in KSA, including the ITQAN in partnership with Saudi Aramco, the all-female college in Qatief and the Applied Engineering College in Riyadh. James also oversees all Lincoln College’s commercial ventures, which includes apprenticeships, operating four colleges in China, international student exchange programmes, a leadership and management consultancy and a range of hospitality venues. Lincoln College is one of the East Midland’s largest colleges with around 10,000 students in the UK. The College works with more than 1,000 local businesses, which helps shape the curriculum and provide work experience opportunities. The College is also the UK’s largest overseas further education college, providing education and training across many countries including China and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) where Lincoln College International (LCI) was established in 2014. James also overseas all Lincoln College’s commercial ventures, which includes apprenticeships, operating four colleges in China, international student exchange programmes, a leadership and management consultancy and a range of hospitality venues. Lincoln College is one of the East Midland’s largest colleges with around 10,000 students in the UK. The College works with more than 1,000 local businesses, which helps shape the curriculum and provide work experience opportunities. The College is also the UK’s largest overseas further education college, providing education and training across many countries including China and the KSA where Lincoln College International (LCI) was established in 2014.

Jonathan is the Skills and Professional Bodies Specialist for the Department for Business and Trade International Education team. Jonathan’s develops international skills opportunities for UK colleges, training providers, skills tech suppliers, Chartered and professional Bodies / institutes. Through the global UK Government network, he enables skills organisations to achieve their export ambition. Jonathan also supports domestic talent interventions that drive inward investment Jonathan’s commercially focussed experience has been successfully demonstrated globally over 30 years in a broad range of industrial sectors. A post-graduate in Management, and also Learning and Development Provision, Jonathan achieved educational excellence through the technical and vocational training and assessment route. Jonathan is a Freeman of the City of London, a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Furniture Makers, a Chartered Manager and Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute and a member of the Institute of Directors.

Jane Mann is Managing Director of the Partnership for Education, and Director of Education in International Education at Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Jane has worked in the education sector for nearly three decades, advising on, implementing and managing programmes of system-level change and improvement, across diverse contexts, including Education in Emergencies. She has worked with ministries of education, government agencies, non-governmental organisations, donor agencies and educational organisations to support large-scale system transformation through to targeted specific interventions. Jane has also worked outside the education sector, advising and consulting on regulatory frameworks, trade publishing strategy, communications and process redesign. She has been a speaker at events such as the Education World Forum, London Book Fair, Transforming Education Summit (UNGA77), Global Online Learning Alliance and the Global Education Summit, is a member of the Centre for the Study of Global Human Movement (University of Cambridge) and is also a member of the BESA Executive Council.

John Goldsbrough has over 30 years’ experience in export, with a focus on sales and marketing for multinational companies. He started his career in textiles before moving into financial services and then as a consultant to SMEs. John has spent time working and living in Brazil, Germany, Canada and Portugal, gaining experience in both high growth and established markets, operating B2B & B2C. Currently he is an International Trade Adviser for the Department for Business and Trade in the south-east of England, having previously been a Commercial Officer for DBT in Lisbon.

Julia Garvey has worked in education publishing and EdTech for over 25 years, both in-house and as an external marketing consultant. Julia initially worked on membership and marketing projects with the British Educational Suppliers Association (BESA) before joining the team full time as Operations Director in 2019 and then taking on the role of Deputy Director General in 2021. Having worked for education suppliers in a commercial setting, Julia understands the needs of BESA members and is passionate about ensuring that every company takes full advantage of the opportunities that exist both within the UK and internationally. Julia works closely with organisations including the UK Department for Business and Trade to help share knowledge and understanding, and to establish partnerships that can lead to long term business relationships between UK companies and overseas schools and government departments. Julia has travelled with UK companies to attend tradeshows in the US, UAE, Australia and Thailand, and has attended trade missions to Cambodia, Egypt and Morocco. Find her on Twitter @marketingjulia.

Ian manages a team of Department for Business and Trade International Trade Advisers who work closely with businesses in the Education sector across Southern England assisting them to develop ambitious strategies that help them to achieve success in international markets. Ian has previously worked on secondment to Innovate UK as an Innovation and Growth Specialist, delivering tailored one to one growth, finance, and technology support to innovative London SMEs. The majority of ITAs are carefully selected from the ranks of the private sector and Ian has over 20 years of business management experience in the global financial markets, particularly within business services, market data and financial software. He previously worked for Thomson Reuters, managing Thomson Reuters Ireland, and subsequently managing a division selling market data, financial services, and news across Europe, Israel, and Sub-Saharan Africa.