executive director, balletLORENT
Kylie is the Executive Director for nationally acclaimed touring dance theatre company, balletLORENT. She produces the tours, manages the financial, HR and operational aspects of the company. Prior to joining balletLORENT in 2023 she was Festivals, Events and Community Arts Manager for Durham County Council, managing a diverse programme of projects and events across the County.
She has a degree in Social Anthropology from University of Manchester and a post graduate diploma in Cultural Management from University of Northumbria.
former financial services actuary and volunteer, Durham Cathedral
George has spent over 20 years working in the financial services industry as an actuary both in the UK and New Zealand. His particular area of interest was the management and oversight of the investment portfolios for large institutions with a focus on pension schemes, insurance assets and philanthropic trusts. A particular high point was the development of a social fund designed specifically to donate all proceeds to the work of reducing modern slavery and trafficking.
Since returning to Durham, George has got involved in local politics as a member of the Conservative party and volunteers for Durham Cathedral and a number of other local initiatives.
student of International Relations, Durham University.
Louise is a 19-year-old student studying International Relations at Durham University. She is an ardent debater, passionate about expanding opportunities for state-educated students through greater access to debating networks. Prior to university, she was actively involved in youth voice, representing young people in her local area.
During her time at Durham, she helped organise the Durham Schools 2024 competition which turned over £7000 of profit. In the future, Louise hopes to pursue a career in diplomacy and foreign affairs.
Law Finalist at Durham University and future trainee lawyer
Jordan is a Law finalist at Durham University and future trainee lawyer at Clifford Chance. His academic record has earned him numerous accolades including the Hogan Lovell’s Commercial Law Scholarship, the Laidlaw Scholarship, the Commercial Bar Association Scholarship, The Helen Grindrod Prize from Lincoln’s Inn, and the Francis & Buriss Gahan Scholarship, Exhibition Scholarship and Duke of Edinburgh Entrance Award at The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple.
He was President of the Durham Union during Epiphany term 2023, leading Durham’s oldest and largest student society hosting frequent debates and addresses. Today, he is the Director and founder of the Durham Diplomatic Society and a Rising Leaders Fellow of the Aspen Institute.
In his community, Jordan serves as a Justice of the Peace (Criminal Magistrate) and as a School Governor. In the judiciary, he’s taken on several significant leadership roles, including as a member of the Probation Liaison Committee and further as a Community Relations Magistrate, building bridges between the judiciary and the wider community.
Associate Professor, Northumbria Law School
Dr. Kyriakos Kotsoglou is a Senior Lecturer in Law at Northumbria University. Prior to this he held academic positions in Lausanne, Switzerland; Liverpool Hope; and Freiburg, Germany. Kyri is a Criminal Evidence and Criminal Law scholar with a special interest for evidence & proof and (analytic) legal theory. He has eight years of teaching experience in higher education in the U.K. and Germany. He has been a Fellow of the HEA since 2018 and is a member of the Lausanne-based interdisciplinary group NORDECS doing research in a variety of areas including in the field of expert witness testimony.
Kyri’s scholarly work has been cited extensively by the most authoritative commentaries on the German Penal Code and Criminal Procedure; and he has been cited and quoted extensively at the Greek Court of Appeal in Athens where his work on DNA-evidence, in a high-profile case, led to the acquittal of a (falsely) convicted appellant.
Kyri is the Programme Leader for the LLM Framework at the Northumbria University School of Law, and Deputy Director of the Centre for Evidence & Criminal Justice Studies at the same Institution. He regularly provides expert advice to law practitioners and companies.
Kyri teaches and publishes in English, German and Greek.
Follow Kyri on X @Kyriakos_Law
Undergraduate at Durham University & Outreach Officer at Durham Union Society
Oli is a first year Politics & International Relations undergraduate at Durham University. He is the Outreach Officer and Speakers’ Secretary-Elect at the Durham Union Society, Durham’s largest and oldest society founded in 1842. Oli is responsible for organising the Michaelmas term card with the President. He worked on the Conservative Party leadership race in 2022, is passionate about all things politics, and plans to go into government advisory in the future.
student at Durham University & Easter 2024 President, Durham Union Society
Matthew is a final-year Economics student at Durham University. He is the Easter 2024 President of the Durham Union Society, Durham’s largest and oldest student society. He is a Next Generation Fellow of the Adam Smith Institute, Britain’s leading free-market think tank, researching higher education policy. He is also a Policy Fellow of the Pinsker Centre, a foreign policy think tank. After graduation, Matthew will join an American Investment Bank as a Financial Analyst. In the long term, Matthew aspires to a career in public service.
Follow Matthew on Twitter @MatthewJBrooker
Hertfordshire Organiser Reform UK, prospective parliamentary candidate for Harpenden and Berkhamsted
Saba is the Hertfordshire Coordinator for the Reform Party, and Prospective Party Candidate for ReformUK in Harpenden & Berkhamsted. He works full time in the social housing sector, and, as a passionate believer in free speech and open debate, he also volunteers when he can with the Free Speech Union, Debating Matters and the Battle of Ideas Festival.
barrister, hereditary peer and crossbench member of the House of Lords
Lord Oaksey practises at the Bar as Patrick Lawrence KC, specialising in commercial law, professional misconduct and negligence, and public law. He has been a crossbench peer in the House of Lords since 2017.
international speaker and broadcaster. Member of the House of Lords
Lord Ranger of Northwood is a member of the House of Lords. He has been a leading figure in the development and communication of innovate, technology led services and has a unique record of working in politics, the public and private sectors over the last twenty-five years. He has been a trusted adviser to senior politicians, chief executives and boards and has led teams through major project delivery, large scale transformational programmes, reputation and communications crises, as well as driving corporate and public affairs campaigns.
Kulveer was part of the team that delivered the London Oystercard and spent four years working for the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, leading the transport and environment briefs and establishing the Digital London Office. His time at City Hall included preparing for the 2012 Olympics, making the case for Crossrail, leading on ground-breaking initiatives such as the cycle hire scheme and Tech City.
Most recently he was a senior executive at Atos, a global leader in digital transformation, and established and led the strategic corporate communications function across Northern Europe, APAC and India.
Kulveer has sat on various boards including Transport for London and Bristol 2015 European Green Capital City and is currently a member of the West Midlands Digital Advisory Board and the board of techUK. He is an international public speaker, a regular broadcaster for TV and radio and a passionate Tottenham Hotspur FC fan.
