Meet Our Team

Laura-Jane Rawlings MBE – Founder & CEO of Youth Employment UK

Laura-Jane (LJ) left school at 16 with poor GCSE grades, she had experience of being a free school meal student and being singled out because of it. Through her early career she worked in retail and sales, using each step to build her skills, experience and confidence. Whilst working in recruitment LJ began to see that the barriers she faced were not unique to her and became a passionate advocate for young people transitioning between education and employment. Spending time to better understand the structural issues of youth unemployment and the policy around the area, LJ founded Youth Employment UK in 2012. LJ is a passionate campaigner for youth employment and the rights for all young people to access quality employment and have their voices heard on the issues that affect them. LJ believes that it is for all of us to create a youth-friendly society so that young people can fulfil their potential. Recognised as a leading youth employment expert LJ provides support, insight and expertise to many groups on issues of social mobility, education, employment and skills. LJ has a lead role with the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Youth Employment and is a co-founder of the Youth Employment Group.  LJ was a secondary school governor for 8 years and is now a Governor of The Bedford College Group, she was a founding Board Member of Youth Futures Foundation, the what-works for youth employment. LJ was awarded an MBE in the 2024 New Years Honours for services to young people.

Lauren Mistry – Deputy CEO

Lauren has worked in HR, Recruitment and Careers Services since leaving university in 2008 where she studied Business Management.

As deputy CEO of Youth Employment UK Lauren leads our strategies on research, insight and best practice across youth and business audiences. She’s passionate about ensuring that all young people get the resources they need to understand and support their best next steps and that there are accessible, quality opportunities available. Lauren leads Youth Employment UK’s annual Youth Voice Census, the largest Youth Voice survey of its kind. In addition, she is leading Youth Employment UK’s work to launch a first of its kind evidence based Good Youth Employment Benchmark this year, changing how employers understand and plan their youth employment strategies across the UK.

Dr Rupal Patel – Policy & Research Director

Rupal Patel joined Youth Employment UK in 2024 as our Policy and Research Director. She is responsible for leading on our policy and Research strategy and ensuring young people’s voices are heard in policy decision-making. Previously, Rupal worked at the Education Endowment Foundation where she led the quality assurance for policymakers on the teacher professional development reforms and conducted synthesis reviews to ensure policy was evidence-reformed. Rupal has spent over 10 years managing education reform research projects and evaluations for various government departments and third-sector organisations including The Department for Education, The Education and Training Foundation, Wellcome Trust, Office for Students and Social Mobility Commission.

Kat Wells-Bond – Marketing Director

Kat Wells-Bond joined Youth Employment UK in 2023 and is our Marketing Director. She is responsible for our marketing strategy, branding and creative output, as well as supporting our talented marketing team. Kat’s previous experience includes being content manager for an industry leading ecommerce business, as well as running her own photography business, which has given her a wide range of skills and experience in marketing, sales, creative, and branding. She is now looking forward to applying these skills to engage our audiences and help young people.

Eleanor Chambers – Youth Voice, Policy & Research Coordinator

Eleanor’s background is in Healthcare and Research. Eleanor worked for 4 years within different healthcare settings and moved to Research following the end of her Psychology degree. She joined Youth Employment UK in 2023 and is passionate about supporting young people by promoting their voices to be heard, and using research and policy to make a difference.

Sarah Latimer – Senior Education & Careers Lead

Sarah’s background is in Education, having worked as a Teacher for over 6 years prior to moving over the Employability sector in 2021. She joined Youth Employment UK in 2023 and is passionate about using her skills and experience to create educational resources, build relationships with education providers and careers leaders, and motivate and support young people in developing their confidence about the next steps in their future. Sarah works closely with our Youth Ambassadors, supporting them to share their voice and get involved, and is passionate about making sure young people have the best possible chances to succeed.

Laura Ridler – Business Development & Account Manager

Laura joined Youth Employment UK in 2023 as a Business Development Manager. She has over 20 years of experience in the sales/public sector and during that time she gained significant experience on all different levels. She is looking forward to using this knowledge and experience to help the young people of today. In her role, Laura helps employers to promote their brands to help young people find opportunities with them.

Destiny Okwuosa – Business Development & Account Manager

Destiny holds distinctions in an MSc in International Business and an MBA, along with professional certifications in business analysis, project management, and AI strategy. She combines commercial expertise and technical proficiency to drive growth strategy. With over 15 years of experience spanning banking, finance, and technology, she has honed a deep understanding of identifying growth opportunities and fostering long-lasting client relationships. She started her career in business development within the banking industry in 2008 and evolved into a certified business analyst and project manager. Destiny has not only developed a keen eye for recognising market and growth trends but also a proven track record in translating them into actionable strategies, stakeholder management, and fostering strategic partnerships. Her ability to maximize the impact of organisational services is a testament to her strong relationship-building skills. Destiny will not just play a pivotal role in identifying organisations committed to developing robust youth employment strategies and fostering relationships with HR, talent, and L&D professionals but will also be the crucial link between employers and Youth Employment UK’s careers platform.

Penny Davis – Senior Digital Marketing Officer

Penny joined the marketing team in 2024. Penny supports the team, strategising and blending her SEO knowledge to grow our online presence. Penny has worked across three digital marketing agencies, and in-house, giving her a breadth of experience across multiple sectors, and is now bringing her expertise to Youth Employment UK.

Georgia Williamson – Digital Marketing Officer

Georgia sought to pursue a career in marketing and work for a non-profit organisation or charity after leaving secondary school. After a work placement at Youth Employment UK in 2021, she has since completed a Level 3 Digital Marketing Apprenticeship. Specialising in content writing, Georgia supports the team with writing content across marketing channels, including website copy, blog posts, video scripts, digital and print materials.

Emmanuel Ukponzene – Social Media Marketing Officer

Emmanuel joined the marketing team in April 2024. Bringing valuable experience to our team, he plays a crucial role in growing our online presence and building brand awareness, with a special focus on video production. He is committed to supporting our efforts in achieving the organisation’s objectives by helping to develop and deliver our digital marketing strategy, ensuring a cohesive and impactful online presence. Emmanuel was drawn to Youth Employment UK’s mission because he believes in the transformative power of providing young people with opportunities and support. Having seen firsthand the challenges young people face in navigating the job market, he is passionate about contributing to an organisation dedicated to empowering the next generation. By using his skills in digital marketing and content creation, he hopes to amplify the voices of young people and highlight the importance of investing in their futures.

Louis Fage – Digital Marketing Officer

Louis completed a Level 3 BTEC in Computing where he developed web design, digital graphics and animation skills. After leaving college he decided to pursue digital marketing and web design as a career. Louis joined Youth Employment UK in 2021 on a Kickstart placement role and has since completed a Level 3 Digital Marketing Apprenticeship. Louis is responsible for posting job opportunities for young people onto the website, as well as supporting the marketing team with creating content such as social media images and animated videos; as well as creating a monthly analytics report.

Stewart Segal – Chair

Stewart has worked in the funded work based learning sector for over 20 years and has supported Association of Education and Learning Providers since its formation. Stewart worked as an independent consultant within the training sector, working with a number of training providers and colleges specialising in business development and funding issues. Coming from a background in HR and general management in the private sector, Stewart joined the Hertfordshire Training and Enterprise Council in 1994 as Chief Executive. He went on to join Spring Skills as Chief Executive in 1998. Spring Skills was then the largest independent training provider in the sector and involved in the delivery of a range of programmes in service sectors including retail, customer services, hospitality and business administration.

Sharon Blyfield – Vice Chair

Youth Employment UK welcomes Executive Director, Sharon Blyfield, to the board. Sharon is head of the Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) Early Careers agenda for Great Britain. She has been in the business for 28 years in a variety of functions and roles. Sharon joined the HR team 17 years ago, covering all elements of Supply Chain. Having spent the majority of her career developing young talent at the start of their careers, Sharon’s current remit fits perfectly with her passion to create opportunities to support the next generation of young leaders. Youth Employment UK, young people, employers and careers educators will greatly benefit from Sharon’s insight and commitment to work with strategic partners who challenge an organisation’s approach to under-representation of young people across all communities. This vital focus will work to create a level playing field in the recruitment process that might unconsciously deselect from under represented groups. Sharon’s dedication and commitment to CCEP’s apprenticeship programme has been recognised by CCEP’s leadership team, as well as her peers and apprentices alike. She has received praise for her outstanding leadership of the programme, which has continued to grow and expand in line with the business’ Early Careers agenda. As well as recognition from the leadership team, Sharon is adored by the apprentices themselves, who see her as a trusted advisor and mentor.

Tom Hadley

Tom is an independent consultant and business coach specialising in high-impact strategic campaigns and workforce issues. Over the last twenty years, Tom has worked with global employers, international institutions, government ministers and two of the UK’s leading business organisations. He reaches into this to provide consultancy services in areas such as reputation management, developing innovative approaches to recruitment, youth employment and employee engagement, taking a lead on the future of work, and boosting voice and visibility. Tom also delivers a suite of bespoke coaching programmes covering media training, public speaking, influencing public policy and written communication. Tom is the author of over 30 White Papers and research reports on the evolving world of work and is a regular keynote speaker and media spokesperson. During his time as Campaigns Director at REC, Tom established the Future of Jobs Observatory to pre empt future skills needs and the implications of AI adoption. His recent work with the International Labour Organization (ILO) involves delivering bespoke training and support to employer bodies from around the world in areas such as story-led campaigning, crisis management,sustainable development goals (SDGs) and championing the positive role of business in society. Over the course of his career, Tom has been a representative on over a dozen government forums and served on the European board of the World Employment Confederation. He has a Masters in International and European Law from Assas University in Paris and is a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (RSA). He is a qualified rugby coach and an unrepentant aficionado of 1980s French popular music.

Kathy Jackson

I trained as a Chartered Accountant in Australia and moved to the U.K in 1999. I have been fortunate to work in a variety of technical areas: Tax, Accounting, Corporate Finance and Asset Management. My most recent roles have been as a Chief Operating Officer for hedge funds.

Harvey Morton

I’m Harvey, an award-winning digital consultant, writer, podcaster, and public speaker. I help businesses solve problems and inspire people to do their best work. Brands trust me to bring their ideas to life. Media outlets and event’s organisers use me to educate and motivate audiences on digital marketing, entrepreneurship, and well-being so that they can achieve great things. I founded my Digital Marketing Consultancy, Harvey Morton Digital when I was at school as part of a school enterprise competition in 2013. During this time, I juggled both my new work commitments and my education, completing my GCSE’s and A-Levels while getting the company off the ground. I love to inspire other young future leaders as they begin on their own entrepreneurial journeys and careers. When I’m not working, I enjoy trips to the cinema and concerts, and also enjoy relaxing with friends and family, working out and getting acquainted with all the best new restaurants and cafes. I can often be found walking my beloved border collie, Nelly.

Dr Geoff Paul

Geoff has always had an interest in both the Charity Sector, Education and Restorative Justice. In 2006, Geoff was invited to become a Trustee Board Director for Victims Support (London) and advised the Board of a range of specialist areas including governance, strategy, human resource management, policy development and financial probity accountability and transparency of the charity. Geoff was also elected to the Finance Committee and was involved in collaborations with public and private organisations, NGOs, Charities, Local Authorities, Metropolitan Police Force and other stakeholders and associations. In 2008, Geoff was appointed as the Chair of Due Diligence Committee during the merger of the charity. In 2009, whilst working at St Mary’s University Twickenham, Geoff developed and launched a MA Charity Management programme which offered formal expertise and qualifications to over 200 small/medium-sized charities.

Natalie Rogers

Natalie has a background in learning, inclusion, and diversity, having started her HR career as a HR generalist in retail, before moving into branded FMCG where she started to specialise in talent and leadership. She has worked in the field of HR for 23 years and has been a Chartered Fellow of CIPD for the last decade. She continues to have a passion for organisational development and is currently setting the long-term strategy for talent, development and inclusion along with leading a team of HR professionals at Greencore Group, one of the UK’s largest food manufacturers. Through her career she has been the architect of many award-winning apprenticeship, graduate and development programmes aimed at enabling young people to build a rewarding career in industry. She is known for her creativity, energy, and ability to work at pace. Her passion for inclusion and diversity has always been a feature of her work, and her move to join the board of Youth Employment UK further underpins her commitment to creating more inclusive workplaces for young people.

Clare Boden-Hatton

Clare Boden-Hatton has over 20 years’ experience leading change in employment and skills delivery. She is an expert in managing devolved employment and skills functions and specifically aligning programmes and investment to deliver inclusive economic outcomes. She has an ability to connect policy, strategy and delivery in creative and impactful ways with a relentless focus on people and place. Clare is a passionate and values driven leader who has significant experience of working in partnership across government and localities. Clare recently joined MH&A where she leads the place and economic development practice. She joined after six years at West Midlands Combined Authority where she was responsible for the development and implementation of policy and strategy relating to the Combined Authorities’ priorities on employment, skills and communities, which included successfully delivering £170m of employment and skills training across the region. Mission-driven, Clare was been influential in the refocusing of the adult skills offer in the West Midlands to improve resident outcomes. Clare Joined WMCA in 2018 having previously worked for the Learning and Skills Council in senior  policy roles and for PWC in their public sector practice supporting a range of national and government clients. Clare also spent four years working as a Senior Leader in Further Education.

Youth Ambassador Board