John is a senior leader, board adviser, and public policy specialist with 15 years’ experience shaping the UK’s skills and education system. He advises businesses, charities, and education providers on strategy, public policy, and communications. He currently chairs UKAI’s Skills Group, serves on the boards of Youth Employment UK and Ufi VocTech Trust, and holds advisory roles with Skills England and The Access Project. He also chairs a local government trade association and sits on the Local Government Association’s Inclusive Growth Board.

John previously served as Executive Director at UCAS, where he co-led a major national technology transformation that brought apprenticeships into the UCAS admissions system, reaching more than one million applicants each year. He was also appointed by Downing Street to the board of England’s skills regulator at the time, IfATE, and has held senior roles at the CBI, as a ministerial adviser, at the Education Policy Institute as co-founder, and on the Digital Skills Council.