Leader, Chichester District COuncil

Adrian is the Leader of Chichester District Council.

Under Adrian’s leadership the Council is prioritising housing, economic regeneration, the environment and working with community groups to support our residents.  He is passionate about nature recovery, protecting our harbours, rivers and natural environment. An important focus for the Council is the rural economy; supporting our agriculture, horticulture and viticulture to flourish sustainably.

Adrian believes in working with a wide range of local organisations to promote the District and businesses.   A key aim for the council is to work across the District to ensure a strong community voice.

During his working life Adrian ran a business consultancy supporting local and international business to grow their businesses in a sustainable and ethical fashion.

Venrex Investment Management

Al works for Venrex Investment Management, an early-stage venture capital fund focused on investments in consumer industries and B2B software. At Venrex, we have a strong passion for women’s health. We were early investors in Hertility, a company that offers at-home hormone and fertility testing for women, and BoobyBiome, which leverages cutting-edge breast milk research to develop solutions aimed at improving infant health.

founder and president, the British Network for Functional Medicine

Alex is founder and president of the British Network for Functional Medicine, a society aimed at supporting nutritionists and doctors who work with patients to understand the root causes of their conditions, and improve them through personalised lifestyle changes.

Alex is a scientist by background, with a degree in Chemistry from Cambridge and a PhD (DPhil) in Physics from Oxford. He worked for nine years as a scientific consultant, specialising in developing medical and diagnostic devices, before retraining as a Nutritional Therapist. Alex now runs Cambridge Functional Medicine, a busy practice in the fens, and works with patients with a diverse range of conditions.

founder, zulu group

Alexander is an entrepreneur and investor. He is the founder of Zulu Group, an investment firm that builds and invests in ambitious products that solve planetary challenges. Over a period of two decades, Alexander has founded several technology companies in the USA and Europe, including consumer electronics company Jawbone and women’s personal wellness company Elvie amongst others.

Alexander received his BSc & MSc in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University.

Director of Innovation and Impact, Improving Performance In Practice

Alison is an impact-driven charity leader and social entrepreneur with a strong communications and science background, respected for her natural ability to inspire, and to think outside of the box. She catalyses change through system thinking, innovation, and solution-focused co-creation.

She has led the development and deployment of multiple cost-effective innovative approaches to empower and inform, drive policy change, and transform the outcomes and experiences of diverse beneficiaries. She is passionate about social justice and the power of kindness, collaboration, evidence, and iterative data-driven learning to tackle seemingly intractable problems.

In 2006, building upon the knowledge and experience garnered at the University of Oxford, University College London, and the BBC, she founded the national charity Best Beginnings with a focus on reducing inequalities. For fifteen years, as Best Beginnings CEO, she worked nationally and internationally to improve the mental and physical health outcomes of children and their parents in ways that enrich statutory and charitable services. At Best Beginnings, she gained substantial experience growing and nurturing diverse teams, motivating audiences of all backgrounds, and securing multi-year funding from multiple income streams, forging and actively supported several national coalitions, partnerships, and alliances including the Royal Foundation led “Heads Together” campaign. Alison stepped down as CEO in 2022 and now holds the honorary role of President.

Alison works at iPiP (Improving Performance In Practice) as the Director of Innovation and Impact with a focus on supporting leaders to increase their organisation’s income and societal impact. She has recently qualified as a certified Denison Practitioner and able to enable for-profit and not-for-profit organisations to benefit from the data-driven benchmarked Denison Organisational Culture Model.

Director of Public Health, West Sussex County Council

Alison Challenger is the Director of Public Health for West Sussex County Council. She qualified as a Specialist in Public Health in 2009 and has held positions as a Consultant and Director initially in Nottingham then moving to West Sussex in 2021. Alison first qualified and worked as a Nurse, Midwife, and later Strategic Tobacco Control Manager prior to undergoing specialist public health training. These experiences, along with her public health experience, drive both her broad and specific interests in tobacco control, nutrition, and maternal and child health and wellbeing.

In her role, Alison works closely with, and supports a wide range of health, care, and community partners, including providing public health advice to NHS Sussex. She is a statutory member of the West Sussex Health and Wellbeing Board and is a representative on the national Association of Directors of Public Health Council and the Faculty of Public Health Board.

founder, extreme hangout

Driven by a lifelong passion for wildlife, the outdoors and adventure Amber extracts stories, highlights game changing people and projects and celebrates grassroots organisations and true business leaders through the creation of the environmental platform the Extreme Hangout. A passionate, gutsy and dedicated voice bringing her community and communication skills together to highlight a bold a beautiful future.

Amber is a great convener, challenger and seeker of truth she’s not afraid to shake up the conversation, seek out trailblazers and showcase grand visions as she is a big believer in highlighting dream scenarios to act as guiding principles for us all to go forth and create together the 2050 of our dreams, not our nightmares. With years of communications, marketing and business development skills, entrepreneurial flare and someone who credits years in the service industry as having delivered her work ethic she is very much a lady on a mission.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, FOOD FOUNDATION

Anna joined the Food Foundation as its first Executive Director at the beginning of June 2015 after 5 years at the Department for International Development (|DFID). The Food Foundation is an independent organisation that tackles the growing challenges facing the UK’s food system through the interests of the UK public. During 2019-21 she also served as Chief Independent Adviser to Henry Dimbleby – author of the National Food Strategy.   At DFID Anna led the policy team on nutrition and supported the delivery of the UK’s global commitments to tackle undernutrition.

Before joining DFID Anna worked for a number of international organisations including Save the Children and UNICEF supporting programmes in a wide range of contexts in Africa and South Asia.   Anna has also worked for the UK Department of Health. In 2014 she was awarded an OBE for her work to address the global burden of undernutrition.  She did an MSc in Human Nutrition at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in 1994.

Philanthropy Manager, Chefs in Schools

Anne Dal Bello is Philanthropy Manager for Chefs in Schools, a UK charity which works to improve childrens’ health and well being by transforming school food and food education, focusing on schools where a high percentage of pupils are eligible for free school meals: www.chefsinschools.org.uk

Anne was previously Philanthropy Manager at Parkinson’s UK and has a keen interest in diet-related diseases, particularly in children and young people.

Anushka Fernando was born and raised in Sri Lanka and now lives in Chichester, West Sussex. Drawing on her own experience as a busy mother keen on wholesome and natural food for her growing young children and combining her interest in art and beauty, she is on a mission to share her personal story of how she combined art and beauty with food and healthy living for the mind and body. She has spoken and written to global audiences on “serving love and art on a dinner plate: discovering art and wellbeing in the kitchen”.

Anushka has written curriculum on socio-emotional learning skills and serves on the board of Learn for Life Lanka which teaches socio-emotional learning skills to disadvantaged adolescents.  Her educational background includes a Master of Education from Harvard University and a Bachelor of Arts cum laude with honors in sociology from Mount Holyoke College

Anushka shares content on food art, both her own original work and that of others on her Instagram account @stories_of_a_mama

She is open  to collaborating with brands and companies that have similar values to her- appreciating beauty and art, wholesome food, showing kindness to self, others and to the planet

I love working with children and young people and I’ve worked in education for 15 years. I am now training to be an educational psychologist and have an interest in preventative psychological work in Early Years. I’m fascinated in the interaction between the gut microbiome and mental health and I hope to explore ways in which multi-agency approaches may provide better holistic support for our children and young people.

Children’s Food Campaign

Barbara leads the Children’s Food Campaign at Sustain, the alliance for better food and farming. This brings together over 80 different health, education, children’s and parenting organisations to champion children’s rights, parent power and government action to improve the food environment children grow up in. The campaign seeks to make healthy, nutritious and sustainably sourced food the easy, affordable and appealing option for all families. Campaign successes include winning government regulation to introduce the Soft Drinks Industry Levy, in-store restrictions on unhealthy food at entrances and checkouts, universal infant school meals and better school food standards and a 9pm watershed on junk food advertising.  Current campaigns include Recipe for Change, calling for more incentives for healthier food industry, and Say Yes to School Food For All.

Barbara has over 30 years’ experience of policy, advocacy and campaigning in the not-for-profit sector, working on children’s rights, international food and trade, public health and social justice, spanning Fairtrade, Save the Children and the international development charity CAFOD. Barbara is also the founder of Out for Change, her executive coaching and campaigns and public affairs consultancy, specialising in food systems, sustainability, ethical trade and social justice. Outside of work she is an avid foodie, birdwatcher, bookworm, traveller and indie choir member.

Co-founder, TastEd

Bee Wilson is a writer, mostly about food. She writes about food for a wide range of publications including The Guardian and The New York Times.

Bee is the author of eight books on food-related subjects including The Way We Eat Now, and Consider the Fork. Her book First Bite looked at the psychology of food preferences and how they are acquired by babies and children. Her latest book was a cookbook, The Secret of Cooking She is the co-founder of TastEd, a food education charity aimed at giving children in schools and nurseries opportunities to experience fresh vegetables and fruits in a joyful way through ‘taste education’.

CONSULTANT, GOODWOOD

Ben is an award-winning journalist, consultant and speechwriter.  He writes for major newspapers and magazines around the world, specialising in cars, the car industry and the transition to an electric, connected and autonomous future. He covers a wide variety of other topics too: recent assignments include an in-depth feature on the boom in English sparkling wine, and a three-day cycling trip through the Scottish Highlands with Sir Chris Hoy.

He is proud to have been part of the team which organises Goodwood’s annual Nucleus summit since its inception in 2015. Billed as ‘the automotive Davos’, it brings together all those who influence the new mobility –from legislators and the leaders of the established carmakers to the founders of the tech start-ups which seek to disrupt them – in order to advance the cause of sustainable transport.

As a speechwriter and communications consultant, he has worked directly with C-level executives at some of the world’s largest companies.

As a former chief test driver for a car magazine, Ben’s favourite stories include driving a standard Mini to the highest place a car can go, the 18,000ft Khardung La pass in the Himalayas, and testing the Bugatti Chiron, the world’s fastest car, beyond 200mph.

Ben’s work has brought him awards including Journalist of the Year, Feature Writer of the Year, the AA Environment Award and the Bentley International Award.

Senior Corporate Client Manager, Vitality Health

Cassie is a Senior Corporate Client Manager at Vitality Health with an extensive career in corporate health and wellbeing. Cassie’s main aim is to work in partnership with corporate clients to help them influence and change employee behaviour, resulting in improvements in the health, wellbeing and productivity of the workforce.

Cassie herself lives and breathes health and fitness taking on her own challenges through various fitness events. She also helps others reach their fitness goals in her role as a qualified Personal Trainer.

DIRECTOR, NEW RIVER BOOKS

Catherine Gibbs is a director of New River Books, an independent publishing house founded in 2022 specialising in high-end health, science and lifestyle books, including bestselling The Glucose Goddess Method by Jessie Inchauspé.

digital content officer, best beginnings

Catherine joined the Best Beginnings team in January 2024. She is a registered Children’s Nurse and has practiced as a Neonatal Nurse for over ten years caring for the most vulnerable babies born prematurely or poorly.

Catherine’s most recent role was working in the NHS to transform the quality and safety of the neonatal and maternity services. As a qualified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) and Infant Massage Instructor (CIMI) she is very passionate about feeding support and bonding and attachment.

Business Development and Operations Manager, National Centre for Integrative Medicine (NCIM)

Chantal has been with NCIM for more than 5 years, and feels passionate about their vision to transform the future of healthcare to a broader, more empowered Integrative Medicine Model, which combines conventional, lifestyle, functional and holistic approaches to improve health and wellbeing. Based in Bristol, NCIM is a not-for-profit  Community Interest Company offering clinical, education, community outreach and membership services. NCIM is passionate about making integrative healthcare accessible, offering both patient and education bursaries, as well as fundraising to offer free to access community courses, and running a free monthly webinar series.

As a social enterprise we want to support the movement for change in healthcare to support clinicians, clients and communities.  Education services include our 2-3 year accredited masters Level 7 Diploma in Integrative Healthcare, our online Discovery course in Integrative Medicine, one-off teaching days known as our Integrative Healthcare Forums, as well as running Student Choice Placements with medical undergraduates and offering Wellbeing at Work programmes.

Editor-in-Chief, Women’s Health

Claire Sanderson is the multi award-winning editor-in-chief of Women’s Health UK and Men’s Health UK. She is the first woman globally to edit Men’s Health and the first person globally to oversee both brands simultaneously.

Responsible for the content strategy of both brands across all platforms, she is a regular contributor to TV, radio and podcasts.

Claire has worked with the government to improve health outcomes of women and girls as the only media representative on the Women’s Health Taskforce. She also speaks at universities about increasing social diversity among staff in the media. With over 25 years editorial experience, she trained as a news journalist and has worked for several national newspapers and magazine brands.

Instagram @clairesanderson

CEO, BEST BEGINNINGS

Clare joined Best Beginnings as CEO in January 2023.

She has a wealth of experience across NHS policy and practice, initially training as an Occupational Therapist specialising in Stroke and Head Injury and laterally in mental health. She still practices clinically. She has held operational roles in the NHS in acute services, including women’s health, mental health and commissioning.

Clare also worked nationally for the healthcare regulator Monitor on national mental health policy as well as leading a national improvement model co-produced with mental health trusts and people who use services.

She initially learned of Best Beginnings after using the Bump to Breastfeeding resource when her children were born. She is passionate about early years and has been a Trustee of Best Beginnings for 4 years.

Clare lives in London with her husband and two children, holds an MBA from Henley Business School and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a Leadership Fellow at St George’s House, Windsor Castle.

Lactation Consultant, The World Breastfeeding Trends Initiative

WBTi is a collaborative initiative to assess and monitor key breastfeeding policies and programmes (WBTi indicators), all drawn from the WHO Global Strategy and the Innocenti Declaration. It was launched by the International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN) in 2004.

The first WBTi UK report was launched in Parliament on 15 November 2016.  https://ukbreastfeeding.org  see UK Team here.  Currently over 100 countries are participating in the WBTi; the latest global report and details are available online, including the European 18-country report 2020.  Each report lists gaps and recommendations for each indicator to trigger “Actions” that improve support for breastfeeding in that country.

Mothers and babies need the full network of support that is measured by the WBTi.

Follow the news and discussion on Twitter @wbtiUK and on our Facebook page.

Founder, belly bugs

After graduating from Edinburgh University in 1987 with a PhD in Ancient Greek, David worked in the marketing department of ICI in Manchester. He founded his own advertising agency, Cheetham Bell, in 1992 which was bought by WPP in 2000.

David was CEO of the Manchester office of JWT and Creative Director at global digital agency, Mirum. David left the advertising world in 2017 to develop Belly Bugs, the children’s IP he created that introduces kids to their gut microbes and, as research is showing, is the silver bullet for childhood nutrition.

infectious diseases doctor, UCLH

Dr. Chris van Tulleken is an infectious diseases doctor at UCLH with a diploma in Tropical Medicine and a PhD in Molecular Virology from UCL. In 2016 Chris won the Max Perutz award at the Royal Institution for his HIV research.

He is one of the BBC’s leading science presenters having worked on many flagship Health & Science programmes including: Trust Me, I’m a Doctor, Horizon, and The Truth About…, among others. He also co-hosts the hugely successful CBBC series Operation Ouch!

In 2023, Chris published Ultra Processed People, an exposé on the food industry. It became an international bestseller, topping both the UK and US charts.

Buy my book here:

Ultra-Processed People: Why Do We All Eat Stuff That Isn’t Food … and Why Can’t We Stop?

Relevant Article:
The Big Idea: Why We Need a New Definition of Junk Food

Director of Partnerships and Programmes, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, the University of Liverpool

Dr Christine Cornforth is an expert in the facilitation of clinical research, particularly in the domain of women’s and children’s health.  Her career has encompassed impactful roles in various healthcare initiatives, ranging from spearheading COVID-19 research to advancing mental health projects and advocating for health equity among underserved populations.

In her current capacity as the Director of Partnerships and Programmes within the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences at the University of Liverpool, Dr Cornforth leads the delivery of several influential projects, most notably the Wellcome Trust-funded C-GULL (Children Growing Up in Liverpool) initiative. C-GULL is a nationally significant birth cohort that delves into the development and health of children as they live and grow in Liverpool, offering critical insights into child health and development patterns on a scale of national importance.  Dr Cornforth’s pivotal role in facilitating this and other related programmes of work underscore her commitment to advancing healthcare research, improving the well-being of future generations, and contributing to the broader national healthcare landscape.

CEO, Black Pear Software and the Chair of Trustees , Public Health Collaboration

‘Dr. David Jehring, has a distinguished 20-year career as an NHS family doctor.  His journey in healthcare technology began with the pioneering development of the UK’s first Windows GP clinical system. This foundation paved the way for the evolution of Black Pear Software, which now empowers healthcare professionals, especially in critical areas like A&E and hospices, to access comprehensive and up-to-date patient information. This not only ensures enhanced quality of care but also respects and integrates patients’ wishes regarding their treatment, making healthcare more personalised and patient-centric.

In addition to his medical and technical contributions, Dr. Jehring has trained with the British Society for Ecological Medicine, emphasising nutrition and environmental medicine. After joining the Public Health Collaboration as a trustee, he was recently appointed Chair of Trustees, reflecting his commitment to promoting metabolic health through lifestyle choices.

Parallel to his medical interests, Dr. Jehring advocates for regenerative farming practices. He has actively sought knowledge from experts in the field to enhance soil quality at his farm in Worcestershire. Underlining the connection between soil and human health, he recently hosted “Pear Fest – From Soil to Soul”, a conference that brought together professionals from both the farming and medical communities.’

Join the Public Health Collaboration on October 18th for ‘Unravelling Brain Health,’ a landmark scientific conference in London exploring nutritional and metabolic interventions in mental health featuring leading researchers from the UK and USA. Register now at  Unravelling Brain Health using code GOODWOOD15 at checkout for an exclusive 15% discount.

Research Fellow, King’s college london

Dr Emily Leeming PhD MSc RD is a microbiome scientist, registered dietitian, former chef and author of Genius Gut: The Life-Changing Science of Eating for your Second Brain.

Dr Emily is a Research Fellow at King’s College London with multiple academic publications on nutrition and the gut microbiome. She writes for The Daily Mail and frequently appears in media including Vogue, BBC Radio, The Sunday Times, Women’s Health and The Telegraph. 

www.emilyleeming.com

Instagram: @dremilyleeming

Substack: Second Brain

Medical Director, Randox Health

Dr Gary Smyth is the Medical Director of Randox Health. He works closely with many areas of the business, providing medical input into the development of new tests and services, whilst also managing the medical team. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he also became the Laboratory Director for Randox Clinical Laboratory Services. In addition to this, he works as a General Practitioner within the NHS and Private sectors.

He has an interest in preventative, integrative, and complementary medicine and the importance of whole person approaches to healthcare. His significant medical experience to date has provided him with a unique perspective on healthcare and he frequently contributes to health discussions within the media. He is a Member of the Royal College of General Practitioners and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine, the Faculty of Homeopathy, and the Royal Society for Public Health.

Senior Lecturer, Imperial COllege London

James Kinross is a reader in Colorectal Surgery and a Consultant Surgeon at Imperial College London. His clinical interest is in minimally invasive and robotic surgery for colorectal cancer.

James is currently head of Speciality at Imperial College NHS trust and has had several senior academic leadership roles a Imperial College London, and he is a co-director of an MSc in healthcare design. He is a graduate of the NIHR leadership programme and he was an NIHR Clinical Lecturer in Surgery and an Ethicon Laparoscopic Fellow in Colorectal Surgery. He was awarded a Royal College of Surgeons of England training fellowship during his PhD on the gut microbiome and he was funded by the Academy of Medical Sciences as an early stage lecturer.

James is a visiting Professor at the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland. He is currently funded by CRUK, DASA, UKRI, Horizon 2020 and the EPSRC. He performs translational research into the microbiome and was a co-investigator on the EU funded GROWTH consortium, studying how breast milk influences the co-evolution of the gut microbiome. His first book, Dark Matter, the new science of the microbiome was published in 2023. He is currently supervising 7 PhD students, and he has published over 200 peer reviewed papers.

founder member of charity Public Health Collaboration UK

Originally from the North of Ireland, moved to Manchester to study Medicine.

After becoming a GP in 1990, Joanne became especially interested in diet and health in 2013 when she observed the impact of ketogenic diets on childhood epilepsy and that of low carb diets on reversing diabetes.

Joanne was also named GP for Safeguarding Children and recognises the systematic harm done to children by UPF and sugar sweetened beverages in diets and views this as a safeguarding issue.

From 2016, a founder member of the charity Public Health Collaboration UK.

health scientist, RANDOX

I have worked for Randox Laboratories for over 12 years. In that time, I have worked extensively researching biomarkers of disease and producing scientific materials to aid understanding of new and existing tests.

I manage a team focused on researching new tests to identify their suitability for use as diagnostic biomarkers, with a particular focus on gastrointestinal health. Prior to joining Randox I studied at the University of Glasgow where I obtained a BSc (Hons) in Molecular and Cellular Biology and a PhD in Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences.

Clinical Psychologist

Dr Lisa Cameron was an MP in the House of Commons from 2015-2024.  Prior to being elected to parliament Lisa worked as a Clinical Psychologist and was the first and only Applied Psychologist to ever be elected to the UK Parliament.

During her time in the House of Commons, Lisa was a member of the International Development Select Committee, Health & Social Care Select Committee, HS2 Select Committee and Ecclesiastical Committee.  She chaired the All Party Parliamentary Group on Health during Covid19 and the APPG on Disability from 2015-2024.

Lisa received two MP of the Year Awards, one in 2019 (Sense the Disability Charity) and one in 2021 (Patchwork Foundation).  She also received a lifetime award for services to Disability presented by the Disability Minister in 2024 and a Distinguished Contribution to Practice from the British Psychological Society for her work in the NHS and in Parliament.

Lisa is an alumni of Glasgow University.  She is married to Mark who works with the Poppy Scotland Appeal and they have two children, Olivia and Charlotte.

Dr Martin Scurr was educated at Stonyhurst College and Westminster Medical School. He began his private general practice in central London in 1977. Dr Scurr served as the inaugural Medical Director of St John’s
Hospice at the Hospital of St John & Elizabeth and was subsequently appointed as Physician to Westminster Cathedral.

In 2003, Dr Scurr was appointed Chairman of the Independent Doctors Forum, after which he was recruited to write a weekly column for the Daily Mail. Throughout his long-term practice in Notting Hill, he has remained committed to the benefits of continuity of care and the essential values of cradle-to-grave coverage—principles that have always been central to general practice, even before the inception of the NHS.

Following a brief period of retirement, the pressures of the pandemic on GP care prompted Dr Scurr to return to active practice. While he had continued to offer advisory support to many former patients, returning to
active practice has proven to be the best way for him to continue expressing his sense of duty and dedication to patient care.

FOUNDER, RANDOX

Dr FitzGerald founded Randox in 1982 in a converted ‘Hen House’ at the back of his parent’s house in Crumlin, Co. Antrim.  Since then, the company has grown to over 3,000 staff worldwide including 800 R&D Scientists & Engineers, with customers in over 145 countries. Randox develop, manufacture and market a wide range of clinical and veterinary diagnostic reagents and systems. Randox supplies 100,000 laboratories globally and is the fourth largest manufacturer of clinical chemistry reagents in the world.

Dr FitzGerald was awarded the Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2011 for services to business in Northern Ireland. He has gained many other accolades in his career to date; named a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (FREng) and Innovation Founder of the Year 2013 from the Northern Ireland Science Park, to name a few.

Consultant in Public Health, West Sussex County Council

Dr Samantha Taplin is a Consultant in Public Health for West Sussex County Council, leading on children and young people’s public health and wellbeing. Sam qualified as a public health specialist in 2022 and joined the West Sussex team in April 2023.

Qualified as a medical Doctor, she has extended her studies to include MScs in Public Health Nutrition (University of Southampton) and Public Health (LSHTM). Before starting her specialist training in 2013, Sam worked as a clinician in both hospital and general practice settings. Inspired by these experiences, her work has particularly focused on health inequalities, child development and nutrition.

In her role, Sam works closely with colleagues across from children’s services, health and community organisations, providing specialist public health support and leadership. She is a member of the Children’s First Board in West Sussex, and the Local Maternity and Neonatal Programme Board.

Health summit host

Dr Sian Williams is an award-winning journalist who’s spent almost 40 years as a reporter, producer, and presenter across the BBC and ITN, including more than a decade hosting ‘BBC Breakfast’. She is also a Chartered Counselling Psychologist in the NHS helping emergency responders deal with anxiety, stress, and trauma.

In her private clinic, Sian works with individual journalists, documentary teams and other news media to promote better mental health in challenging environments. She’s written a book, numerous articles, and published peer-reviewed academic papers on recovery after adversity.

Sian presents ‘ Life Changing’ on BBC Radio 4, which has had more than ten million downloads.

COO & co-founder, boobybiome

Dr. Sioned Fôn Jones is the COO and co-founder of BoobyBiome, an award-winning biotech start-up dedicated to harnessing the potential of the breast milk microbiome to enhance infant health. She holds a Master of Chemistry degree and a PhD in Biophysics from King’s College London and University College London. In 2019,

Dr. Jones co-founded BoobyBiome while pursuing her PhD. After completing her doctoral studies, she was awarded a prestigious BBSRC fellowship, which allowed her to extend her research at the Institute of Child Health at Great Ormond Street Hospital, where BoobyBiome is headquartered. Under Dr. Jones’ leadership, BoobyBiome has secured £2.6 million in grant funding from Innovate UK, leading to significant breakthroughs, including the creation of the world’s first shotgun metagenomics breast milk database and a culture collection of novel breast milk-isolated strains. The extensive knowledge gained through these efforts is enabling BoobyBiome to create innovative products that are set to revolutionise infant microbiome health.

In 2023, Dr. Jones was honoured with the Pott’s Medal for her outstanding contributions to science, and her work has earned numerous awards at prestigious international conferences, including from the Royal Society of Chemistry, as well as publications in high-impact journals. In 2024, she was featured on the Forbes Europe 30 Under 30 list. Outside her research, Dr. Jones is an advocate for destigmatising breastfeeding and promoting greater public understanding of the role of the gut microbiome in early infant development.

Linkedin, Instagram, BoobyBiome

director, first steps nutrition trust

Dr Vicky Sibson is a Public Health Nutritionist with an MSc from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and a PhD from University College London. She has spent her career to date working internationally and in the UK, in the NGO sector and academia, always focusing on maternal, infant and young child nutrition and feeding. Vicky joined First Steps Nutrition Trust shortly after having her first baby and keen to bring her international experience to bear in the UK. She has been the charity’s Director since 2021 and is passionate about leading its small but mighty team in its vision to ensure all young children in the UK eat well from the start of life. In 2023 she co-authored the report: “Ultraprocessed foods in the diets of infants and young children in the UK: What they are, how they harm health and what should be done to reduce intakes”.

Elaine began her career in the field of psychology. Her interest in complementary therapies lead to subsequent studies in osteopathy, naturopathy and acupuncture. Following her interest in acupuncture Elaine spent time working in hospitals in China.

Elaine is interested in many aspects of health and well-being. She has combined her time working in the Health Spa environment and hospitals. Her focus is on health promotion and designing wellness programmes for spas, notably The Gut Health Programme for Grayshott spa.

Additionally, Elaine has spent time working in paediatrics at the charity The Osteopathic Cente For Children . A particular interest was tongue tie as an impediment to breastfeeding.

author

Author of The Politics of Breastfeeding, Gabrielle Palmer has been involved for more than 40 years in international efforts to stop the unethical promotion of breastmilk substitutes globally and also to support appropriate infant feeding.

Palmer resolved to work against the unethical promotion of artificial milks over breastfeeding. She was instrumental in establishing the campaigning group Baby Milk Action based in Cambridge, UK, and of which she is still a patron. This work with Baby Milk Action included coordinating the UK boycott of Nestle products.

In 1988, Palmer’s first book, The Politics of Breastfeeding proved influential and became required reading on courses for midwives and others.

She remained busy with campaigning, designing training courses, teaching, consultancies and writing. From 1991 to 1997 Palmer was co-director of the international short course, Breastfeeding: practice and policy at the Institute of Child Health, London. She has worked and run short training courses for health professionals in over 30 countries including Mongolia, Libya and North Korea, and in 1999, she was appointed HIV and Infant Feeding Officer in UNICEF HQ, New York. From  2001 to 2007 she interleaved this work with part time teaching in the Public Health Nutrition Department at The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

Director and Editor-In-Chief, Sussex World

Gary Shipton is Editorial Director of National World which publishes hundreds of quality newspapers and websites across the UK including The Scotsman, the Portsmouth News, and Yorkshire Post. He is also the Editor In Chief of Sussex World and its weekly newspapers and websites in this county, most locally the Chichester Observer and West Sussex Gazette.

A keen campaigner for freedom of speech and trusted journalism, Gary is a member of the industry’s Editors’ Code Committee and the News Media Association’s legal and policy group. Outside his work as a journalist, he is a Deputy Lieutenant of West Sussex and is the High Sheriff in nomination for 2026.

Gary lives near Chichester and believes passionately in the aims of the Health Summit.

Research & Grants Manager, Bowel Research UK

Georgia Sturt is Research & Grants Manager at Bowel Research UK. She is responsible for the coordination of grant reviews and funding approvals, connecting with researchers, and communicating the results of their work to the charity’s supporters and the wider public.

Georgia’s personal interest in food and nutrition has dovetailed with her background in healthcare research and marketing, creating a professional interest in how our microbiomes shape our health. Her key interests are in how research could illuminate paths to better treatments across a multiplicity of non-communicable diseases.

tentant farmer, goodwood estate

Harry is a 4th generation tenant farmer on Goodwood Estate with a passion for farming and fitness.

Having had a traditional agricultural education through college and university, he returned home to work alongside his father on the family farm in 2013, following time working for Lord Rothschild at Waddesdon Estate and travelling to Australia.

The family converted to organic farming in 2017, running 240 dairy cows, 250 breeding ewes and growing arable crops to feed back to the animals.

Harry began investigating regenerative farm practices after reading books by Gabe Brown, Joel Salatin and older writings from George Henderson and Newton Turner to try and better understand the soils we manage and how the health of soils has a direct impact on the plants, animals, environment and us.

Harry started at Goodwood  in January 2023 with an aim to improve enterprise efficiencies, staff and animal welfare and land longevity.

Head of Genomics Strategy, RANDOX

James studied Biotechnology at the University of Nottingham where he conducted research into epigenetic regulation of the commonly referred ‘hunger suppressing hormone’, leptin. James began working for Randox as a Research and Development Scientist in 2018 where he worked on developing novel biochemical assays for detecting illness/disease. During the pandemic he managed one of the largest COVID-19 testing and sequencing labs in Europe and remains employed by Randox as Head of Genomics Strategy with interests in further understanding the human microbiome and how this affects your body.

Managing Director, Weleda UK

Appointed managing director in 2016 to Weleda UK, Jayn was voted No.1 in last year’s Who’s Who in Natural Beauty, for the 6th time.

In 2020 Jayn was appointed to the Advisory Board of the British Beauty Council, and in 2021 became Chair of the Council’s Sustainable Beauty Coalition.

In 2022 Jayn joined the board of the global B Corp Beauty Coalition, a collaboration of B Corp certified beauty brands and businesses. That same year, Jayn was presented with an Outstanding Achievement Award at NOPEX for her tireless efforts championing sustainable business practices and driving change for a more planet-positive future.

In 2023 Jayn was appointed ESG Pillar President for the British Beauty Council. She was also recently recognised in the CEO Today Business Women of the Year Awards as one of 100 inspirational female business leaders around the globe, and received an award for Outstanding Leadership for Health & Wellbeing Company of the Year, in the CEO Today Awards. For over a decade Jayn has ploughed her energy into Weleda, helping to drive the beauty industry towards social and environmental responsibility and more sustainable business practices – a mission she continues as a public speaker and columnist.

Head of Health and Wellbeing, Goodwood

Jen has over 15 years’ experience managing experience-based wellbeing products and content. Specialising in Holistic Perimenopause health, Sleep Recovery and Stress management.

Responsible for revenues across multple wellness channels including membership subscriptions, events, corporate assets and retreats. Managing a heads of department team that oversee an extensive network of internal and external stakeholders.

We curate exceptional health and wellbeing retreats, with expertise at the heart. We focus on science backed holistic wellbeing, promoting innovation in the wellbeing industry such as Gut Health, Biohacking, resilience recovery, sleep-hygiene, stress and psychology led programmes. Our focus is preventative health which is highly tailored and curated to ensure the individuals results are met.

MP FOR CHICHESTER

Elected MP for Chichester in July 2024, Jess Brown-Fuller has lived in the Chichester area since the 90’s, studied at Chichester University and is now raising her family in the area.

Jess has her feet firmly in her local community and is well-known as a champion for local residents and businesses alike. During the pandemic, she set up an innovative volunteer organisation to support local residents. The model was copied across the country to great effect. Jess’ leadership, fast action and compassion was recognised with a High Sheriff Award and a visit to Buckingham Palace.

Jess is an elected member at Chichester District Council and holds the portfolio for culture, arts & events and is proud to champion the sector and the benefits it brings to the economy of Chichester.

Improving access to the NHS is a big driver for Jess; who unfortunately lost her father to cancer when he was unable to access diagnostic and treatment services during the pandemic.

Jess is proud to be a local champion with a proven track record of delivering for the people of Chichester and she looks forward to delivering a fair deal and positive change in Westminster.

Strategic Lead:  Health Innovation Hub, The University of Brighton

Joanna Havers is the strategic lead for Knowledge Exchange at the University of Brighton, spearheading efforts to drive economic development and foster connections between the public, private and community sectors in the region. At the forefront of these initiatives is the Health Innovation Hub, an ambitious project aimed at tackling regional health challenges through cutting-edge research and innovation.

“By fostering and developing deep routed collaborations, we are co-creating solutions to address critical issues such as complex medical needs, health inequalities, workforce shortages and emerging retention patterns, amongst other challenges facing the health and care sectors.”

Joanna’s background in the voluntary sector, where she worked with healthcare and mental health organisations, gives her valuable insight into the intersection of health and community, further informing her leadership in this pivotal regional project.

Health Editor, Daily Mail

Kate Pickles is joint health editor at the Daily Mail, where she specialises in medical stories for the news section of the paper. She has worked at the company for almost a decade, including time on the news desk before returning to her passion of covering breaking health and research stories. Prior to this, she was health correspondent at regional newspapers the Edinburgh Evening News and Barnsley Chronicle.

chief executive, bowel research uk

Lindsay Easton is Chief Executive of Bowel Research UK. She is responsible for the overall leadership and management of the charity.

Lindsay joined Bowel Research UK on 1st May 2024.  Her experience spans more than 25 years in the charity sector, including six-years as CEO for Brain Research UK.

Her previous senior fundraising and marketing roles included posts at Action for Children, Amnesty International Australia, British Heart Foundation, Young Lives vs Cancer and Diabetes UK.

Co-Founder, The Gut Stuff

Prior to founding The Gut Stuff, as The Mac Twins, with her identical twin sister they’d done everything from DJing at the Olympics, to presenting on the Brits red carpet, regular live radio shows for BBC 1xtra and Virgin Radio, creating their own DJ gaming live battle show and being the Official Love Island DJ’s, but they can now add business women to that list and The Gut Stuff is their proudest venture to date.

The Gut Stuff was built to democratise gut health and now has a highly successful snacking range, a corporate wellness services business, 3 books, a consumer focused gut health app and even their very own (now global) tv show “Know your sh!t”.

Category Technical Manager , Waitrose

Natalie has had a career in the food retail industry years since completing a degree in Food Science and Nutrition with the University of Reading in 2012. She has held many different roles within the retail sector, starting out as a graduate with Sainsbury’s, and working up to becoming a Product Technologist, through to a Quality Manager. She joined Waitrose as a Technical Manager overseeing their export business where her expertise in Supplier and Product management were put to good use around the globe.

Most recently Natalie has been a Category Technical Manager for Waitrose ensuring the quality, safety, legality and health credentials of Waitrose Own Brand Products. Her passion for Nutrition has always been a driving force in her career, be it through product reformulation or allergen management and last year she completed a Masters in Applied Human Nutrition with Oxford Brookes University.

public health doctor at UCL Institute for Global Health

Professor Nigel Field is an infectious disease epidemiologist and public health doctor at UCL Institute for Global Health.

Nigel leads interdisciplinary teams addressing three major challenges, (1) using large birth cohort studies (Baby Biome Study and C-GULL) to investigate gut microbiota and nutrition in early life and how these affect later health, including respiratory infections and mental health, (2) understanding STIs and the vaginal microbiota to improve sexual and reproductive health (Natsal studies), and (3) control and prevention of emerging infections in East Africa, alongside ecologists, virologists, vets, social scientists, vector specialists and communities (COHRIE-Uganda).

Professor of Public Health & Health Promotion, the University of Brighton

Nigel Sherriff is Professor of Public Health & Health Promotion at the University of Brighton, and Director of the Centre for Transforming Sexuality & Gender (CTSG).

Professor Sherriff’s research interests are driven strongly by a social justice agenda, along with a collaborative and participatory approach to research with demonstrative social impact which ultimately tackles disadvantage and inequalities in health. His programme of research spans HIV infection & other sexually transmitted infections, health systems research, health inequalities, parenting including fatherhood and breastfeeding, & vulnerable populations particularly LGBTI people.

managing partner , Pollen & Co

Omar is the managing partner of Pollen & Co – a sustainable growth consulting firm. He previously founded and exited Wiser, the UK’s number one employer branding agency. Omar holds an MBA from the University of Cambridge and is currently setting up a fund dedicated to the food production system.

DIRECTOR, SASARE GROUP

Oni is an expert in Public, Private and Third Sector Procurement, Supply Chain and Logistics Management and is a Director of Sasare Associates, a consultancy advising on best practice Supply Chain and Logistics Management to Public, Private and Third sector organisations in the health, aviation, defence, transportation, Fin-Tech sector among others.

CEO, Sustainable Food Trust

Patrick Holden is the founder and CEO of the Sustainable Food Trust, whose mission is to work internationally to accelerate the transition towards more sustainable food and farming systems.

Between 1995 and 2010, he was Director of the Soil Association, the UK organic advocacy and certification organisation, where he played a leading role in developing the organic standards and market.

He currently leads a task force on measuring land use sustainability for the Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI), established by the then Prince of Wales in 2020.

Patrick trained in Biodynamic farming at Emerson College and has farmed for over 50 years on a 300-acre mixed organic dairy holding, now the longest established organic dairy farm in Wales, producing a raw milk cheddar from the milk of 85 Ayrshire cows.

He received a CBE for services to organic farming in 2005 and is Patron of the UK Bio-dynamic Agriculture Association. He became an Ashoka fellow in 2016 and was awarded an honorary doctorate for his international work in sustainable agriculture by the University of Wales Trinity St David in 2022.

Deputy Head of the School of Clinical Medicine, the University of Cambridge

Ed Bullmore trained in medicine at the University of Oxford and St Bartholomew’s Hospital, London and completed a PhD in brain MRI statistical analysis at the Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College London. He moved to Cambridge as Professor of Psychiatry in 1999 and was Head of the Department of Psychiatry from 2014-2021.

In addition to being Deputy Head of the School of Clinical Medicine in the University of Cambridge, Ed is a Non-Executive Director of Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Foundation NHS Trust. From 2005-2019, he worked half-time for GlaxoSmithKline, as VP Experimental Medicine, focusing on immuno-psychiatry, as described in his best-selling book “The Inflamed Mind” (2018). His scientific work on brain networks and development of mental health disorders has been highly cited.

Ed has been elected as a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of Psychiatrists, as a Fellow and Treasurer of the Academy of Medical Sciences, and as an Honorary Fellow of Downing College.

Executive Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Faculty of Health & Life Sciences, UNIVERSITY OF LIVERPOOL

Louise is the Executive Pro Vice Chancellor of the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences at the University of Liverpool, deputy Chair of the Board of Liverpool Health Partners, a Non-Executive Director at the Liverpool Women’s Hospital and from April 2024, the Chair of Population and Systems Medicine (PSMB) at the Medical Research Council.

She was the founding Director of the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) funded Irish Centre for Fetal and Neonatal Translational Research (INFANT www.infantcentre.ie) and was Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Cork University Maternity Hospital where she worked as a Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist from 2006-2018.

Louise is widely regarded as one of the world’s leading experts on hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. She has written over 300 original scientific papers and didactic texts on the aetiology, pathogenesis, epidemiology and clinical management of this condition, supported by a portfolio of personal awards now in excess of £65 million. The work of Louise’s group has translated from the bench to clinical practice and has led to changes in guidelines both nationally and internationally. She is the founder and Principal Investigator of the Wellcome Trust funded programme Children Growing up in Liverpool (C-GULL), the first new birth cohort in the UK for two decades.

As of April 2024 Louise has taken on the role as Chair of the MRC Population and Systems Medicine Board.

Louise has received numerous awards for her work; most recently she was elected a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2022 New Year Honours for services to research in the NHS.

COMMUNICATIONS CONSULTANT, bowel research uk

Rachel is a healthcare communications and patient advocacy consultant whose experience spans senior agency roles, pharma in-house and health charity communications.

Rachel runs Bowel Research UK’s Press Office and provides business development and strategic insight for Bowel Research UK communications.

Her experience includes running disease awareness campaigns, strategic brand and data communications, corporate reputation building, crisis communications, media training, internal engagement and patient advocacy.

Publisher, co-founder New River

Rebecca Nicolson is Co-founder of independent publishing house New River Books. She formerly worked for newspapers including the Observer, The Times, The Telegraph, and the Daily Mail. She was latterly deputy editor of the Independent on Sunday, before co-founding Short Books, which published multiple bestsellers and established a reputation for having the highest hit rate of any small publisher in the UK. It was sold to Hachette in 2019.

Director, Public Health Collaboration UK

Sam Feltham has been in the health and fitness industry for over a decade. Starting out as a party coordinator at a sports centre he worked his way up to study at the European Institute of Fitness and qualified as a Master Personal Trainer. After 5 years of running a fitness boot camp business and a successful podcast, Sam shifted his focus to improving the health of the public through sustainable lifestyle changes by founding and directing the Public Health Collaboration (Charity no. 1171887). PHC is dedicated to cultivating a society where everyone enjoys good metabolic health.

HTTPS://PHCUK.ORG/

Chartered Psychologist, Coach and Supervisor

Sam works with individuals, leaders and teams to unlock their performance at work and in life. Her research has led to a process that integrates mindset, movement, recovery strategies and nutrition to enable people to sustain high performance under pressure. Supporting people to consume colourful, largely plant based whole foods, Sam regularly witnesses a transformation in performance, outlook and general wellbeing.  samantha@samaxtell.com

Clinical Nutritionist, Physical & Mental Health Coach, Author

Stephanie has worked in the natural health field for over 30 years as a self-employed natural health therapist, clinical nutritionist, author and health coach. With a Bachelor of Science degree in Nutritional Medicine and a Masters degree in Counselling and Psychotherapy, plus a long history as a multi-disciplinary physical therapist and fitness coach, she combines all skill sets to help people with many kinds of health issues, both physical and psychological with a prevention-first focus.

Stephanie conducts one-to-one nutritional therapy clinics in Surrey and Online offering a comprehensive assessment of her patients’ health issues to then provide detailed, personalised health protocols. With specialist interest in digestive health and the effect of the gut microbiome on  metabolic, hormonal and mental health conditions, Stephanie works with numerous GPs supporting treatment plans for challenging cases with eating disorders, metabolic chronic disease and cancer, both pre, during and post treatment.

For 9 years Stephanie was head of nutrition at Grayshott Medical Spa and clinical lead for the 7-day digestive health regime that she co-developed in 2012. Her gut health protocol is the inspiration behind GutGastronomy, a cookbook based on her gut healing philosophy. Since the closing of Grayshott Medical Spa in November 2020, Stephanie has relocated the health programme to Goodwood Estate, where it is now run as a 5 day, fully immersive experience at the Goodwood hotel and spa.

Stephanie contributes to various health publications; is often featured in the media as a health expert; she published her first book in 2017 called ‘Why Eating Less & Exercising More Makes You Fat!’, which explains why conventional weight loss advice fails and what to do instead to achieve permanent health and weight loss goals. She has also co-authored a book on Super-Foods with doctor of biochemistry and health campaigner, Dr James DiNicolantonio, and following her recent training in Nutritional Neuroscience, has written her soon to be published latest book ‘Eat Your Brain Happy’, which focuses on the critical role of gut health, food, sleep, exercise and other factors known to directly influence the health of the brain.

Stephanie has also recently embarked on a degree in canine nutrition and well-being, bringing together her love of dogs and health.

Former MP and Parliamentary Private Secretary

A former Member of Parliament, Government Minister, and Number 10 Parliamentary Private Secretary. Currently setting up a policy liaison group the “Con that is Ultra Processed Food” geared towards supporting policy reform and regulation of Ultra-Processed Food. Appeared on Radio 4 and national television talking about the impact UPF has on health outcomes and the negative role the food industry plays.

Toni Harman is a filmmaker, author, course creator, international speaker and champion of the microbiome.

Toni has produced and directed a number of award-winning documentary films including MICROBIRTH – about the origins of the human microbiome. MICROBIRTH has won many international film festivals and been broadcast internationally, plus has had over 1,000 public screenings worldwide.

Toni’s extensive research for MICROBIRTH led to her authoring the books THE MICROBIRTH EFFECT and YOUR BABY’s MICROBIOME.

Toni has created an online school offering accredited courses about the infant microbiome, now with over 42,000 students.

In addition, Toni has hosted two international virtual conferences. The last conference held in February 2024 was attended by over 3,500 health professionals from around the world.

Toni is currently working on a global campaign to bring awareness of the infant microbiome to parents, particularly why vaginal birth (when possible), skin-to-skin and support for exclusive breastfeeding are all so important for the optimal development of the infant microbiome, to benefit the future health of the next generation.

MICROBIRTH Global Campaign 2025 – Expression Of Interest

We are creating a global grass-roots impact campaign spearheaded by the Spring 2025 launch of our new feature-length documentary (ANNOUNCED VERY SOON). Our mission is to bring an understanding of the infant microbiome to parents and to health professionals, to potentially transform the health of the next generation. Our goal is to have 10,000 film premieres happening on the same day around the world, hosted in local communities, by people like YOU. If we can do this, we can reach up to one million parents in one day! And that’s just the start…

Express your Interest

We would love YOU to be involved. You could host a movie premiere in your local area, or simply attend a screening. Or you might have connections or ideas that can help us reach more people to create an even bigger impact. In effect, we are building a global ecosystem of people who want to be part of this global campaign in some way. If you fill in this form, we will contact you with further details in due course. No obligation. No commitment. This is simply a “Yes” I’m interested to find out more!

https://bit.ly/RegisterMICROBIRTH

More about Toni’s work can be found at:

microbirth.com
microbiomecourses.com

communications, belly bugs

Vicky studied languages at Cambridge University and upon graduation joined the Metropolitan Police in 1992.  As a detective, she dealt with a wide array of crimes, managing cases of serious crime through to their conclusion at Crown Court.

A career change in her 30s led her to work for Manchester City Football Club in 2001, the club she has supported from childhood where she became Director of Communications and a trustee at City in the Community, the club’s charitable foundation supporting the health of wellbeing of young people in cities of the UK and around the world.  She later became Chief Communications Officer for City Football Group, the world’s leading private owner and operator of football clubs.

In 2022, Vicky left City Football Group and founded her communications company, Straight Road Consultancy, which serves multiple cross sector clients. During this time she also joined forces with David Bell, founder and creator of Belly Bugs, a set of magical characters that inspires children to nurture a healthy gut microbiome for their lifelong physical and mental wellbeing.

CEO, UKHarvest

Yvonne Thomson is a highly experienced social, economic and physical regeneration specialist, qualified in community education and gaining a post graduate in Housing studies form Stirling University and Master of Philosophy in Urban Policy. She has worked tirelessly on behalf of those who are socially excluded and have no voice, opportunity or choice in life. She has worked in the public, voluntary and private sectors.

Yvonne believes that only through joint working and alliance that we will solve food poverty in the U.K. She sees an intrinsic link between homelessness and food poverty and seeks to provide a solution. Yvonne sees education as the answer to tackling food waste and UKHarvest will work with consumers and everyone right along the supply chain to tackle food waste. The harvest model of food rescue will help provide the solution as part of a four-pillar approach of rescue; education; engagement and innovation.

Yvonne began founding UKHarvest in mid 2016.