Serving Britain: the future of food

Jim joined UKHospitality as Policy Director in April 2018. His role is to identify and influence public policy impacting the sector across a wide range of areas. This includes current work around digital platforms, copyright and competition, tourism, food safety, nutrition and health policy.

Jim oversees a number of regulatory policy areas impacting the industry - including food safety, allergens, nutrition and liaison with the Food Standards Agency.

Jack joined UKHospitality as Policy Manager in May 2021, following the conclusion of his Politics with International Relations degree at the University of Bath and time in Brussels working for the Confederation of British Industry.

In his role, he focuses on helping businesses stay abreast of key legislative issues pertinent to the hospitality sector, including food, licensing and sustainability policy, as well as representing the sector to Government, to ensure the voice of the industry is heard throughout the policymaking process. In Jack’s role, he focuses on advising members on regulatory issues across the food agenda, and representing the voice of the sector to Government.  

Tim chairs the Sustainability Committee of the Hospitality Sector Council with the objective of co-creating solutions with Government to the sustainability challenges facing the hospitality sector. Tim also sits on the Advisory Board of UKHospitality and is Chair of its Sustainability Committee. Tim is also a member of the Visitor and Commercial Advisory Committee for Kew Gardens.

Tim has significant experience with private equity backed businesses including M&A and debt transactions. He has a successful record of creating and implementing strategies and change management, including growth, operational improvement and ESG.

Tim is part of the team that in 2017 acquired the master franchisee and development agreement for the UK from Burger King Europe. Tim has led the establishment of the business infrastructure, an imbedded ESG strategy and the acquisition of franchisees that has grown the business to revenues of circa £400m. Tim has over 25 years’ experience in the hospitality sector, operating at board level across a range of businesses including pubs, hotels, contract and concession catering and casual dining.

Richard Webster has been Director of Safety at Marston’s since January 2018.

Richard started his career as a local authority Environmental Health Officer. He has a Degree in Environmental Health and a Master’s Degree in Food Safety.

After several years in enforcement (including a secondment at the Department of Health), he moved into the commercial world. Firstly in supermarkets, he has also worked in safety consultancy, contract catering, hotels and the pub industry.

Helen is a seasoned expert in the food industry with over 30 years of experience in senior roles at leading organisations including Sainsbury’s, the National Farmers Union, and Unilever. Her career spans a broad spectrum of functions, from Food Technical and Supply Chain to Sustainability and Corporate Affairs.

This diverse experience has equipped Helen with deep expertise in corporate social responsibility, sustainability and ESG governance and reporting. Today, she serves as a strategic ESG adviser to Out of Home food and drink businesses, where she develops and implements targeted strategies and programmes focused on nutrition and health, responsible sourcing, and animal welfare. Helen’s work not only helps companies manage risk and ensure regulatory compliance, but also unlocks opportunities to enhance brand reputation, reinforce corporate values, and deepen stakeholder engagement.

Tim began his career in foodservice back in 2002 and has gained invaluable experience from a variety of commercial roles over the past 23 years.

He has now been with Bidfood for more than 20 years, and is responsible for Bidfood’s National, Corporate and Consortia/Framework customers, alongside our Marketing and Insights teams. Tim has played an integral part in providing solutions to support foodservice and hospitality businesses with some of the biggest challenges the industry has faced, including Brexit, the impact of Covid-19, and more recently the cost of living crisis and inflationary economic climate.

Tim plays a vital role in the industry and sits on both the Arena Executive Committee and Springboard UK Board of Trustees, highlighting the important role hospitality plays within the UK and championing the fundraising of Bidfood’s corporate charities. Tim also leads the strategy for Bidfood's community and charity engagement, as part of the company's wider ESG strategy.

As Senior Insight Consultant at CGA by NIQ, Reuben is tasked with keeping a finger on the pulse of Great Britain’s hospitality market. In such a dynamic environment, and with a wealth of data available, monitoring developments in the sector is a full-time job. Reuben supports the sector’s leading operators, suppliers, and trade associations, with the insights they need to see the industry operating at its full potential.

Richard is a Chartered Environmental Health Practitioner with over 35 years’ experience in Environmental Health Practice at all levels. After qualification he quickly specialised in food safety rising to Principle EHO running a local authority enforcement team. He moved into private practice as a consultant applying his skills in food safety and infection control around the world, including cruise ships where his expertise were in especially high demand. He is now Vice President of one of the world’s largest hotel chains and retains his passion for food safety. Richard is especially passionate about regulation and how it must be applied to achieve the best possible health outcomes. His extensive experience in both business and enforcement provides essential balance to make sure safety is prioritised while maintaining fair regulation.

Annabel joined Food Alert in 2021 as Client Services Director.

In her current role as Technical Director, she focuses on compliance, interpreting legislation and guidance, updating and creating policies and procedures for clients, supporting clients with EHO appeals and serving as the technical voice of Food Alert. Her expertise spans hospital catering, sous vide cooking, festival catering and noise and odour pollution, making her a valuable resource for clients across various sectors.

Karen is the Head of Delivery Standards at the Food Standards Agency, leading a team that sets the standards that businesses are regulated against. As a member of the Chartered Quality Institute, Karen has enjoyed a leadership career raising standards across various sectors globally and in the UK. As the FSA looks to the future of regulation, Karen is keen to build connections and work with others to ensure that businesses can thrive and grow, at the same time as keeping the nation’s food safe.”

With over 15 years’ experience in food and drink retail, Katie has built deep expertise spanning customer and consumer research, in-store experience, people development, customer service, and marketing. Renowned for her laser focus on customer insight, she’s driven by an obsessive curiosity to understand the needs of both KAM’s clients and their customers — and to turn that understanding into into strategies that make a real impact.

Katie joined KAM in 2019 to lead brand marketing and communications, marking her move into the hospitality industry. Since then, she’s become a trusted voice in the sector, serving on the advisory board for Gamechangers, judging the Licensee of the Year Awards and the NITAs, and being recognised with a CBII.

James LePage works for Defra on the Food Strategy.

James holds a degree in Geography from the University of Wales and a Masters in Land Resource Management from Cranfield. His career has focussed on food, farming and the environment, starting as a field adviser with ADAS in 1995. Through various iterations of the civil service James has covered roles from delivering agricultural land classification and agri-environment schemes to policy design and project oversight. Until the autumn of 2024 he had spent 3 years working on food sector workforce policy, since when he has been part of the Defra Food Strategy team.

He is based in North Yorkshire.