Who we are

Sir David Behan is Interim Chair of the Office for Students. He took up his position in July 2024, following the conclusion of the Independent Public Bodies Review of the Office for Students, which Sir David led.

He began his career as a social worker and over a twenty-five-year period worked in five local authorities, leading three as director of social services. He was President of the Association of Directors of Social Services in 2002.

In 2003, he became the first Chief Inspector of the Commission for Social Care Inspection. In 2006, he became the first Director General for Social Care in the Department of Health in England, advising ministers of both the Labour and coalition governments. During this period, he was responsible for a range of policy areas, including social care reform and the development of the first dementia strategy for England.

As CEO of the Care Quality Commission from 2012 to 2018, he led a fundamental reform of the way health and care services were regulated.

From 2018 he has held several non-executive director and adviser roles with a number of public and private organisations across the health and social care system, which currently include: Cera Care, HC-One limited, the London School of Economics Care Policy Evaluation Centre, the Catholic Safeguarding Standards Board and the international Sciana Leadership Programme.

He was appointed as chair of King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in April 2024. Between 2018 and 2023 he chaired the Board of Health Education England and, until August 2024, was a Non-Executive Director of NHS England chairing the Workforce, Training and Education Committee.

Arif is Director for Freedom of Speech and Academic Freedom at the Office for Students. He took up his position in August 2023.

Just before taking up his present appointment, Arif was a Commissioner at the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), Professor of Philosophy at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of Gonville and Caius College. He has held visiting academic posts around the world.

For many years until 2021, he was a trade union representative and caseworker for the University and College Union. 

In 2021 he was awarded an MBE for services to education and the 2021 Index on Censorship Freedom of Expression Trustee Award.

John is Director for Fair Access and Participation at the Office for Students. He took up his position in January 2022.

Prior to joining the OfS, he was a senior leader and researcher in the schools sector, leading on public affairs and curriculum research and design for Ark, policy and strategy for Now Teach, and History initial teacher education for the Harris Federation.

John has also worked as Head of Education and Social Reform for the think tank Policy Exchange, was a founder governor of Oak National Academy, and served as an advisor to the government on reforms to initial teacher training and continuing professional development.

Martin is deputy chair of the board and chairs the Provider Risk Committee.

He is a member of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) board and he chairs the CMA Panel whose members investigate markets and mergers. Martin is a quondam fellow of Hughes Hall, University of Cambridge.

Early in his career he was a Law lecturer and he has held board or similar positions at the University of Kent, the Economic and Social Research Council, the Solicitors Regulation Authority, Police Now, The Higher Education Funding Council for England and the global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright.

Elizabeth is a former CEO and non-executive chair of Boots UK and Republic of Ireland. She is currently chair at the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire. She is also a non-executive director of pooling solutions company, Brambles Limited.

She is a former president of ISBA (Incorporated Society of British Advertising) and of the Women in Advertising and Communications Club, and was a member of the ASA Council for six years. Elizabeth received an honorary doctorate from Nottingham Trent University in 2018.

In January 2020 Elizabeth received a CBE in the Queen’s New Year Honours list for her services to gender equality in business.

Katja is Managing Director at Ithaca Partners. She has previously held senior roles in corporate affairs, communications, sustainability and marketing in private sector organisations.

Most recently, Katja was Interim Director of Corporate Affairs at Hargreaves Lansdowne. Previous roles include Interim Director of Corporate Affairs at ASOS, Chief Corporate Affairs and Marketing Director at Capita, Group Head of External Affairs and Sustainability at HSBC, Chief Policy Director and Deputy Director-General at the Confederation of British Industry.

Verity has been Principal and Chief Executive of Leicester College since 2013. Prior to that she worked at the Skills Funding Agency in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

Verity is a member of the Lifelong Education Institute Advisory Board and of the Education Policy Institute Advisory Board, and a director of the Mattioli Arena Leicester.

Susan was appointed chief executive of the OfS in September 2022. She served as its interim chief executive from May 2022. Before this she was its director of regulation, which carries responsibility for the OfS’s approach to regulation and the way this is deployed in relation to individual higher education providers.

She has a background in the higher education sector, having held senior roles at various universities and colleges and at the Higher Education Funding Council for England.

Simon was for 10 years the managing partner and co-global chief executive officer of the global law firm DLA Piper. He is now the firm's Strategic Innovation Partner and a visiting professor and lecturer at Imperial College Business School.

Michael has been President and Provost of University College London (UCL) since January 2021. Prior to this he was Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University of Sydney, which under his leadership rose to first in Australia and fourth in the world for graduate employability. He was also responsible for the largest philanthropic campaign in Australian history, raising a record one billion Australian dollars.

He is recognised internationally as a leader in the field of intellectual property theory and holds a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Oxford, where he headed Oxford’s Law faculty and Social Sciences division.

In 2017, Michael was awarded a Companion of the Order of Australia for service to leadership of the tertiary education sector, to the advancement of equitable access to educational opportunities, to developing programmes focused on multidisciplinary research, and to the Anglican Church of Australia. He is an ordained Minister in the Anglican Church. 

Caleb is a postgraduate student at the University of Exeter studying an MBA apprenticeship degree. He was previously awarded an MA in Diplomacy and International Relations at Lancaster University and a BA (Hons) in Public Services at the University of Plymouth.

Caleb has extensive experience as a safeguarding lead in public bodies and secondary education and is employed as the Parliamentary Safeguarding Lead for the UK Parliament. Previously he was the Safeguarding Manager for Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service. Appointed as the youngest Magistrate for the Ministry of Justice in 2017, Caleb is now a member of the National Magistrate's Leadership Executive and further volunteers his time sitting on the board of trustees for the Youth Hostel Association (England and Wales).