Bradford

Meisha has 5 years experience of in corporate marketing, with a specific focus on professional services including real estate, law and finance. She is also a Marketing graduate of the University of Bradford and The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

Her current position is within a professional trustee firm, as a Marketing Executive. Here, she is responsible for leading on branding, SEO and the implementation and execution of a new CRM across the wider firm.  

Meisha has a strong focus on the progressive development of black womxn within professional services. She is dedicated to showing transparency in development for up and coming professionals, so they can be well equipped within their roles. 

In 2020, Meisha curated and moderated a webinar that focussed on building a bonded network between women of African and Caribbean ancestry by increasing connectivity within the UK legal ecosystem. Bringing together junior to senior level personnel, in this webinar they shared wins and their experiences of working within the legal sector. Thus, creating opportunities and openings for professionals with the agenda of enhancing skills and growing a wider network to gain invaluable insight from one another.

She is also the founder of SMUDGE, a startup hair care brand that focuses on technology to enhance the shopping experience for black womxn in the UK. 

Huddersfield

Dr Michelle Bartholomew is a Senior Lecturer with the role of Course Leader for the Master of Public Health at the University of Huddersfield. She has a wealth of experience of working with and advocating for members of the African Caribbean (AC) community.

Dr Michelle has won funding to deliver a Summer School for young AC people. The programme was highly successful in dispelling many myths, breaking down barriers and raising the aspirations of the young participants to attend University.

In addition to being the Vice Chair of a Healthy Living Group with the aim of improving the health of AC individuals in the community, Dr Michelle has organised AC focused University conferences and seminars. For example, ‘Voices from the African Caribbean Diaspora’, attended and supported by 100’s from the community.

Dr Michelle has published research findings highlighting the experiences of older AC women’s health across the life-course. Currently, she is researching how structural and material inequalities have impacted on older AC women’s experiences of the Covid-19 pandemic. As a caring member of the AC community, Dr Michelle strives to empower and give a voice to AC individuals in order to affect positive change.

Leeds

Lutel is a former professional footballer, who represented Saint Kitts and Nevis internationally, playing as a striker. In June 2020 he was appointed joint manager of Goole AFC alongside Les Nelson.

Lutel James is a captain of the ‘turn around your life’ model who now wishes to develop other young people and adults to make better and more well informed choices in life. The key focus is to support and capacity build others to be in a position not to make some of the negative choices he made at an early stage in life and give all those who have made mistakes a second chance through CYDC /CFYDC (Chance).