The event is led by AMOSSHE Executive Members Aleata Alstad-Calkins (University of Roehampton) and Chris Warrington (University of Leeds).
Confirmed speakers at the event include:
Sally Lambah is Head of Student Support and Wellbeing at Wrexham University, where she has worked since May 2019. Sally leads on services such as funding and financial advice, counselling and mental health, chaplaincy and wellbeing guidance. Sally is also designated safeguarding lead and Prevent coordinator.
Saly began her career in the Sports and Fitness industry before moving into further education, working as a Sports Studies Lecturer. Over the course of 20 years, Sally progressed to becoming Programme Manager and then Manager of Quality and Professional Development before making the moving into Higher Education.
Sally was the first of her family to attend university and her journey at times has not being been as straight forward as it could have been, however with determination and some great support, Sally has found her vocation in Student Services.
Sammy Li is an AMOSSHE Executive Member who has acted as a trustee or adviser to several charitable or sectoral organisations to support their missions for the public good. In particular, he has an unusual hybrid background of academic and professional services leadership experience in higher education. Sammy is the institutional lead for postgraduate student affairs and student equality at the University of Birmingham and contributes to thought leadership on LGBTQ+ and race matters across the sector nationally.
Sammy grew up in a single-parent household following the sudden loss of his late father at the age of eight. He was the first of his family to undertake higher education and attended three top institutions in Hong Kong and the UK, culminating in PhD studies. Sammy often characterises his journey into higher education as accidental. His experience in overcoming barriers has resulted in resilience, purpose, and empathy being instilled in his work. His trauma-informed leadership style is marked by a relentless drive for empowerment and equity, as demonstrated by his sectoral work as one of the few minority ethnic leaders in our profession.
Sabiha is an experienced leader in the higher education sector with a focus on student wellbeing, inclusion, and equality. Currently serving as Associate Director for Student Wellbeing and Inclusion at Lancaster University, she brings over three decades of expertise across roles in Russell Group, post-92 and collegiate institutions, and has worked in departmental, central and corporate professional service areas across three large and complex universities. Sabiha has successfully driven collaborative initiatives on wellbeing, equality, diversity, and inclusion. She also has experience of service reorganisation and design. Sabiha is recognised for her strategic insight and dedication to cultural change and student and staff wellbeing; she has a proven track record in fostering diverse, inclusive, and supportive campus environments.
An experienced Human Resources professional, Emma works within the Higher Education team at Dixon Water as an Executive Search Consultant. She joined them in early 2020 after spending almost 25 years in the university sector. Having worked at several universities across her career, Emma’s latter roles were at Executive Board level leading Human Resources, Student Services, Facilities and Front of House Services. In her time at Dixon Walter Emma has led a significant number of recruitment campaigns across the professional services, including for Student Services / journey / experience / life positions.
