2024 Public Sector Emerging Technologies

Gopal Ramchurn is Professor of AI at University of Southampton, CEO of the £31M Responsible AI UK programme and Director of the UKRI Trustworthy Autonomous Systems (TAS) Hub, which sits at the centre of the £33M Trustworthy Autonomous Systems Programme. He is also co-founder of the AI start-up Empati Ltd, which delivers solutions for real-time carbon accounting across grid, generation and consumption. His research interests include the development of core AI technologies and Human-AI partnerships and their application to key sustainability challenges.

Jonathan is a digital specialist at the National Audit Office and has over 20 years' experience of assessing digital and technology programmes in the central government sector, including the management of associated technology risk.

He is a contributing author to numerous NAO reports including Digital transformation in government, Challenges in using data across government, Digital transformation in the NHS and The challenges in implementing digital change.

Hatim is Chief Executive Officer for Health Innovation Kent Surrey Sussex, part of the NHS Health Innovation Network.  Alongside this role, he continues to practice as a General Practitioner.

In 2018, Hatim was appointed National Medical Directors Clinical Fellow to Professor Wendy Reid by the Faculty of Medical Leadership and Management. His key achievements were co-author and member of the Sir Keith Pearson Commission into NHS Staff and Learner Mental Health and co-founding the ‘Topol Programme for Digital Health Fellowships’ launched by Secretary of State for Health and Social Care in 2019. He later became the National Clinical Lead for AI and Digital Workforce at NHS England providing clinical leadership to the NHS Digital Academy and leading on AI in the NHS’s historic Long Term Workforce Plan.

Hatim studied Medicine at the prestigious Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, going on to complete a Masters in Sports and Exercise from the University of South Wales, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Digital Health Leadership from Imperial College London. Hatim holds Membership of the Faculty of Clinical Informatics and the Royal College of General Practitioners, as well as Fellowship of Advance Higher Education.

Hatim has been a Senior Lecturer at Brunel University London, supporting the Physician Associate MSc and development of Brunel Medical School. Hatim is a Honorary Senior Lecturer at Keele University, working with European partners to develop a Masters in Explainable AI in healthcare management. Hatim is also a member of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence Technology Appraisals Committee, and the Coalition for Health AI Steering Committee.

Hatim is an advocate for safe, ethical and responsible digital and AI transformation and ensuring workforce preparedness for new innovations and technologies in health and care. He regularly speaks internationally and has contributed to the publication of academic papers and white papers spanning workforce, education reform, primary care, digital health and AI.

Outside of work Hatim enjoys travelling and football, and you will likely find him touring England’s best restaurants with his family. 

David Leslie is the Professor of Ethics, Technology and Society at Queen Mary University of London and the Director of Ethics and Responsible Innovation Research at The Alan Turing Institute. He previously taught at Princeton’s University Center for Human Values, where he also participated in the UCHV’s 2017-2018 research collaboration with Princeton’s Center for Information Technology Policy on “Technology Ethics, Political Philosophy and Human Values: Ethical Dilemmas in AI Governance.” Prior to teaching at Princeton, David held academic appointments at Yale’s programme in Ethics, Politics and Economics and at Harvard’s Committee on Degrees in Social Studies, where he received over a dozen teaching awards including the 2014 Stanley Hoffman Prize for Teaching Excellence. He was also a 2017-2018 Mellon-Sawyer Fellow in Technology and the Humanities at Boston University and a 2018-2019 Fellow at MIT’s Dalai Lama Center for Ethics and Transformative Values.

David's current research focuses on digital ethics, algorithmic accountability, explainability, and the social and ethical impacts of machine learning and data-driven innovations. In his wider research, David studies the moral and ethical implications of emerging technologies. In particular, he is keen to question how the biospherically and geohistorically ramifying scope of contemporary scientific innovation (in areas ranging from AI and synthetic biology to nanotechnology and geoengineering) is putting pressure on the conventional action-orienting categories and norms by which humans, at present, regulate their behaviour.

Mark Durkee is Head of Data & Technology at the Responsible Tech Adoption Unit (formerly CDEI) in the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology. He leads a portfolio of work including work on the Algorithmic Transparency Recording Standard, privacy enhancing technologies, and a broader programme of work focused on promoting responsible access to data. He previously led CDEI's independent review into bias in algorithmic decision-making. He has spent over a decade working in a variety of technology strategy, architecture and cyber security roles within the UK government, and previously worked as a software engineer and completed a PhD in Theoretical Physics.

Simone has a background in technology services in the Public Sector and currently leads the first data engineering and data science practice for Cheshire West and Chester Council.  She is a passionate advocate for data with a creative flair for problem solving and communicating the value of data in a local authority context.

Jonathan is a digital specialist at the National Audit Office and has over 20 years' experience of assessing digital and technology programmes in the central government sector, including the management of associated technology risk.

He is a contributing author to numerous NAO reports including Digital transformation in government, Challenges in using data across government, Digital transformation in the NHS and The challenges in implementing digital change.

Simon has worked in cyber security for over twenty years, heading up security across government and commercial sectors. Simon led one of the first successful global implementations of the BS7799 security framework (now ISO27001) and worked as Head of IT Security for England’s ninth-biggest city. With a diverse academic background spanning business, accountancy, and a distinction award in his Master's degree in Computing, Simon also holds over thirty certifications related to IT and cyber security. Simon is a certified lead auditor, forensic specialist, and malware inspector and holds CISSP/CSSLP/CGRC/CCSP. He has a background in using digital to tx has worked as a director, head of IT, and operational technology lead for various companies. He is a content author for multiple organisations, supported the creation of the Certificate in Cyber Security, and contributes to the CISSP certification. Simon is the Head of IT for Nottingham City Council, a director of a public-sector ISP, and a trustee of an academy.

Georgina is techUK’s Associate Director for Local Public Services

Georgina works with suppliers that are active or looking to break into the market as well as with local public services to create the conditions for meaningful transformation. techUK regularly bring together local public services and supplier community to horizon scan and explore how the technologies of today and tomorrow can help solve some of the most pressing problems our communities face and improve outcomes for our people and places.

Prior to techUK, Georgina worked for a public policy events company where she managed the policy briefing division and was responsible for generating new ideas for events that would add value to the public sector. Georgina worked across a number of portfolios from education, criminal justice, and health but had a particular interest in public sector transformation and technology. Georgina also led on developing relationships across central and local government.

If you’d like to learn more about techUK, or want to get involved, get in touch.

Helen is from Health Innovation Network Yorkshire and Humber  where she is responsible for developing and sustaining strategic partnerships with NHS leaders, academia, large industry, national and regional scientific and academic bodies and collaborative programmes, such as digital transformation and service redesign. These relationships translate into collaborative large scale innovation programmes, collaborative multi agency funding awards for research and innovation and inform place based and regional digital and innovation strategies across three Integrated Care Systems. Helen leads a team who  support SMEs and innovators and NHS organisations to support rapid testing, adoption and scale of innovations. The HIN  has three flagship accelerator programmes including Propel@ YH and Digital North.

Prior to joining the HIN,  Helen was Strategic Engagement lead for Nutricia Medical, part of the Danone Group, and national programme lead for Research and Innovation at NHS England

 

Julie is the Digital Programme Manager at the City of Wolverhampton Council and has 35 years experience working at the Council.  The Digital Projects Service developed Wolverhampton's Digital Wolverhampton Strategy in 2022 focused on 5 key priorities which includes Digital Infrastructure, Digital Inclusion, Digital Innovation, Digital Economy (Business) and Digital Economy (Skills).  Julie supports the rollout of digital infrastructure and works with services across the council and across the region to support adoption of emerging technologies to improve service delivery and support independent living by managing health conditions. 

Sarah Hayes is an economist specialised in data, digitalisation and regulation and works as an independent consultant. Sarah leads on engagement for CReDo the Climate Resilience Demonstrator project working with Connected Places Catapult. She led the first phase of CReDo through the Centre for Digital Built Britain and set up the demonstrator project to show how it’s possible to share data across energy, water and telecoms sectors to increase climate resilience across the infrastructure system. Sarah was the lead author on the National Infrastructure Commission report Data for the public good which set the vision for a National Digital Twin as an ecosystem of connected digital twins. Sarah has advised Ofgem on the development of a data sharing infrastructure and is currently supporting Connected Places Catapult on the National Cyber Physical Infrastructure roadmap. Sarah supports Innovate UK as a member of the Strategic Innovation Fund Advisory Group and Ofgem as a member of the Digitalisation Technical Advisory Group. Sarah is an Ambassador for Connected Places Catapult and chairs the DT Hub Data Sharing Working Group.

Martin leads the Society of Innovation, Technology and Modernisation’s policy advocacy and research programme. His particular passion lies in addressing the public policy impasse that prevents many of the complex socio-economic and environmental problems being faced by people, communities and places being confronted. Throughout a career spanning local government, academic research and teaching in the UK and abroad, his focus has been on harnessing technologies and data for the benefit of people and the wellbeing of communities. This interest underpins Socitm’s current research, education and training in fields such as ethical, digital place-making and leadership, and his voluntary work as a Trustee of Rennie Grove Peace Hospice Care.

I have been employed within a Local Authority since 1985, gaining knowledge/experience of the opportunities/issues/problems associated with Local Authority projects.
I have built the Corporate GIS Spatial Platform, including a successful web-environment for the 4th largest Metropolitan District in England.
I began my first formal training in G.I.S. in 1996, culminating in a successful MSc. in GIS (graduation in 2008).
I'm a Chartered Geographer.