Stevan Tennant

Managing Director Development
Ballymore

Steve oversees the strategic direction of Ballymore’s residential, retail, and commercial projects in London. As a Fellow of the RICS, with over 30 years’ experience in the property industry, Steve has led mixed-use projects with a combined GDV in excess of £6bn, both in the UK and internationally. Today, Steve is focussed on securing planning consent and delivery for over 14,000 homes in London.  

Steve led the delivery of London City Island and Goodluck Hope, close to Canning Town. He was also responsible for the design and delivery of the new home for English National Ballet, and several years on from completion continues to maintain close links with the organisation to ensure the community benefits and social impact are far-reaching. Steve is also leading the partnership between Ballymore and LLDC in Stratford, where they are jointly delivering 700 new homes adjacent to East Bank, and 650 homes at Bridgewater Triangle. Steve is developing close links with the East Bank partners aiming to replicate the lasting success of City Island and its cultural and arts partnerships. 

Tamsin Ace

Director
East Bank

Tamsin became the first Director of East Bank in September 2023. East Bank is the UK’s newest cultural and education quarter on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in east London. East Bank is made up of London College of Fashion; UAL, UCL east, Sadler’s Well’s East, V&A Storehouse and Museum and BBC Music Studios. Tamsin has had a number of leadership roles including Head of Cultural Programming at London College of Fashion in 2021 and previously Director of Creative Programmes and Collections at the newly renovated Museum of the Home, where she introduced a new cultural strategy and creative methodology as part of the organisation’s transformation programme. Prior to this role Tamsin spent 12 years at Southbank Centre, eventually becoming Head of Public Programming. Tamsin's responsibilities included curating an ambitious programme of annual festivals and special projects and led several innovative festivals. In her time at this organisation, her work saw her collaborate with a wide range of partners and collaborators which ranged from hundreds of schools, high-profile artists, and commercial partners.

Michelle May

Executive Director – Inclusive Growth
London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC)

Michelle May has led the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) Socio Economic Regeneration work since its inception in 2012. She is a proud east Londoner who is passionate about the place and its people. Michelle has focussed her efforts on ensuring that the physical development of Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park delivers real and lasting benefits for local people, including the design and delivery of a highly innovative education and skills programme, built on Good Growth principles with diverse, local talent at its heart.

Selina Mason

Director of Masterplanning
Lendlease

Selina Mason is an Architect and masterplanner who is responsible for delivering high quality design and masterplanning across Lendlease’s UK and Europe urban regeneration portfolio. Currently she is also Development Director on Smithfield Birmingham. Selina also has an Honorary Fellowship from RIBA and she is a Design Council Ambassador and was recently appointed by the Government to the Urban Centre Recovery Task Force.

Britannia Morton

Executive Director and Co-Chief Executive
Sadler’s Wells

Britannia works with Sir Alistair Spalding CBE and the Board of Trustees to define and deliver a long-term strategy for growth. She also leads on the planning and development of Sadler’s Wells East, the new venue in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park which is due to open in 2024.

She has worked at Sadler’s Wells since 2010 and previously led operational teams at Southbank Centre, the Barbican, Royal Albert Hall and ENO.

Rehana Mughal FRSA

Director of the Global Creative Economy programme
British Council

Rehana is Director of the Global Creative Economy programme at British Council, where she works through a dispersed team, with governments, creative industry professionals and leaders in the creative sectors in over 30 countries, to develop policies that support creative economies to thrive. She is a fellow of the Royal Society or Arts and a member of the Creative Industries Council, a joint forum between the UK creative industries and Government. Rehana has lived and worked in the Gulf and in China where she lead high performing teams to deliver culture and sports projects. Prior to working with the British Council, Rehana worked at Arts Council England, Southbank Centre and Creativity, Culture and Education. With over 27 years experience, of working on arts and cultural projects and a track record as an accomplished innovator, she has led high performance arts and, cultural programmes which drive cultural engagement, build cultural relations and support strategic partnerships. Rehana is passionate about the transformative power of arts and culture and he role it plays in strengthening communities, in her spare time she is a mentor at the Global Women of Colour Network and a keen cyclist.

Ahmed Hussain

Head of Station: BBC Asian Network
BBC

Ahmed Hussain heads up the BBC Asian Network, leading the UK-based station to reach over half a million listeners weekly and more than two million through social media and video content. He’s also been tasked with moving the whole station to Birmingham from April 2025. The pre-dominantly music and entertainment station is currently the number one most listened to British Asian station. Ahmed began his broadcasting career at pirate and community radio stations in East London, focusing on providing opportunities for young talent to get into broadcasting and the media, and is often delivering masterclasses in audio and beyond. His efforts have garnered multiple awards, including BBC Asian Network winning Gold at the 2024 ARIAS as the best radio station in the UK and recently posting its highest RAJAR numbers post Covid.

Tim Reeve CBE

Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer, V&A
and Chair of East Bank Board

Tim Reeve has been Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer of the V&A, a family of museums dedicated to the power of creativity, since 2013, where he takes a strategic and operational overview of all museum activities. He is leading the development of V&A East Museum and Storehouse in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, east London, as part of the East Bank cultural and educational legacy, and chairs the East Bank Board ensuring the shared vision of the Mayor of London and the East Bank partners is delivered over the long term. In addition, he leads the V&A's international strategy, including the V&A Gallery at Design Society in Shenzhen, China. Before joining the V&A, Tim was Director of Historic Properties at English Heritage. He is a graduate in Ancient History from Royal Holloway, University of London, and studied at the Institute of Archaeology (UCL) and INSEAD on its International Executive Programme. He has served as a trustee of the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions (ALVA), the National Memorial Arboretum and Paintings in Hospitals. He is currently a trustee of the Canal and River Trust, a member of the Hunterian Strategic Development Board, a Director of V&A Dundee and a member of the Exhibition Road Cultural Group (ERCG).

Rokhsana Fiaz OBE

Mayor of Newham
London Borough of Newham

Mayor Rokhsana Fiaz OBE was elected the Mayor of Newham in May 2018. Since her election, she has been leading a transformative and radical agenda in Newham, reflecting a series of manifesto commitments to address inequality and poverty, invest in young people to widen opportunities, embed Community Wealth Building as the economic approach being adopted by the Council, increase participatory democracy and respond to the Climate Emergency.

As part of an ambitious programme of scaling up Council housing delivery in the borough she is leading one the most ambitious genuinely affordable housing programmes in London through a number of significant regeneration schemes. Under her leadership, Newham also became the first council in the country to make the health, happiness and wellbeing of its residents the key indicator of economic success. 

As an advocate for racial justice and equalities, Rokhsana was awarded an OBE in 2019 for services to Black and Minority Ethnic Communities in the UK.

Gavin Poole

Chief Executive Officer
Here East

Gavin Poole is the CEO of Here East, a dedicated campus for the technology and creative sectors, which is now home to over 6,500 people. Built out of a bid to transform the former international press and broadcast centre used during the 2012 London Olympic games, the vision for the campus has positioned it as one of the most successful Olympic re-developments.

Gavin is also a Director of Plexal, the innovation centre at Here East, which is focused on utilising technology to deliver national security and prosperity. He also sits on the Tech London Advocates and Global Tech Advocates advisory board for Russ Shaw CBE.

Before starting Here East, Gavin served for over twenty years in the Royal Air Force, starting as an aircraft engineering apprentice and retiring as a Wing Commander. Gavin ran the Centre for Social Justice, a think tank in Westminster. He is also a governor of the University of East London.

Mike Magan

Chief Operating Officer
Here East

Mike Magan is the COO of Here East and joined the business in 2018, moving from Momo Group, a fintech start-up. Mike previously worked in a number of high-profile roles in both the public and private sector.

While in the public sector, he served as a senior White House official and Special Assistant to the President under George W. Bush, with responsibility for multibillion-dollar initiatives. Mike has a 25-year track record of successfully driving organisations to achieve challenging goals, helping different companies bridge business cultures and political environments.

Mike is an experienced professional who is able to work for large multinationals and high-profile individuals, as well as start-ups, think- tanks and campaign groups. He is frequently sought by high profile members of the business community, foreign policy journals and major television outlets for guidance, insight and commentary on global politics and foreign affairs.

Dawn Carter-McDonald

Chief Executive Officer
Hackney Council

Dawn Carter-McDonald was appointed as Hackney Council’s permanent Chief Executive and Head of Paid Service in May 2024. 

After qualifying as a Lawyer, she started work in Hackney Council, the borough where she was born, and her career has spanned more than 20 years since then. Between 2019 and 2023 Dawn transformed the Council’s legal services; significantly improved the Council’s governance services, and played a key role in the development and implementation of service delivery reforms. 

Dawn has been a member of Hackney’s Corporate Leadership Team since 2020, when she was the Director of Legal, Democratic and Electoral Services and Monitoring Officer, and continues to have a connection and passion for the Borough and its residents.

Joe Revell

Co-founder & Chief Commercial Officer
Plenti Space

Joe is a seasoned entrepreneur with a proven track record of building businesses that challenge conventional thinking. His ventures include a proptech acquired by IWG PLC, as well as startups innovating in sustainable wine packaging and direct-to-consumer horticulture.

As Chief Commercial Officer at Plenti Space, Joe brings extensive expertise in sales and business development. His academic background in Environment and Business inspires his interest in how sustainability and business can interact to achieve impactful results.

Jenni Tyler-Maher

Principal
LMA London

Jenni Tyler-Maher is the Principal of LMA London, a performing arts university that opened at Here East in September 2020. LMA London first began with 100 students participating in 6 creative and performing arts courses.  This September, LMA welcomed 900 students across three year groups and have developed Masters Programmes for September 2025 delivery. Jenni started her career as a secondary school music teacher, transitioning into Headship before becoming a Director of Education for a large multi academy trust in South East London. Jenni is a professional cellist, who has showcased her talents at iconic venues across the world, including the Royal Albert Hall.