Holly Aquilina

Skills & Employment Support Lead, Sussex & Brighton Strategic Authority

Holly Aquilina, BEM, is the Lead for Employment, Skills and Public Sector Reform at Sussex & Brighton Strategic Authority. She is responsible for leading the development of the skills and employment remit and exploring how areas, such as health and wellbeing, can be delivered in line with the Authority’s statutory responsibilities. She is experienced in creating inclusive, multi-agency work, partnerships and programmes that are community-driven; connecting people, businesses and place with opportunity.

Melanie Collins

Head of Local Skills Improvement Plans (LSIPs) and Head of Regions (South), Skills England

Mel leads Skills England’s work across the South of England, working with Strategic Authorities and the organisations delivering Local Skills Improvement Plans (LSIPs). She also has national responsibility for the LSIP programme.

Mel has worked on LSIPs and related funding programmes since 2021, supporting collaboration between employers and further education providers to meet changing skills needs. Earlier in her career, she worked on research programmes at UK Research and Innovation and held scientific and international relations roles at the Met Office.

Victoria Collins

Director, KingsRock Construction

Victoria Collins CMgr MCMI is a Director at KingsRock Construction, where she focuses on strategy, business development, people, culture and creating opportunities for the next generation entering the construction industry.

A Chartered Manager and First-Class Business Management graduate, Victoria is also a Board Member of the Federation of Master Builders Southern Counties and an Apprenticeship Ambassador. She is passionate about improving pathways into construction, particularly for young people who may not see traditional academic routes as the right fit for them.

At KingsRock, Victoria has helped develop the company’s approach to apprenticeships, work experience and early careers, with a focus on giving young people genuine responsibility, mentoring and a clear route for progression within the industry.

Will Harwood

Trainee Quantity Surveyor, KingsRock Construction

Will Harwood is a Trainee Quantity Surveyor at KingsRock Construction and is currently completing a five-year Quantity Surveying degree apprenticeship at the University of Brighton.

Will first joined KingsRock through a work experience placement while studying for his T Level in Eastbourne and has since progressed into a permanent role within the business. He now works alongside the commercial and site teams, gaining practical experience while continuing his academic studies one day a week.

Will’s journey demonstrates how apprenticeships can give young people the opportunity to build a career, gain professional qualifications and develop real industry experience at the same time.

Lauren Mistry

Deputy CEO, Youth Employment UK

Lauren Mistry is Deputy CEO of Youth Employment UK, where she leads work to improve young people’s journeys into employment by strengthening how employers, policy makers and local systems understand and respond to what young people need.

Lauren created and leads Youth Employment UK’s annual Youth Voice Census, one of the UK’s largest surveys of young people’s experiences of education, employment and transition. The Census brings the experiences of thousands of young people into national and local decision-making, helping government, combined authorities, employers and sector partners identify where barriers remain and where change is needed.

Her work focuses on turning that insight into practical change. Lauren works across policy, employer practice and place-based systems to improve access to opportunity and the quality of young people’s experiences of work. She has also led the development of Youth Employment UK’s Good Youth Employment Benchmark, an evidence-led framework that helps employers assess and improve how they attract, recruit, support and progress young people.

Martha Pusey

Director, West Sussex Partners in Care

Martha has worked in social care since the age of 15, starting her career as a “tea girl” in a small rest home at weekends. Despite her dad telling her she needed to get a “proper job”, Martha has worked in the care sector ever since, taking on a variety of roles from support worker through to registered manager. She now project manages the Sussex Cares and International Recruitment projects for West Sussex Partners in Care, alongside studying for a professional doctorate in dementia.

Dan Shelley

Host & Chair, Future Skills Sussex LSIP Board

Dan works as a senior leader in the Further Education (FE) Sector in East Kent, leading on transformation, and has a passion for skills in Sussex having lived in the county's vibrant city of Brighton & Hove for over 25 years working with communities across the region to improve access to skills and innovate delivery at all levels from non-accredited adult learning to Higher Education programmes. Dan is also a non-executive director of the Sussex Chamber of Commerce and is the Chair of the Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) Board.

David Stone

IT Manager, PRM Furniture

David Stone leads technology at Paula Rosa Manhattan, a Lancing-based sustainable kitchen manufacturer employing around 150 people. Over nine years he has built IT into a function that drives the business rather than simply keeping the lights on — spanning business systems, service delivery, infrastructure, cybersecurity and the digital workplace.

A member of the Senior Leadership Team, David also represents the UK business on the Ballingslöv Group's Senior IT Council. He is a key member of PRM's AI working group and has seen AI move from curiosity to something now woven through the whole IT service: application development, infrastructure, support and the everyday digital workplace. Alongside that sits the work of agreeing policy and guardrails, and the harder question of how you take an entire workforce from aware to genuinely capable. He believes the tools matter far less than the people and the momentum behind them. Based in Sussex, David is a father of three, a guitarist and a keen footballer.

Kirsten Trussell

LSIP Consultant, Future Skills Sussex LSIP Board

Kirsten Trussell is an education and skills consultant and ICF-accredited coach with two decades of leadership experience across education, business, and the public sector. Since 2022, she has been Strategic Lead for the Sussex LSIP, helping drive employer-led skills planning across the region. Alongside this, she works as a menopause coach and trainer, supporting high-performing women to navigate midlife with confidence and without compromising their ambition.

Tom Willis

Chief Executive, Shoreham Port

Tom Willis was appointed Chief Executive at Shoreham Port in November 2019. Alongside his work in maritime he brings extensive leadership experience in logistics gained at Royal Mail and aviation at Heathrow. Tom holds an MBA from Bayes Business School and an MSc in Coaching and Behavioural Change from Henley Business School, both with distinction.  Alongside his executive responsibilities, he is Chair of the Board at Sutton Decentralised Energy Network an innovative sustainable energy supplier and Advisory Board Member at the University of Sussex Business School.

Claire Witz

LSIP Consultant, Witzend Consulting

Claire Witz has led the Sussex Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) since its launch in 2022, working closely with employers, providers and strategic organisations to shape skills and workforce priorities. ​She also runs her own consultancy, Witzend Consulting, and brings over 25 years’ experience in further education and skills, with leadership roles at Coast to Capital LEP, a Local Authority, the Learning and Skills Council, and independent training providers.