Judge Information to be confirmed shortly.

Maggie Pavlou, Chief Executive, Leisure Travel & Tourism Ltd

Originally from the North East, after graduating from St John’s College,York with a BA in Management, Maggie spent the best part of 15 years out of the region working for some of the biggest names in the leisure sector. She also worked in Zimbabwe with Save the Children and Raleigh International.

Maggie returned to the North East in 1997 when she joined Vaux Breweries as Head of Personnel. Since then has worked for two of the most dynamic private companies in the region, as Associate Director with the NRG Group and then as HR Director with Parkdean Holidays. She set up Leisure Travel and Tourism, part of the Leighton Group of companies in 2007.
Maggie was the first female President of the NECC, the country’s only regional chamber of commerce. She served as President from 2005 until January of this year when she handed the role over to Richard Bottomley, Managing Partner of KPMG, although she remains an NECC Board member. Maggie sits on the ONE North East, North East Tourism Advisory Panel ( NETA) and is also a member of the Princes Trust Regional Council.

As well as being a bit of a GNR addict, Maggie is also really into karate and having just gained her brown belt, is now actively working towards that coveted black belt status!

Simon Pallett, Dean of Undergraduate Studies in the HASS Faculty, Newcastle University

Simon read Modern History at Oxford and trained as a Chartered Accountant with Spicer and Pegler in Manchester qualifying in 1979. He came to Newcastle in 1980 to work for Northern Arts as Finance Officer, leaving in 1988 as Assistant Director (Finance and Administration) to take up a career in higher education at the then Newcastle Polytechnic teaching financial management. In 1993 he joined Newcastle University and has served as Degree Programme Director for the accounting degrees, Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Business School and is currently Dean of Undergraduate Studies in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences.