James Seymour is an award-winning higher education marketing, student recruitment, and admissions specialist with over 30 years’ experience across the sector. He has held senior leadership roles at Aston, Buckingham, Gloucestershire, and Northampton universities, covering UK, international, undergraduate, and postgraduate markets. Earlier in his career, he worked in student recruitment at Sheffield, Leeds, and Northumbria universities, giving him a breadth of insight into institutional contexts and challenges.

A Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (FCIM) with an MSc in Marketing Management from Aston University, James is a regular speaker and chair at student recruitment conferences and was a HEIST Marketing Awards judge and panel chair from 2022–2025. He also advises The Complete University Guide/IDP and Cambridge OCR Exam Boards, and has contributed to UCAS stakeholder groups. His experience includes governance too, having served as a school governor for over a decade. Known for his agile, creative, and strategic thinking, he has a proven record of helping institutions respond to market volatility while driving growth and improving student outcomes.

In July 2025, James made a conscious move into consultancy and interim roles to support universities, HE providers, and sector stakeholders. At AHEP Consulting, he brings his extensive experience to help institutions navigate the challenges of recruitment, marketing, admissions, and access and participation. With a values-driven approach and strong track record of leading large, diverse teams through change, James is committed to helping clients plan for the long term while adapting with agility in the short term.

Martha Horler has worked in the UK higher education sector for over two decades, primarily specialising in data strategy, governance, and insight. Her experience spans both institutional roles and consultancy, where she has supported universities, colleges, and small providers to improve their data practices and drive better decision-making. Martha focuses on helping teams use data more effectively—whether that’s through designing impactful student dashboards, supporting HESA and regulatory returns, or delivering staff training on data literacy and data protection. She is passionate about demystifying data and ensuring it becomes meaningful, ethical, and actionable at every level of an institution, enabling organisations to navigate complexity with confidence.