For transparency: Esports News UK editor Dom Sacco used to work full-time for British Esports between September 2016 and February 2021, and currently does some freelance work for them, producing their weekly email newsletter.
British Esports, the national body set up to support grassroots esports in the UK, has added new members to its advisory board and announced its 2023 Esports in Education Summit.
Six new additions to British Esports Advisory Board
British Esports has welcomed six new additions to its advisory board. This was was first established in 2016 to provide knowledge and input into esports’ development in the UK, as well as advice and guidance on future projects, pilots and initiatives of the British Esports Federation.
The new members are:
- Kirsty Endfield, Founder, Swipe Right PR
- Camilla Maurice, Employer Engagement Manager, MidKent College
- Becky Wright, Senior Partnerships Manager, National Student Esports (NSE)
- Professor Philip Wilson, Chair of the Board, College of Esports
- Shoubna Naika-Taylor, Curriculum Manager of Digital at Coventry College
- Sue Lavasani, Senior Account Manager, Heaven Media
The six new members bring the overall number of advisory board members to 15, with others including representatives from British government, education institutions, sports, video games and esports.
The other existing members are:
- Alice Dearing OLY, British Olympian and British Athletes Commission Ambassador
- Andrew Nixon, Head of Sports, Sheridans
- Craig Fletcher, Executive Chairman Player 1 Events and Founder of Insomnia Gaming Festival
- David Yarnton, Partner & Chief of Business Development, Kinguin
- Josh Williams, Founder, NUEL
- Mary Antieul, VP, Customer and Strategy, Belong Arenas
- Professor Andy Miah, Chair of Science Communication & Future Media, University of Salford
- Ramesh Singh, Programme Coordinator & Senior Lecturer in Esports, University of Chichester
- Ryan Hart, Project Coordinator, ESL and former fighting game pro player
The news comes after two departures from the advisory board: Dignitas founder and chief gaming officer for Infinite Reality (including London Royal Ravens, Rogue and Koi), Michael ‘ODEE’ O’Dell, and chief strategy officer at AcadArena and former Twitch director of student and education programs, Mark ‘Garvey’ Candella.
“Our advisory board has been a vital part of British Esports over the years and I’m delighted to welcome our new members.” said Andy Payne OBE, Chair at British Esports. “Thanks to their ongoing support and guidance, British Esports continues to increase levels of awareness throughout the UK, and more recently on the international stage.”
British Esports’ Esports in Education Summit 2023 dates and more revealed
British Esports has also announced the return of its annual Esports in Education Summit, with tickets now available for physical attendance with a 20% discount for a limited time. It’s a hybrid event.
The event is designed for Senior Leaders, Curriculum Managers, Lecturers and Educational Institutions, as well as those from amateur and professional esports organisations, to discuss collegiate esports, courses and more.
Scheduled to take place earlier than its usual summer date, the event will be held on February 10th 2023 this year and will take place at the Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies’ brand new £5m esports complex in Nottingham.
Previously, the venue has hosted the Commonwealth Esports Championships Qualification and British Esports’ collegiate Student Champs tournament.
“This is a great opportunity to network and connect with esports educators and other industry leaders.”
Kalam Neale, British Esports
This year’s Esports in Education Summit sees a few upgrades from previous years, including a Student Champs Showmatch, alongside a new networking event to accompany the range of keynotes and panel discussions.
Last year’s summit saw 300+ registered attendees, representing 170+ institutions from over 20 countries.
The agenda for British Esports’ Esports in Education Summit 2023 includes:
- British Esports’ Student Champs – Competing in grassroots esports
- British Esports & Pearson Esports BTEC Qualifications – 3 Years of growth
- Building & Developing Esports Facilities in Educational Institutions
- Safeguarding in Esports – Leading the way in best practice
- Professional Esports – What does it look like?
- British Esports on the Global Stage – What does the future hold?
The full agenda and speaker line-up is as follows (see the link in the tweet below):
“I’m really excited to welcome colleagues and peers from across esports education to the 2023 Esports in Education Summit.” said Kalam Neale, Head of Education at British Esports.
“Whether new to esports education or a seasoned veteran, the Summit provides unrivalled industry insight and first hand exposure to the current state of esports and education in the UK. This is a great opportunity to network and connect with esports educators and other industry leaders.”
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Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
