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SPEAKERS
Angela Richmond
Researcher, Insight Specialist and B2B Content Writer, Redfox Research
Angela Richmond works with Enthuse to provide the research, data and insights behind the Enthuse Mass Events report, as well as the Donor Pulse and Charity Pulse series. She works with charities and other organisations to help them with donor and stakeholder profiling and persona development.
Hugh BrasherCEO, London Marathon Events
Hugh Brasher was appointed CEO of London Marathon Events (LME) in June 2024, having been the Event Director since 2012. As well as the TCS London Marathon (the world’s most popular Marathon which has raised £1.4 billion for good causes since 1981), LME organises more than 20 other mass participation events in running, cycling, swimming and triathlon. These include Brighton Marathon Weekend, Royal Parks Half, Big Half, Bath Half, Vitality London 10,000, Swim Serpentine and the T100 London Triathlon. Hugh’s father Chris Brasher was a co-founder of the London Marathon (and pacer to Sir Roger Bannister in the first sub 4 minute mile). Hugh worked on the very first London Marathon in 1981 and has worked at all except one since. Prior to joining London Marathon Events Hugh ran the Sweatshop retail chain.
Nicky HomesCommercial Director, The Great Run Company
Nicky is the Commercial Director at the Great Run Company, a position she’s held for over 16 years. As part of her role, Nicky is responsible for the management of the London office and all commercial partnership income as well as new business development. Having overseen the growth of all Great Run events over the years, including the world’s largest half marathon, she’s uniquely positioned to offer insight into what it takes to put together a brilliant event and what that means for charity fundraising.
Craig Bilner
Vice President of Engineering, Enthuse
Craig is VP of Engineering at Enthuse, the UK’s leading charity fundraising platform. With a career spanning leadership roles at Zoopla, Houseful, and News UK, he has deep experience in engineering leadership, data platforms, and large-scale infrastructure. He’s passionate about building high-performing teams, driving innovation in digital giving, and helping organisations harness technology for impact.
Bhavesh Vaghela
Director of Product, Technology, and AI, London Marathon Events
Bhavesh is a seasoned Product Leader with an insatiable curiosity, currently serving as the director of Product, Technology, and AI at London Marathon. With a digital transformation journey spanning over two decades, he has spearheaded game-changing initiatives that have redefined industries and generated tangible business value. From guiding products from zero to one and scaling them for growth, Bhavesh has been at the forefront of crafting innovative product strategies and cultivating cross-functional teams that drive digital evolution. His knack for blending strategic vision with hands-on execution has resulted in a proven track record of driving growth and transformation.
Andy GraffinChief Technology Officer, The Great Run Company
Andy is currently Chief Technology Officer at The Great Run Company. He has worked in the athletics and running industry for over 25 years, primarily in marketing and commercial roles before joining GRC in 2009. During his time at GRC, Andy has held a number of innovation and development roles, creating both new events and new products and services to sit alongside events. As CTO he leads on all aspects of GRCs technology provision.
Tom Gill Customer Success Manager, Enthuse
Over the past 7 years, Tom has gained experience in successful customer outcomes for SaaS companies, with the last 18 months of these as a Customer Success Manager at Enthuse. His role involves working with larger charities to ensure that they’re confident in not only using, but also maximising their use of the Enthuse platform, raising as much as possible for their causes whether this be for owned-events or third party events such as London Marathon.
Graham AtkinsSenior Events Manager, The Royal British Legion
Graham Akins brings nearly 20 years’ experience in fundraising with a specialism in events. Over the last five years, he has focused on enhancing the supporter experience, ensuring events not only raise vital funds but also create lasting connections with the charity. Having overseen a wide range of virtual events, third-party and large-scale owned events, he is passionate about the role experiences play in inspiring long-term support.
Annabel Venn
Annabel Venn, Event Fundraising Consultant and Freelance Event Manager
Annabel is an event fundraising consultant and freelance event manager with over 15 years of experience in the sector. She’s worked with a range of charities as an event fundraiser, and as an event manager creating bespoke challenge events in the UK and overseas. Annabel helps charities to create and develop impactful event portfolios, and will always champion the positive impact of fundraising events. In her spare time, she is also a keen trekker and cyclist, and has taken part in many mass participation events over the years!
Zahra YassineCommunity and Challenge Events manager, Medical Aid for Palestinians
Zahra Yassine has been at Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) for the past five years. With extensive experience in event fundraising, Zahra has played a pivotal role in adapting MAP’s events strategy in response to the challenges of the pandemic. She was the lead on a series of virtual fundraisers in 2024, which raised over £1.7 million. In her session at Elevate, Zahra will share insights on how event fundraising has evolved in the post-pandemic era and how MAP successfully embraced virtual and hybrid event formats to engage supporters and drive impact.
Katy WetherillHead of Event Organisers, Enthuse
Katy is the Head of Event Organisers at Enthuse, working with partners such as London Marathon Events and The Great Run Company to maximise fundraising at their events.
Katy has over 9 years experience working directly with event organisers across the UK, helping them to grow fundraising throughout their portfolios.
About Enthuse
Enthuse is a fundraising, donations and events registration technology provider that has helped thousands of charities raise millions. Enthuse’s solutions are customised under a cause’s own brand and put the organisation in control of the data. This allows charities to build and nurture a loyal supporter base, raise more and ultimately have more impact. Enthuse was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in London, with operations in Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Enthuse is also the official online fundraising partner for London Marathon Events and Great Run.
SPONSORS
The Great Run Company
The Great Run Company is the UK market leader in televised mass participation sports events, most famous for the Great North Run, the world’s biggest half marathon.
We believe that the challenge of a mass participation event provides the inspiration people need to get and stay active. We’ve been creating and delivering major mass participation events for over 40 years. Over that time, our team has developed specialist expertise in major event delivery.
Every year we inspire over 250,000 people to take part in major mass participation sports events across the UK.
London Marathon Events
London Marathon Events is both a world-leading and hugely successful events management company and a social purpose organisation.
Together with our parent charity, the London Marathon Foundation, we work to inspire activity in all ages, abilities and demographics.
We create and deliver an extensive portfolio of running, cycling and swimming events which includes the TCS London Marathon and Ford RideLondon in addition to initiatives and outreach programmes which inspire activity and transform the lives of individuals in schools and communities across the UK.
London Marathon Events passes its surplus every year through corporate gift aid to its parent charity, the London Marathon Foundation.
Medical Aid for Palestinians
For more than 40 years, Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) has worked for a future where every Palestinian has access to a comprehensive, effective and locally-led system of healthcare, and the full realisation of their rights to health and dignity.
To achieve this, MAP works with Palestinian communities and trusted local partners to answer a wide range of health and social needs: from providing vital medical aid in emergencies, to supporting the development of better health services for the long term. MAP also campaigns for an end to the barriers to health and dignity that come from living through military occupation, displacement, and discrimination.
RedFox Research
RedFox specialises in market research in the tech sector and other complex markets, such as IT, Financial Services, the Third Sector, and Professional Services. We work with clients to help their organisations thrive and grow, through thought leadership research to build brand awareness and strategic research to give marketing professionals insights into customers, markets and product opportunities.
Royal British Legion
The Royal British Legion (RBL) is the nation’s largest Armed Forces charity, providing lifelong support to serving personnel, veterans, and their families. Known for the annual Poppy Appeal, the RBL delivers vital services including financial support, advice, recovery assistance, and dedicated care.
