Academic cited among Britains most influential people
Professor Helen Atkinson CBE (pictured), Head of the Department of Engineering, has been cited among the Debrett’s 500 most influential people in Britain.
She joins individuals from a broad breadth of disciplines including Advertising, Art, Broadcasting, Business & Industry, Engineering and Technology, Finance, Law, Science and Medicine and more including Adele and Roy Hodgson, the England Football Team Manager.
Debrett’s states: “For almost 250 years, Debrett’s has been recognising people of influence and achievement in British society through its publications The Peerage and People of Today. As an extension to this heritage, the Debrett's 500 was launched in 2014 and is published annually exclusively in association with The Sunday Times. Recognising those who inspire, influence and instigate change beyond expectation, it is a truly inspiring group of people.”
Professor Atkinson said: “I am hugely honoured to have been named in the Engineering and Technology part of this list. The work the Debrett’s Foundation is doing on encouraging young people from less advantaged backgrounds to ‘aim high’ is impressive. I am proud to be involved in engineering education both through my role as Head of Department at Leicester, through chairing the Education and Skills Committee at the Royal Academy of Engineering and through the Engineering Professors’ Council. An important part of my role is to be a strong advocate for engineering education at national level.”
Professor Helen Atkinson FREng was made CBE in the 2014 New Year’s Honours for services to Engineering and Education. She is Head of the Department of Engineering at the University of Leicester and was previously a Vice President of the Royal Academy of Engineering. She is currently a trustee of the Academy and chairs the Committee on Education and Skills. She was elected the first woman President of the Engineering Professors’ Council in its fifty year history, the body which represents engineering in higher education throughout the UK.