Alumni Awards Dinner

Oliver Nunn is a dedicated barrister, Deputy District Judge, and passionate advocate for social mobility in the legal profession. His main area of expertise is Property and Housing law, alongside specialisms in Agricultural, Equine, and Commercial Litigation. Practising nationwide—particularly on the Midland Circuit—he is a regular fixture at Leicester County Court, both as Counsel and in his judicial capacity. 

As an Honorary Associate Professor at Leicester Law School, Oliver previously taught Public, Land, and Contract Law from 2011 to 2021, becoming a popular Teaching Fellow here at Leicester. He now mentors through the Future Bar Programme at De Montfort, sits on Leicester Law School’s Advisory Board, and is leading a new marshalling scheme for Leicester students to shadow judges at the Leicester County & Family Court. 

Oliver delivers the annual “Oliver’s College of Knowledge: Mooting 101” at both Leicester and Nottingham universities, offers employability workshops across the Midlands, and trains advocates for Lincoln’s Inn and the Midland Circuit. As former Head of Pupillage, he pioneered blind recruitment in the East Midlands, leading to record applications and enhanced diversity. 

He co-founded the Jeffers-Nunn Award and was named 2023 Barrister of the Year by the Leicestershire Law Society. That same year, he was nominated for the Nottinghamshire Law Society Equality & Diversity Champion Award for his tireless work expanding access to the Bar. 

The 2025 Dr. Mark Sims Memorial Award for Public Service is presented to John Neville and Nick Johnson in recognition for their outstanding fundraising efforts in support of the Charcot Marie Tooth (CMT) Research Foundation. 

In May 2024, they organized the highest cricket game in England atop Helvellyn in the Lake District, successfully raising over £16,000, which was later matched by another donor. The event involved a two-hour climb, with participants carrying a 125kg wicket mat to the summit. They were joined by 11 players from their home club, Henley, and and a mixture of players from local clubs. 

Charcot Marie Tooth disease is a group of inherited conditions that damage the peripheral nerves, which connect the brain and spinal cord to the rest of the body. CMT affects both motor and sensory nerves, disrupting signals to and from the brain. This leads to numbness, sensory loss, muscle weakness, and nerve degeneration, progressively worsening over time. Symptoms can appear from birth or during adulthood, with no available treatments or cures. 

John has suffered from the onset of the disease since a teenager, and symptoms such as foot drop have got progressively worse as an adult. He was able to reach the summit of Helvellyn using his walking aids. 

John and Nick’s efforts have raised much-needed awareness and funding to CMT research, supporting the search for future treatments and improving the lives of those affected by the condition. 

Our 2025 Future Leader Award winner, Francesca, is a passionate activist dedicated to inspiring young people from ethnic minority backgrounds to pursue careers in law. Since graduating, she has rapidly excelled in the legal field, earning a master’s degree and additional professional qualifications that have strengthened her expertise. 

In 2023, Francesca was admitted as a Notary Public and founded Bavisi Notaries, a firm dedicated to supporting both individuals and corporate clients across Northern London. As a Notary Public, she provides a vital specialist service, authenticating documents for use abroad by governments, foreign officials, and private clients. This role requires a high level of legal expertise, making her accomplishments even more impressive. 

Francesca is believed to be the youngest British Indian female Notary among the 770+ Notaries Public practicing in England and Wales, a milestone that highlights her remarkable achievements at such an early stage in her career. In recognition of her outstanding work, she was awarded Best Notarial Service Provider (London) by SME News in 2024. 

Francesca’s commitment to her profession and advocacy for diversity in law continues to inspire the next generation of legal professionals. 

Our Alumna of the Year 2025, Ffion, is a pioneer in healthcare, having spent the past 35 years of her career dedicated to improving emergency healthcare internationally.  

Ffion is currently a Consultant Emergency Physician at the University Hospitals of Leicester, and Honorary Senior Lecturer at the University of Leicester. In her NHS role, Ffion has played a pivotal role both locally and across the country, in the design of Emergency Departments suitable for children. Developing national standards of care and tools to support inter-professional learning, her contribution has been instrumental in the establishment of specialist emergency paediatric services.  

Her role in developing training programmes and in implementation of national frameworks and processes led to international work. After many years of volunteering for the International Federation of Emergency Medicine (IFEM), Ffion served as President of IFEM from 2022-2024 and remains on the Board of Directors. During her time as President, Ffion strengthened collaborations with the World Health Organisation, industry partners, and national healthcare system leaders, particularly focusing on improving emergency care infrastructure in under-resourced regions of the world.   

At the start of 2025, Ffion was presented with a medal from the Royal College of Emergency Medicine in recognition of her significant contribution to emergency care. 

Esuantsiwa (Esua) Goldsmith is a trailblazing activist, writer, and campaigner who has dedicated her life to challenging inequality and advocating for social and political justice at local, national, and global levels. 

Raised in the 1950s in South London, Stafford, and Norfolk by her mother and stepfather in a white working-class family, Esua experienced deep isolation and discrimination as a Mixed-Race child— “the only brown kid on the block,” as she describes herself. These early experiences sparked a lifelong journey to understand her identity, leading her in adulthood to seek out her Ghanaian roots.  

In her mid-thirties, she met her Ghanaian father for the first time and discovered her royal matrilineal heritage, descended from warrior queens. After years of supporting development projects in her ancestral village—including school funding, public bathrooms, and street lighting—Esua was enstooled as Queen Mother of Development for Akoanso Village, Cape Coast, Ghana, in 2009. 

Formerly known as Jane Goldsmith, she became the first woman of colour elected President of Leicester University Students’ Union in 1975. As a student, she also led the Women’s Liberation Group, Anti-Apartheid Society, and a successful campaign for nursery provision for students' children—the Stanhope Nursery, still operating today. In June 2025, she will unveil a plaque commemorating its 50th anniversary. The University of Leicester commissioned a portrait of Esua in 2018 to mark the centenary of women’s suffrage and named a building after her on its Freeman’s site in 2022. 

Esua has held numerous leadership roles inlcuding Commissioner for the Women’s National Commission, Chair and Co-Founder of the Gender and Development Network, Vice-Chair of ActionAid UK, and Chair of the Oxfam Assembly. She was the first woman of colour elected Chair of the Fawcett Society in 2001 and served as Trustee for organisations including VSO, Akina Mama Wa Afrika, and the Equality and Diversity Forum. She was also one of the first Black volunteers sent by Voluntary Service Overseas to Tanzania in 1977. From 1985 to 1995, she was a global feminist leader during the UN Decade for Women, and part of the UK delegation to the 1995 UN Women’s Conference in Beijing. 

In 1995, she founded Anona Development Consultancy, working across five continents with over 100 charities on gender and racial equity, anti-racism, decolonisation, and leadership. 

Today, Esua remains deeply involved in the Healing Solidarity Collective, Black Lives Matter, the Reparations Movement, and the Black Writers Guild. She is also a founding member of the Phenomenal Women Group and Vice Chair of her local Soul Disco in Wandsworth. Her acclaimed 2020 memoir, The Space Between Black and White, explores her life as a Mixed-Race woman and has won critical praise. 

Amardeep began studying Medicine (MBChB with Foundation Year) at the University of Leicester in September 2018 and, in January 2025, celebrated graduating with an MSc in Medical Research. 

An active member of the Leicester medical community, Amardeep served as Student Co-Chair for MedRACE, a student-staff group at Leicester Medical School working to progress the British Medical Association Charter to prevent and address racial harassment. Amardeep has presented at international conferences and participated in panel discussions on racial equality in medicine. 

Following a personal experience during their surgical rotation, where they were asked to remove their kara, Amardeep successfully campaigned to update the Uniform and Dress Code Policy at University Hospitals of Leicester Trust. 

Described by lecturers and peers as an ambassador for the Medicine with Foundation course, Amardeep has contributed to student induction, career development, and teaching on Equity Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) issues within Medicine. 

Since 2020, they have been a member of Project LIGHT, dedicated to improving healthcare for Leicester’s homeless population. Amardeep helped develop training for healthcare and law students on homelessness and co-founded Supporters of Project LIGHT, an initiative to reduce stigma, raise funds, and expand volunteering opportunities. Their work continues to impact healthcare accessibility and inclusivity in Leicester and beyond. 

Catherine is an active member of Leicester's Alumni Association and first supported the University in 2009 with a donation to the Greatest Need Fund, followed by various philanthropic gifts over the past 16 years, which have supported the crucial development of international giving to the University. 

After graduating in History and Politics BA in 1993, and attending Oxford University where she received a Mphil in Politics, Catherine moved to the US with her husband, Douglas Wigdor. Catherine began conversations with the Advancement Office at the University in 2017, proposing the installation of an organisation to allow US-based alumni to donate to the University tax efficiently, offering her services as a Trustee of this proposed organisation. 

The American Friends of the University of Leicester was officially formed in 2020, and, in 2022, the Board established the American Friends PhD Scholarship to support PhD students, especially those who study by Distance Learning or have an affiliation with the USA through their subject or location. Catherine has committed significant donations to this scholarship over the past three years, supporting our PhD scholars to study without worry. Catherine also supported the inaugural Skylark Scholarship in memory of her grandparents who lived in Leicester. 

Receiving the Rhoda Bennett Philanthropy Award recognises the impact that Catherine has had on Leicester’s overseas fundraising and highlights the kindness of Catherine’s donations towards various causes at the University.