Meet the Norfolk & Suffolk Careers Hub Team
Mark is Skills Policy Manager at Norfolk County Council and Strategic Hub Lead of the Norfolk and Suffolk Careers Hub. With over 20 years' experience in Further and Higher Education, he has worked across teaching, leadership, employer engagement and apprenticeship delivery. A lifelong learning advocate, Mark holds teaching qualifications, an MSc in Strategic Leadership and a Level 7 Senior Leader Apprenticeship. As an experienced school and college governor, he is passionate about creating a careers system that supports all young people and drives inclusive economic growth across Norfolk and Suffolk.
When I was at school, I didn’t receive much information about future education or career options. My choices at 16 were mostly shaped by family and teachers, and I always thought I’d become a teacher. But everything changed when a local bank visited my school and spoke about careers in banking. That inspired me to apply for a role, and I was offered a position in London—marking the start of my banking career.
Over the years, I worked across many areas including customer service, payments, business operations, relationship management, credit and operational risk, strategy, and organisational change. It was an incredible journey that taught me so much about business and the world of work.
As much as I enjoyed working in Banking, I never lost my passion for teaching and learning. In 2018, I made the leap into education and became a Business Studies teacher, bringing real-world insights into the classroom. I quickly realised that my true passion lay in helping others explore and pursue their career aspirations.
That led me to volunteer as an Enterprise Adviser with the Norfolk & Suffolk Careers Hub, supporting a local school’s careers programme and sharing my own experiences—especially the things I wish I’d known when making choices at school. Not long after, I joined the team in August 2022 as an Enterprise Coordinator, and later stepped into the Operational Hub Lead role, where I now combine my experience in both education and industry to support others on their career journeys.
Mathew (Mat) Bardwell is an Operational Hub Lead within the Careers Hub. Mat has an extensive employer and business skills support background gained from over 4 years most recently as Apprenticeship Norfolk’s Business Development Officer within Norfolk County Council, prior to this role Mat was an Employer Engagement Officer within Norfolk County Council.
Mat’s career over the last 20 years has focused on various roles within the skills and L&D sectors. He has worked in Senior Management with national skills providers as well as regional roles within national organisations with a focus on careers, skills, and L&D.
I work with schools, colleges and alternative provision schools across Norwich to support their careers and enterprise programmes, helping young people connect with the world of work and build networks with employers, businesses, and further and higher education providers.
Having grown up in a time when Saturday jobs were common from the age of 13, I understand how early exposure to work helped build confidence and made the transition into employment feel more natural. We learned a lot informally—through conversations, being out and about, and simply engaging with the world around us.
Today, those opportunities aren’t as readily available, even though career pathways are more diverse and inclusive than ever. As someone from a generation where certain roles were off-limits simply because I was female, I’m passionate about making sure young people have the chance to explore what’s possible. The more they understand the evolving labour market and the variety of roles out there, the better equipped they are to make informed decisions about their futures.
For me, it’s about helping young people find their place—sometimes it’s just a spark of interest, and other times it’s that moment when someone discovers exactly where they fit. That’s what makes this work so rewarding.
I have a background in both the education and leisure sectors, with over a decade of experience in education and nearly 20 years in leisure. During this time, I have been fortunate to support career opportunities for young people in both secondary and further education settings.
I am passionate about ensuring that young people have meaningful opportunities to access and experience the world of work. I started my first job at the age of 15, and I firmly believe it provided me with a strong foundation and developed the transferable skills that have supported me throughout my career.
I look forward to bringing my experience to this role and supporting not only schools and colleges in strengthening their careers programmes, but also working closely with businesses to create impactful opportunities. By building these connections, I hope to help shape the aspirations and futures of local young people as they take their first steps into the world of work.
I have worked in education for the past 20 years initially lecturing and then managing Work Based Learning and Apprenticeships Team at a large college in Norfolk and Suffolk before joining the Norfolk and Suffolk Careers Hub in 2020. Prior to that I was a nurse working in a variety of settings.
I have a strong belief that young people should have a robust career experience which includes many employer encounters to develop their soft skills and enables curiosity.
Working in educational settings for the past 20 years, I have always been driven by a simple belief: young people should be at the heart of everything we do. I am passionate about opening doors for the next generation, helping them access meaningful career opportunities, gain valuable industry insight, and develop a clear understanding of the world of work. By building strong connections between education and employers, I strive to create impactful, career-focused experiences that broaden horizons, raise aspirations, and empower young people to make informed decisions about their futures. Through these opportunities, I aim to inspire confidence, unlock potential, and help individuals find fulfilling careers that align with their skills, interests, and ambitions.
I believe career journeys are rarely linear and are shaped by individual backgrounds and circumstances. My own path began in the arts and clothing sector, evolved through enterprise, and led me to study social policy in my twenties. Since then, I’ve worked across local government, early years education, regeneration, freelance business development, and further education project management.
Along the way, I’ve gained qualifications including a degree in Social Policy, Level 5 Coaching, Human Resource Management, and Agile Project Management. These have supported my work across diverse sectors and helped me champion inclusive, future-focused career education.
I’m passionate about helping young people build confidence and resilience in a fast-changing world shaped by technology and AI. I also support employers in creating meaningful school engagement strategies to strengthen future talent pipelines and build a more resilient workforce and economy.
With a background in talent development and early careers, I’ve always been passionate about helping young people explore their potential and take ownership of their futures. In my previous role as Talent and People Manager, I led the development of degree apprenticeships and also served as an Enterprise Adviser, working closely with schools to support students in building confidence and ambition.
Since joining the Norfolk & Suffolk Careers Hub in December 2024, I’ve been working with both mainstream and alternative provision secondary schools across Mid Suffolk and Babergh. I’m passionate about motivating young people, encouraging independent choices, and improving life chances. I understand the value of high-quality careers education—early exposure to careers programmes and industry insight can truly inspire students and equip them with the knowledge, skills, and confidence they need to thrive in the world of work.
My name is Lisa Lambo-Hills, new Enterprise Coordinator at NCC, supporting the West Suffolk area. With 17years experience in education, I previously served as Careers Coordinator for Ely College and Bishop Laney Sixth Form. My strengths include employer engagement, event planning, coordinating, and facilitating meaningful work experience opportunities for students and young people.
My achievements include being part of a small team that successfully organised the Ely Cathedral Careers and Skills Fair annually, also contributing to an Outstanding Ofsted outcome for careers provision, Quality in Careers Standard certification and helping 99.7% of students make successful transition to the next stage of their education, training or employment. I am also a registered Careers Guidance Consultant with the CDI and I am most passionate about connecting education, employers and young people across West Suffolk.
