Jim Benson joined the University of East London as University Secretary in June 2020. His responsibilities include governance, legal services and the full range of compliance activities.
Jim has spent over 30 years in higher education which has included being a Students' Union President, a civil servant as an advisor on the approval of teacher training, Head of Registry, and Head of Student Services at London South Bank University. He took a break from higher education to lead the review of higher specialist training at the three Royal Colleges of Physicians between 1998 and 2007.
In 2018, after 11 years as University Secretary at Brunel University, he took the opportunity to undertake relief work in Africa, and social inclusion work in the UK-the latter as a Trustee at the Rio Ferdinand Foundation. Prior to joining UEL Jim was engaged by the LSE to recruit and train a new governance team and also led governance work at the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine, the Worshipful Company of Apothecaries, Ravensbourne University, and Rose Bruford College.
Jim holds a BA in Social Science from the Goldsmiths’ University of London and several legal and governance qualifications. He is a qualified arbitrator and mediator from the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and CEDR respectively.
Current role