Suzy Walton

Suzy Walton’s background

Suzy, who has 7 children – the youngest arriving during the COVID-19 pandemic, was originally a West End actress. She played the juvenile lead of Lydia the young deaf girl in the award-winning play “Children of a Lesser God.” She then became a broadcaster working as a presenter for BBC Television and a reporter for Sky News. She also had her own travel show. For three years she was producer, presenter and editor of Time Off on LBC Radio.

Suzy then went to university as a mature student. She gained BSc and MSc degrees and worked in central government. As a Senior Civil Servant, she served in the Ministry of Defence, the Cabinet Office and the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit. Suzy received a PhD degree for research into military suicide.

Over the last decade, Suzy has sat on the boards of over 15 major organisations and government committees.

She is a Vice-President of Combat Stress which treats veterans for PTSD and for the Institute of Directors she is a strategic advisor having been a board director for almost a decade. For government, she sits on the national Independent Reconfiguration Panel which advises on large scale changes to the NHS and she is also on the Social Security Advisory Committee which provides a view on social security and related matters. And, for the Ministry of Justice Suzy sits on the disciplinary panel hearing cases involving judges.

She is the former Vice President of the Royal Society of Medicine and the former Deputy Chair of the Royal Society of Arts. She has also served as the Deputy Chair of the University of Westminster and the Deputy Chair of the Internet Watch Foundation – an organisation seeking to eradicate child sexual abuse from the internet. She has also sat on the board of Birmingham Children’s Hospital and ACCA which is the global regulator of the accountancy profession. For ACCA, she also chaired the global Qualifications Board.

In government circles, Suzy is a former member of the State Honours Committee which makes recommendations for awards to the Prime Minister and the King and she worked in the Home Office as a member of the Ethics Group for the National DNA Database. She’s also been on Defra’s Science Advisory Council and the board of HEFCE which is the former regulator of universities.

Suzy is Chartered in three different professions. She is highly proficient at juggling responsibilities and achieving success despite facing barriers. Suzy was a widow for many years but has managed to combine her career with raising a family of 7.
Through her open and honest speaking style, Suzy inspires and motivates her audience. She encourages people to believe that they are capable of more than they think. Drawing on experiences from the nursery, the stage and the boardroom, Suzy reflects on what she believes is critical for success.

Suzy talks in particular about ‘lucky escapes’ – her belief that you don’t have to have a plan to succeed. Many of the things that turned out well for her happened by chance, she says, because of something she didn’t do – a lucky escape if you like.