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Business South 2025 Annual Conference

Name: Business South 2025 Annual Conference
Start: 2025-11-06
End: 2025-11-06
Location: Hilton at the Utilita Bowl

Time for Change

The Business South Annual Conference is the flagship business event in the Central South region’s calendar.

Attracting over 200 senior business leaders and key stakeholders from the private and public sector it enables new connections to be established and new collaborations to take place.

As we look towards the future for the Central South, we’ll hear from a fascinating line-up of speakers with ideas to share and there will be an update from our Action Groups, who form the bedrock of Business South.

Devolution is uppermost in our thoughts, with a Mayoral Combined County Authority set to happen from May next year. We are always keen to learn from others and can’t wait to hear what Sir Andy Street has to share.

Ensuring the day runs smoothly will be our host, Emily Hudson, Senior Broadcast Journalist at BBC South.

Event Speakers

Sir Andy Street

Former West Midlands Combined Authority Mayor

Sir Andy Street served as the first Mayor of the West Midlands from 2017 to 2024, helping to establish the West Midlands Combined Authority and oversee a huge influx of public and private investment into his home region.

Prior to that he was the Managing Director of John Lewis (having started his career there as a graduate trainee), guiding the employee-owned business to one of the most successful spells in its history – culminating in the department store chain being named the most trusted brand in Britain.

He currently chairs Birmingham Repertory Theatre, and previously chaired the Greater Birmingham & Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership.

He has also served as the lead non-executive director for the Department for Communities and Local Government, as well as a member of the Prime Minister’s Business Advisory Group.

He was awarded a CBE in 2015 for services to economic growth, and was knighted in 2025 for services to public service.

Luke Murphy MP

MP for Basingstoke

Before entering Parliament, Luke worked in the private sector and for a national charity, with a track record of getting things done. He has also worked on housing, energy and climate policy at a national level.

Since being elected, he has been appointed Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Climate and Net Zero, and sits on the Energy Security and Net Zero Select Committee.

Luke has raised issues in Parliament that matter to people in Basingstoke; the cost of living, long waits for NHS care, the urgent need for better Special Educational Needs and Disability support, and reforming the broken leasehold system to give homeowners more control and security.

Luke has held surgeries, coffee afternoons and community events on NHS reform, anti-social behaviour, leasehold reform and the future of the Top of Town, where he has promised to bring people together to help revitalise the historic town centre of Basingstoke.

Professor Dame Wendy Hall

Regius Professor of Computer Science, Associate Vice President (International Engagement) and Director of the Web Science Institute – University of Southampton

Dame Wendy Hall, DBE, FRS, FREng is Regius Professor of Computer Science, Associate Vice President (International Engagement) and is Director of the Web Science Institute at the University of Southampton.

She became a Dame Commander of the British Empire in the 2009 UK New Year’s Honours list and is a Fellow of the Royal Society, the Royal Academy of Engineering and the ACM.

Dame Wendy was co-Chair of the UK government’s AI Review, which was published in October 2017 and a member of the AI Council. She is currently the co Chair of the ACM Publications Board and Editor in-Chief of Royal Society Open Science. She is an advisor to the UK government and many other governments and companies around the world and in 2023 was appointed to the United Nations high level advisory body on artificial intelligence.