Dr Peter Robinson is Head of Subject for Events, Tourism and Hospitality Management at Leeds Beckett University. An award-winning academic and history author, educator and industry consultant, his expertise spans tourism and destination management, visitor attractions, heritage, transport, placemaking, regeneration, business development and the visitor economy.

Alongside his academic career, Peter has owned and managed businesses across several sectors and has delivered consultancy projects for organisations internationally. He is the recipient of the 2021 Victor Middleton Prize for Education and Scholarship from the Association for Tourism in Higher Education (ATHE) and holds a number of senior professional roles. Peter is Co-Chair of ATHE, a Director of the Tourism Society and Chair of the Tourism Society Consultanct Network, Regional Representative for The Tourism Management Institute, Chair of The Elvaston Castle and Gardens Trust, and Founding Director of The Cold War Network. The CWN is a membership organisation for museums and attractions with Cold War collections. Peter is also a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a regular media commentator, conference speaker and advisor to government and industry on tourism, skills and employability.

Pete Massey is Director, Partnerships and Place, North, and Regional Director for Yorkshire & the Humber at Arts Council England. Based in Leeds, he leads a 20‑person team and oversees strategic partnerships and place-based work across the North, working closely with local government and strategic authorities. He represents the Arts Council on pan‑northern groups and led its involvement in Bradford UK City of Culture 2025. His career spans theatre production, founding an arts development agency on the Yorkshire Coast, producing festivals, and consultancy. Since joining the Arts Council in 2007, he has held roles in partnerships and relationship management, including a 2017 secondment as interim Assistant Director for Culture at Bradford Council.

Chef Stephanie is a Yorkshire farmers daughter and has travelled the world with her job over the years.

Steph has a five-star hotel background and now She runs her own consultancy business, All Things Food, which proudly is in its seventeenth year.

Working with businesses large and small to help realise their potential in all areas of food across the U.K.

Stephanie started working at The Dorchester working for world famous chef Anton Mosimann. During that time, she cooked for the Royal State banquet attended by the Queen. Steph has also worked in St Moritz, Munich, Sydney, Hayman Island in the Great Barrier Reef and Chicago with the renown Charie Trotter. Steph has won a gold medal from The Salon Culinaire , a Bronze for British Culinary federation Chef of the Year and has previously won the Harrogate Ambassador award.

Steph is delighted to be living back home where she loves spending time with her family exploring Yorkshire in her converted Sprinter camper van.

In 2000 she worked at Rudding Park Executive Chef, for many years.Stephanie is a recognised figure on the British food scene and has many accolades to her credit, such as appearances on BBC2’s Great British Menu and BBC1’s Chefs Put Your Menu Where Your Mouth Is. Steph has also been a professional’s guest on BBC radio Leeds breakfast show many times.

She is a regular MC or Chef demonstrator at various food festivals and shows across Great Britan and judges various awards and chef competitions.

These days Steph enjoys helping support Young Chefs coming into the industry too.

For Steph the most important thing is to have fun and enjoy cooking “If you are happy, things always taste better!”.

Wayne Topley is the Managing Director of Cedar Court Hotels, leading the transformation, growth and strategic direction of one of Yorkshire's most prominent independent hotel groups. With more than 25 years of senior leadership experience in the hospitality industry, Wayne has built a strong reputation for repositioning hotel businesses, driving commercial performance, delivering major refurbishment programmes and developing high-performing teams.

A passionate advocate for hospitality as a career and industry, Wayne is committed to developing customer-focused, commercially driven teams and creating opportunities for future talent. His leadership extends beyond Cedar Court Hotels through his long-standing role as Chairman of the Leeds Hotels & Venues Association (LHVA), where he works closely with industry partners, local authorities and educational institutions to support sector growth, skills development and collaboration. Notably, he helped establish an innovative hospitality degree partnership with Leeds Beckett University, creating one of the UK's first industry-integrated hospitality programmes.

Wayne's career spans more than three decades with leading hospitality organisations including Marriott, IHG, De Vere, Barceló, QHotels and Principal Hotels. His combination of operational expertise, commercial acumen and people-focused leadership continues to influence both Cedar Court Hotels and the wider Yorkshire hospitality sector.

Andrew Pawson is Chief Executive Officer of Continuum Attractions, one of the UK’s leading operators of award-winning visitor attractions, with a portfolio spanning the country and featuring some of Yorkshire’s most popular days out.
With almost 40 years’ experience at Continuum, Andrew has played a pivotal role in shaping the company’s direction and growth. Having joined the business in the 1980s, he became Finance Director in 2009 before taking on the role of CEO in 2024.
Combining strong commercial acumen with a passion for innovation and storytelling, Andrew leads a portfolio of eight attractions including Yorkshire trio the Emmerdale Village Tour, Eden Camp Modern History Museum and York’s Chocolate Story. These sit alongside TripAdvisor’s sixth best tourist attraction in the world – Edinburgh’s The Real Mary King’s Close, as well as The Loch Ness Experience, Oxford Castle Prison, Spinnaker Tower and Coronation Street Experience in partnership with ITV.
Based in York, Andrew is proud to lead a business with deep Yorkshire roots and a growing national footprint. He brings to The Yorkshire Post Tourism Awards extensive experience across the visitor sector, encompassing commercial strategy, operations, acquisitions, destination development, customer experience and people leadership.

A Professional Chef for over 16 years and a proud Yorkshireman, Jono has spent many years training in some of the UK and the World’s best restaurants including, most notably Michelin Starred, Noma (Denmark), Quay Restaurant (Sydney) and The Box Tree (Ilkley).

Jono is one of the most creative and talented chefs emerging onto the UK Culinary scene, with his appearance on the BBC’s MasterChef: The Professionals 2020 further elevating his profile. Jono impressed judges Monica Galletti and Marcus Wareing as well as critics Grace Dent and Tom Parker-Bowles who revered his inventive style and meticulous execution on his way to the final.