Meet the ORT UK team
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Jude Jackson
Chief Executive Officer
Jude joined the ORT UK team in October 2025. A visionary senior leader and acknowledged health and education expert, Jude has been delivering national transformative change for over 35 years. Her most recent role was as Director of Professional Development at the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT). Jude is adept at influencing policy and co creating strategy, building cross-sector relationships and delivering innovation, which will be key as ORT UK continues to grow and evolve.
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Mia Lyons
ORT JUMP Mentoring Programme Manager
Mia has been an ORT JUMP Programme Manager since 2013 and in partnership with Anna since 2018. During this time, the programme has expanded significantly—from 80 mentor–student partnerships to more than 500—alongside the successful introduction of four local community schools in 2016 and the programme’s expansion into Manchester in 2021. Mia began her career in account management at a large advertising agency. She is committed to helping students build confidence, develop essential skills, and feel empowered to take the next steps in their career journeys.
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Anna Black
ORT JUMP Mentoring Programme Manager
Anna began her career journey as a Corporate Liaison Manager for the Science Museum. Over the last eight years, as a Programme Manager alongside Mia, she has helped develop and strategically grow the ORT JUMP Mentoring Programme substantially. She hopes to continue its success and thrives on giving students meaningful opportunities and insights into their potential future careers.
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Julie Cohen
ORT JUMP Employability Skills Programme Manager
Julie spent many years teaching in Scotland before relocating to London in 2019, where she taught at an outstanding primary School for three years. In 2022, driven by a passion for education and a desire to explore a new direction, she joined the ORT JUMP team. Since then, Julie has developed a suite of Employability Skills Programmes, now delivered to over 800 students each year. She is deeply committed to helping young people prepare for life beyond school and is passionate about equipping them with the confidence, insight and skills they need to thrive in the world of work.
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Hayley Costa
Fundraising and Events Manager
Hayley brings over 20 years of experience in the Jewish charity sector to her role as Fundraising and Events Manager at ORT UK. She leads a variety of events and fundraising initiatives, working closely with supporters, including major donors, to help raise vital funds. Known for her energy, creativity and attention to detail, Hayley is passionate about building strong relationships and creating meaningful experiences that connect people to ORT UK’s mission. Her deep understanding of the community and long-standing commitment to the sector make her a valued member of the team.
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Debbie Lightman
Communications and Marketing Manager
Debbie joined the team in 2017, swapping feature writing in national publications for a career in charity marcom. At ORT UK, she oversees marketing campaigns, promotes our fabulous ORT JUMP programmes and fundraising events and manages all comms. She's dedicated to raising ORT UK's profile and spreading awareness of the organisation's life-changing work.
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Karen Shooter
Creative Director
Karen joined the team in early 2023 as Creative Director, managing the development of all ORT UK brand collateral and heading up creative & operational support for all events, campaigns and projects. Karen has 30 years experience designing in publishing, branding, entertainment, events, hospitality and charities in both digital and print.
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Ivan Rozhanskiy
Trusts and Grants Fundraiser
Ivan joined ORT UK in July 2024, bringing over a decade of experience in the charity sector. An ORT Moscow alumni, Ivan has a background in supporting vulnerable communities, having led a charity foundation for adults with special needs in Russia before moving to Israel. There, he launched a successful informal educational project for teenage immigrants. Now based in London, Ivan focuses on securing vital funding for ORT’s programmes, continuing his mission to create impact through education.
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Natalie Lieberman
Finance and Database Manager
Natalie joined us in 2014 as maternity cover and has been with us ever since. She runs the office looking after all the finances and administration. She previously worked for CST and prior to that spent 17 years as an exhibition designer.
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Ruby Peiser
ORT JUMP Administrator
Ruby started her career in the affiliate marketing world as an account manager. More recently she worked at King’s College London supporting academics and students in the Faculty of Life Sciences and Medicine, and organising student events. In June 2025, Ruby joined ORT UK where she works closely with the ORT JUMP Programme Managers to keep the day-to-day operations running smoothly and to help the ORT JUMP programmes reach even more young people across the country.
We equip young people worldwide with the skills for meaningful employment.