About us
Influencing Change.
We provide specialist advice and services through an elite team with a diverse range of political, media and policy backgrounds.
Our specialist research and economics team of high-calibre analysts includes former Treasury and Bank of England officials who elevate our offer, bringing your communications a new level of authority and impact.
We are a highly experienced team drawn from the most senior roles in Government, the civil service and the media.
Meet the Team
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Nick is the co-founder of WPI having previously worked as the Director of Communications for the think tank, Policy Exchange. Nick began his career in the private sector working for a crisis communications consultancy where he worked for a number of blue chip clients. He then moved into public policy with Policy Exchange for four years during the Coalition government before setting up WPI in 2014. Nick also co-founded the Onward think tank and remains a board member and trustee.
EMAIL: nick@wpi-strategy.com
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Previously Executive Director of Policy to Keir Starmer, Claire provides strategic counsel to our clients.
Claire left the Opposition Leader’s Office in December to take up a role as the Director of the Centre-Left Renewal Project at the Progressive Policy Institute, an international project which is examining how centre-left parties around the world can gain power.
Claire has also served as the Executive Director of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, where she led JRF’s work on the social and political attitudes of people with low incomes.
She is the author of "The New Working Class: How to Win Hearts, Minds and Votes," which was published in May 2018.
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Jade is a public affairs expert with more than a decade of experience in centre-left politics, and works now with clients to understand the Labour Party and influence Westminster and elections.
She is a former aide to Lisa Nandy MP, Shadow Secretary of State for International Development, and has worked on numerous leadership and election campaigns within the party.
She has also worked previously for the IPPR think tank, helping to lead their external affairs and conference programmes. Jade regularly appears as a political commentator in the press and on broadcast, including Sky News and the BBC. She sits on the Board of Trustees for Brightside, the social mobility charity and leads the Women In Political Data network aimed at diversifying the political research and polling industry.
She holds a BA Politics from the University of Durham and MSc Comparative Political Economy from the London School of Economics.
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Sean is co-founder of WPI Strategy and leads work on policy analysis, political engagement and strategic corporate advice. He spent over a decade working in politics, latterly as a Downing Street special adviser to then Prime Minister, David Cameron. In No10, Sean focused on policy delivery across nearly all areas of domestic policy.
Prior to government, Sean was head of the Conservative Party’s Policy Unit and worked for the Party through two general elections. His industry experience also includes senior roles, including CEO, of firms in the communications sector, advising companies on government relations and on managing policy and regulatory change.
Sean has a PhD in public policy and is a regular broadcast commentator on UK politics. He has performed well over 300 live interviews and written extensively in the UK press, including for the Telegraph, Spectator, FT, Times and others.
EMAIL: sean@wpi-strategy.com
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Alex is a political adviser with six years experience across Westminster.
He was Chief of Staff to Andrew Griffith MP, supporting his various roles as No10 Policy Director, PPS to the Prime Minister and the Government’s Net Zero Business Champion.
Prior to this, Alex ran the largest APPG in Parliament and two major international campaign networks.
Alex brings his experience of long-term campaigns, coalition-building and policy development to provide strategic advice to a range of clients, from FTSE 100s to charities.
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Kirsty brings a wealth of political knowledge and public affairs experience. She joins having spent years as Director at Hanbury Strategy working in both public affairs and political due diligence.
She previously lead the political due diligence practices at Global Counsel and GK Strategy with her experience helping WPI expand its public affairs and advisory services.
Kirsty started her career in Liberal Democrat politics and is a former Parliamentary candidate. She remains deeply involved with the party, bringing insights of the Liberal Democrats for a wide range of clients.
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Will recently joined WPI after graduating from the University of Leeds with an MA in Terrorism and Insurgency Studies and a BA in International History and Politics.
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Jake recently joined WPI after qualifying as an accountant. He graduated from the University of Bristol with a first-class degree in Politics & IR.
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Ysabel recently joined WPI as a Junior Consultant. Prior to this, she gained a year of experience in strategic communications for the alternative investment industry, working across private equity, hedge fund and sovereign debt clients.
She holds a Master’s in International Political Economy from the London School of Economics and an undergraduate degree in Politics and German from Bristol University.
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Zehra recently joined WPI Strategy after graduating with a First Class MA (Hons) in French and Politics from the University of Edinburgh, with a year abroad at Sciences Po Paris.
Zehra was also Vice President of Scotland's first student-led thinktank, the Buchanan Institute, and has a particular interest in policy development.
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Solomon recently joined WPI after graduating from the University of Birmingham with a BA in History which included a year abroad in Rotterdam.
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Matthew is a respected economist and policy analyst, having spent well over a decade working in and around policy making in Westminster. Before founding WPI Economics Matthew held a number of roles including Chief Economist and Head of Financial Services Policy at the consumer champion Which?, and Head of Economics and Social Policy at the think tank Policy Exchange.
Matthew also led the Independent Review of Jobseeker’s Allowance sanctions that reported to Parliament in 2014, and previously spent eight years at the Treasury. Alongside WPI, Matthew is also a Senior Researcher at the Social Market Foundation.
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Erika joins WPI having spent several years as an Economic Adviser at the Department for Levelling Up, specifically working on the Levelling Up Taskforce and in various funding programme teams.
Having most recently worked at international development consultancy Oxford Policy Management, Erika's experience at the heart of government bolsters WPI's research and advisory team
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Vincenzo Rampulla joins as a Director having spent several years working on broadcasting and online safety policy at Ofcom and leading Smart Data investment at the Department for Business.
Previously a Labour councillor, he is deeply involved in Labour Digital and is an elected member of Tech UK’s Central Government Council.
He brings a wealth of experience to WPI's developing regulatory advisory service across a range of industries that will be key to Britain’s future growth prospects.
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Rhys recently joined as an Associate Director. He has over four years of experience working in HM Treasury across a range of roles and directly with ministers, including as a policy adviser for business and investment tax and as an economist for UK and global economic analysis.
He holds a first-class BA in Modern History & Politics from the University of Southampton and a distinction-class MSc in Political Economy with Business Analytics from the University of Manchester.
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Sarah joins WPI having recently completed a MSc in Comparative Politics at LSE. She is also a 2023-24 Fulbright Scholar, achieving a Distinction in MSc Campaigns, Elections, and Democracy from Royal Holloway.
She brings her state-side experience to WPI, having worked for the 2020 Biden presidential campaign and in the U.S. House of Representatives.