Bridewell Speaker Series: Women of Action

Name: Bridewell Speaker Series: Women of Action
Start: 2026-03-18T17:00:00+00:00
End: 2026-03-18T17:00:00+00:00
Location: King Edward's Witley

About

As part of our Bridewell Speaker Series, and in celebration of this year's International Women's Day, we are delighted to host a panel event including five incredible female Old Witleians.

The session will be introduced by our Head, Joanna Wright, and chaired by Head of Science, Ms Sophie Quiney. Our wonderful panel will be discussing their varied careers here in the UK and abroad, and what developments have occurred over the years to support a more diverse workforce.

Doors open at 5:00pm, with our panel discussion beginning at 5:30pm. From 6:15pm there will be ample opportunity to network and ask questions.

Our thanks to all our panelists who are giving up their time to come and speak and inspire:

Clare Himmer (OW 1988)
Clare left KESW in 1988 and completed a BA Hons in German and Management Studies at the University of Leeds. Since then she has had a stellar career as an international (re)insurance executive with 33 years of underwriting leadership and executive experience, working in London, Germany and Bermuda. Throughout her career she has engaged with clients, brokers and Regulators to build relationships and reinsurance portfolios across the world. Moving back to the UK in 2012 after 19 years abroad, she was a Director of a London based FCA regulated distribution business from 2013 to 2021 and most recently served as CEO and Director of Berkley Re UK Board of Directors (subsidiary of W R Berkley Europe AG) for four years. During this time, Clare was responsible for all aspects of managing this operating company, including the transformation of culture, underwriting strategy and portfolio, technical pricing, operational resilience and governance delivery across all functions. Clare is passionate about improving diversity within the global Risk Industry and sits on the Inclusion at Lloyd’s of London Committee. She is also involved with trying to make the Global Risk Industry a destination career for all.

Samira Ebrahim (OW 1996)
Samira gained First Class Honours in Marketing Communications from the University of Greenwich; a foundation that launched her 20+year career navigating the complex intersection of marketing strategy and transformation from Whitehall to the skylines of Dubai and New York.
Currently leading the Europe and Central Eurasia Media practice for Mars, she oversees the narrative for one of the world's most iconic and diverse consumer goods portfolios, driving change on a global scale. Beyond the boardroom, Samira is a dedicated advocate for social mobility, providing career mentorship to underprivileged students to bridge the gap between academic potential and professional opportunity.

Bilyana Freye (OW 2005)
After KESW, Bilyana went on to read Government and Economics at LSE before embarking on her eclectic career from investigating organized crime in Bulgaria, to finance and tech across London, Hong Kong and New York. Angel Investor, CEO and co-founder, Bilyana's company Orbiit was recently acquired by Hivebright, the leading community engagement platform. Her AI-powered, matchmaking SaaS platform, creates curated connections at scale and has earnt her features in Forbes, Business Insider, Crunchbase and more.

Rebecca Large (OW 2011)
After KESW, Rebecca went on to study Human Geography at Sheffield before completing a Masters in International Education and Development at Sussex. As an internationally experienced nonprofit leader and a passionate education equity advocate, she has spent over a decade championing access to inclusive, high-impact education programmes across the UK, Southeast Asia, and Eastern Europe. The last 6 years, Rebecca was the Managing Director at Caring for Cambodia leading them to the first ever Girls in ICT Day in Siem Reap, the development of a global CSR and school partnerships across three continents, and an honour by Cambodia's Provincial Department of Education or outstanding contributions to education development.

Matilda Pegler (OW 2017)
Matilda left King Edward’s School in 2017 and went on to study Politics at Queen Mary University of London. Upon completing her degree, she joined the UK Home Office, and currently works as a Senior Policy and Strategy Adviser within the Central Strategy Directorate. In this role, she supports senior leaders and Ministers on priority policy issues, leads on cross-government projects, and translates fast-moving and ambiguous challenges into clear delivery plans, risk assessments, and decision-ready advice. The Strategy Directorate sits at the centre of the department, shaping long-term direction and coordinating work across areas such as policing, public safety, border security, and national security.

We do hope you can join us.