On Thursday 13 February I had the pleasurable task of hosting the Honorary Award Holders Dinner for the University of East London; it was a chance for students, honorands, UEL colleagues and governors to get together to celebrate the work of this wonderful institution. It was held in the Cholmondeley Room at the House of Lords and was a chance to celebrate real success. However, we must never forget in politics that there is no such thing as a free supper. Therefore the evening was also the perfect opportunity to ask our supporters to become more involved with the UEL. They can do this in a very simple way. All we ask is that they share their skills and experience so we can help our current students to fulfil and maximise their potential.

For example, I was honoured to receive an Honorary Award from the UEL in 2009 and have enjoyed my association with the University ever since. In 2012 I helped to establish the Noon Centre for Equality and Diversity in Business at the University. It is supported by the Noon Foundation and provides a forum for engagement, support and research in the interdisciplinary area of workplace diversity, something close to my heart. Here is why: given the fiercely competitive nature of London’s business sector, major employers are now placing huge demands on graduates to not only sell their academic ability but also their aptitude to present and network effectively. While this is a tough proposition for most, anecdotal evidence suggests that Black and Minority Ethnic students often find this the most challenging and daunting part of the modern day workplace. But the Centre is not just about research. It provides a space for engaging and supporting students, easing them into industry networks, career development and self-employment.

At UEL, we pride ourselves in our world-class research, which makes us one of the top six modern universities for research in the country. We are a vibrant university with a vision to bring transformational academic and enterprising opportunities to those in our region. We seek to do this through real diversity, effective partnerships and true excellence in teaching and research. We have been educating people since 1898 and today we are proud to say that our student population represents more than 120 nationalities based across our three campuses. As you might expect, we are ambitious, so we are developing further our international partnerships, especially in India. We recently launched our ‘India Chapter’ at a major event in India, where with our new partnerships with educational providers and business leaders we aim to provide prospective students with high quality help and advice through the often daunting admission process and with preparations for coming to study with us in London. We are also trying to team up with a prospective partner to develop a new International India Centre in our London Docklands Campus. We hope this will attract some of India’s brightest and best to our University.

I became the Chancellor of the University in January 2013 and have greatly enjoyed my experiences so far. When I shake the hands of those graduating, I often get a lump in my throat knowing the challenging backgrounds our students come from. Through their determination and careful and empathetic nurturing by our staff, they often exceed their own expectations. Today we boast engineers, health and social care professionals, and lawyers who have changed laws across the world. We like to think that we help them and their families to fulfil long-held dreams.

I hope to continue my association with the University for many years to come and relish the opportunity to share my experiences and skills with the future leaders in their chosen field. My ambition is simple: to continue trying to inspire other entrepreneurs and colleagues to take part in the work of UEL.