June Osullivan

Background

About June Osullivan

June O’Sullivan OBE is CEO of London Early Years Foundation (LEYF), which she developed into the UK's largest childcare charity and social enterprise. With almost 900 staff across 40 nurseries in twelve key London boroughs, LEYF is building a better future for London's children, families and local communities through a commitment to excellence in Early Years education, training and research. As CEO and creator of the UK's leading childcare charity and social enterprise since 2006, June continues to break new ground in the development of LEYF's scalable social business model including the first Early Years Chef Academy and the London Institute of Early Years. She remains a tireless campaigner, looking for new ways to influence policy and make society a better place for all children and families. June is a champion of community-based, multi-generational early years education as the basis for greater social and cultural capital to deliver long-term social impact. She continues to advise Governments as well as a range of organisations, academics and services at home and overseas about how best to implement a social enterprise vision for early years. June is a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, Trustee of Booktrust, and her local library Upper Norwood Library Trust. She advised City University CityVentures Business Entrepreneur Programme. She was social entrepreneur in residence for University of Middlesex. She is a member of the London Mayor’s Skills Advisory Partners Board and the Child Health Task force. June was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday honours in 2013, for her services to London’s children. In 2023 she was awarded an OBE for her services to Education. She won the Social Enterprise UK Women’s Champion Award in November 2014 and in 2015 she was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Middlesex. In 2016 she was voted one of Debretts most influential 500 and in 2017 she won the NMT Most Influential In Early Years Award. In 2018, she was the runner up Veuve Cliquot Woman of the Year Award. June has an MA in Primary & Early Childhood Studies, an MBA from London South Bank University. She is currently completing a part time PhD in developing sustainability informed staff in the Early Years at the University of Wolverhampton in partnership with the Centre for Research in Education and Childhood (CREC) and is supervised by Professor(s) Chris Pascal, OBE and Tony Bertram.She is a published author and sought after speaker and media commentator on Early Years, Social Enterprise, Child Poverty and Sustainability.