Bridging the Digital Divide: Inclusion, Culture & Opportunity in Bradford

Come join us for a friendly deep dive into the intersection of health, tech and community in Bradford.

This one’s all about digital inclusion...who gets to access health and tech, and who’s being left behind. We’ll be chatting about everything from digital literacy and poverty to cultural and language barriers, and how communities in Bradford are already leading the way with creative, grassroots solutions. It’s part of our Inclusive Innovation for Better Health programme (yep, the one we’re running thanks to that brilliant West Yorkshire grant).

And as always, it’s all about centring lived experience, learning together and making digital health fairer for everyone.

Confirmed speakers:

• Ayisha Hameed, Digital Inclusion Manager, Digital Inclusion Service – Bradford Council

• Mark Hindmarsh, Director of Strategy and Transformation, Bradford NHS FT

• Laura Boyd, NY HIN Director of Digital Partnerships

• Sharon Sanders, Head of Service Digital Inclusion, Bradford Council

• Tommy Parker, CEO, KiActiv

• Steve Roest, CEO,  PocDoc

Whether you work in health or tech, or just care about making things more inclusive, you’re so welcome.

Let’s come together, share stories and build something better. See you there?

Arrive at 5:30pm with the event starting at 6pm.

Speaker Bios

Steve Roest, CEO,  PocDoc

Steve is the CEO and co-founder of PocDoc, one of the UK’s fastest-growing health tech companies. PocDoc’s mission is to detect, screen for, and prevent chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and chronic kidney disease - conditions that put millions at risk of early death and place immense pressure on healthcare systems.

In 2025, Steve was accepted onto the prestigious NHS Innovation Accelerator (NIA), recognising PocDoc’s potential to drive innovation and scale within the NHS. Every other Tuesday he hosts his live show “HealthTech Hour”, which now has 300,000 streams a month, and has featured former Health Secretary Matt Hancock and Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill as guests.

Steve is also a huge supporter of the people and companies driving change in health tech and healthcare - once a month he hosts the ‘Last Friday Club’, which sees him offer free business advice to those starting in the industry.

Laura Boyd, NY HIN Director of Digital Partnerships

Laura is Director of Digital Partnerships at Health Innovation Yorkshire & Humber. In this role, she works across the region identifying opportunities where we can use data, digital and AI opportunities to improve outcomes for patients, the public and the NHS workforce. Laura is also co founder of start up Into-Action. Health which is a spin out from UCLPartners and was set up to lead national scale of smart data tool CVDACTION. She is passionate about innovation and equitable access to health.

Tommy Parker, CEO, KiActiv

Tommy Parker is the CEO of KiActiv and an alumnus of the NHS Innovation Accelerator. For the past eight years, Tommy has led his team in a mission to redefine "exercise," transforming everyday movement into a powerful, accessible form of medicine across multiple NHS pathways.

An economist by background, Tommy focuses on scaling digital health solutions that deliver measurable clinical, economic, and social impact. Through KiActiv, he empowers sustainable self-care by blending personalised technology with human mentorship to optimise health outcomes for all.

More speaker bios coming soon.