Professor Arlene Holmes-Henderson

Arlene Holmes-Henderson is Professor of Classics Education and Public Policy at Durham University. By sharing her expertise on language education, ancient rhetoric and oracy with policymakers across seven government departments, her research has catalysed several policy changes in English education.

As UPEN Vice-Chair for Arts and Humanities, she acts as a national champion for diversifying research evidence in policymaking, and also builds capacity for policy engagement across the SHAPE research community. In 2025-2026, she is on secondment to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology as an expert Fellow.