Alveena has over 25 years’ experience of working nationally on equalities and cohesion issues, as well as delivering social innovation projects. For the past five years she has been the Chief Executive and Co-Founder of One Million Mentors, a unique community-based mentoring programme, quickly growing roots around the UK. The aim is to transform young lives by connecting one million young people with one million mentors. Previously she was the head of UpRising, a national leadership charity, and the Principal Associate at the Institute for Community Cohesion (iCoCo) with lead responsibility on Education and Cohesion Policy and Intercultural Dialogue. She began her career at the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) where she became Head of Communities and Integration Policy, leading the development of policies tackling issues such as segregation and extremism. Alveena has held a number of senior level appointments including Faith Panel Advisor to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (CLG) and Special Advisor to the CLG Committee Inquiry into Migration and PREVENT.
Currently Alveena is a Non Executive Director of The Christie NHS Foundation Trust and also a mentor to a number of local young people in Manchester.