Dame Sue Street was the Permanent Secretary at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) from autumn 2001 to late 2006. She was responsible for the overall strategy, delivery and expenditure for the whole department. This included major projects like the winning bid for the London 2012 Olympic Games and the renewal of the BBC Charter, as well as policy for the arts, culture, heritage, sport, broadcasting, tourism and the creative industries such as film and fashion design. In January 2007 she took up her appointment as Strategic Adviser to Deloitte, along with other portfolio appointments.

Dame Sue Street’s professional background spans both the civil service and the private sector. Dame Sue joined the Home Office in 1974, taking a career break between 1976-82 to raise her family and work with the British Council in Bogota, Colombia. Returning to the Home Office in 1982, she worked on prevention of terrorism legislation and related high security issues. Later, she directed the Top Management Programme at the Cabinet Office, an intensive development programme for top managers in the public and private sectors.

This was followed by three years as a senior management consultant in the City with PWC leading strategy and efficiency work with a variety of public and private sector businesses. In 1994, Dame Sue was appointed to lead the Government’s anti-drugs strategy at the Cabinet Office. She returned to the Home Office in 1996 as Director, Fire and Emergency Planning and was promoted to lead the Criminal Policy Group in 1999 with wide ranging responsibilities for criminal justice.

Her civil service career culminated at the top of DCMS during a momentous period covering the Golden Jubilee, the Commonwealth Games new governance arrangements for the BBC and of course the 2012 Olympic bid.

Dame Sue is a Governor of the Royal Ballet, a member of the Board of the National School of Government, a Trustee of the Windsor Leadership Trust and a member of the Chairman’s Committee for the China Now festival in 2008.

She is married with two grown up children. She enjoys all things cultural, especially dance and the visual arts. She plays bad tennis, worse golf and supports Arsenal. Dame Sue was awarded the DCB in the Birthday Honours 2005.