The Nuffield Languages Programme was chaired by Sir Trevor McDonald and Sir Leonard Appleyard. The Steering Group included several of the original members of the Inquiry.

Sir Trevor McDonald, Chairman of the Languages Programme, is universally recognised as Britain's most popular and respected newscaster. He started his television career in his native Trinidad in 1962 and joined ITN in 1973 from the BBC World Service. His extensive international experience and his love of cricket and of poetry have won him many admirers. He is Chancellor of the South Bank University and has honorary doctorates from a number of universities.

Sir Leonard Appleyard, who shares the role of Chairman with Sir Trevor, is Vice-Chairman of Barclays Capital. He has spent most of his career in the Diplomatic Service, including postings as Ambassador in Hungary and China, and in the Treasury and Cabinet Office as Deputy Cabinet Secretary. Sir Leonard, a member of the Inquiry team, has a degree in Classical Chinese. He speaks Chinese, Russian, Hungarian and French.

Sir John Boyd, who was Co-Chairman of the Inquiry, studied modern languages at Cambridge and Chinese at Yale before joining the British Diplomatic Service. He spent eight years in East Asia, ending as Ambassador in Tokyo. He is now Master of Churchill College, Cambridge. He is also Chairman of the British Museum and served as Vice-Chairman of the Asia-Europe Vision Group.

Peter Downes, a member of the Inquiry team, taught languages in grammar and comprehensive schools and was a Headteacher for 21 years. Formerly President of the Secondary Heads Association, he is now a consultant specialising in education funding and modern languages. In 1998 he was awarded the OBE for services to language teaching and educational management, and in 1999-2000 he was President of the Association for Language Learning. He is a Cambridgeshire County Councillor and Huntingdonshire District Councillor (Liberal).

Michael Kelly is Professor of French at the University of Southampton. A member of the Inquiry, and of the Steering Group of NLP, he was founding Chair of the University Council of Modern Languages. He is Director of the Subject Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies, which provides support for education in languages in UK higher education. He is a member of the Languages National Steering Group and a board member of the European Language Council.

Alwena Lamping, Co-ordinator of the Languages Programme, was a member of the Inquiry team and joint editor of the Report. A specialist in adult language learning, her experience ranges from teaching and curriculum management to developmental collaboration with national organisations. She also has wide-ranging experience of working with languages in industry, public services and publishing. Over the past ten years, she has worked with the BBC as author, editor and consultant.

Alan Moys was Secretary to the Inquiry. He has spent his whole career in the field of languages education, with teaching experience in schools, further education and teacher training. He also served as a local authority languages adviser in Derbyshire before moving to CILT as Deputy Director and then as Director. Since his retirement he has continued to work as a writer and (briefly) as an OFSTED inspector. He was President of the National Association of Language Advisers until 2000. He remains a member of the Steering Group of the Nuffield Languages Programme, and chaired the Nuffield feasibility study into a Learning Ladder for Languages, which reported in 2002.

Dr Onora O'Neill is Principal of Newnham College, Cambridge. She has written widely on ethics and political philosophy, with particular interests in questions of international justice and in the philosophy of Immanuel Kant. She has been President of the Aristotelian Society (1988-89), a member of the Animal Procedures (Scientific) Committee (1990-94) and of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics 1991-98 (Chairman 1996-98). She was a member and later acting Chairman of the Human Genetics Advisory Commission (1996-99). Currently Chairman of the Nuffield Foundation, she was created a Life Peer in January 1999 and sits as a cross-bencher.

Anthony Tomei is Director of the Nuffield Foundation. After some years as a physics teacher he joined the Foundation and in 1981 became Assistant Director, with responsibility for the Foundation's programmes in Education and Science. He was appointed Director in 1995.

Kathy Wicksteed was a member of the Inquiry. She has taught languages in comprehensive schools, adult education and sixth form colleges. She was an inspector for Hampshire County Council from 1994 to 1997, then director of the International Centre at Campion School, Northamptonshire, a specialist Language College. Currently Head of Curriculum Support for Arts, Languages and Business & Enterprise at the Specialist Schools Trust, she is also a member of the Executive Council of the Association for Language Learning.

Hugh Morgan Williams is a leading businessman in the north of England. Chairman of Canford Group, which has won many awards for its linguistic and cultural strategy, he is also a director of a number of other businesses, as well as a board member of One North East. A former CBI Chairman for the north-east region, he chairs the Languages National Training Organisation and is on the board of Tyne and Wear Learning and Skills Council. He was a member of the Inquiry.