On the first day of the show (Thursday 16th March) at 2:15pm, Hannah Wilson, headteacher of Aureus School and co-founder of WomenEd, will partner with Allana Gay, a regional leader of WomenEd, to update people on the incredible work they are doing to bring teaching into the 21st Century. During their session, entitled ‘Diversity Matters: Who is on your Senior Leadership Team?’ Wilson and Gay will be looking at the current education recruitment crisis which is in fact an issue of teacher retention. The pair will be quoting the shocking fact that two thirds of the teaching profession are women and yet only one third reach a level of leadership! They are calling on all teachers - whatever their sex, race or beliefs; whether gay or straight, abled or disabled - to join them to try to make the teaching profession just that: a profession of equality for everyone.
On the second day of the show at 10:30am, Joshua Perry, director of Assembly Education, a nonprofit joint venture between Ark and NEON, will be warning suppliers and MATs about the importance of recognising the changing needs of these schools and working together to address ‘phase two’ of the edtech evolution. He feels that the Precambrian explosion of MATs in the last few years has left suppliers unprepared, and lacking an understanding of the very specific needs of MATs. Perry will be calling on all sector suppliers, academies and MATs to collaborate and invest in the development of this next phase of learning technology.
Later that day at 2:55pm, Tom Rees, headteacher and director at Northampton Primary Academy Trust (NPAT), will be providing visitors with another option for schools considering academisation. Rees likens academisation to a marriage with some eternal bachelors, sitting quietly, hoping it won’t happen to them! He will share his experiences of not wanting to set up a trust nor be scooped up into a Multi Academy Trust. Wanting to take the step towards academisation on his own terms, he joined other schools in Northampton who started working together to form NPAT as equal partners; not built on the back of a top-down sponsor.
From Stand D8, Innovate My School will be sharing how MATs are using speed dating events as an innovative way to procure affordable products and services. We'll also be filming live Innovation Bursts videos with visitors, as well as giving away free printed copies of the annual IMS Guide.
Details of all the seminar and masterclass sessions which have been designed to address a wide range of needs can be found, along with a registration page, at www.bettacademies.com.
