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Changemakers for Children in a Troubled World : Why ‘What Works’ Matters
We are thrilled to feature Dr Kathryn Weston as our opening keynote speaker at the AoEA Annual Summit 2025. Dr Weston is a renowned expert in parental engagement, resilience, and the well-being of children, bringing a wealth of experience and research to her work. As the founder of Tooled Up Education, she is dedicated to equipping schools, parents, and educators with the tools they need to help children thrive academically and emotionally.
In her keynote, Dr Weston will explore the foundational principles of what every child needs to succeed, addressing key questions such as: What are the basic underlying principles that should guide our work in education? Her session will draw from her extensive research and practical experience, providing actionable insights for education advisers and school leaders to implement within their own contexts.
Dr Weston’s expertise and engaging delivery promise to set the tone for the day, encouraging all attendees to reflect on the universal goals of education and the collective role we play in achieving them. This keynote is not to be missed—prepare to leave inspired and equipped with new ideas to make a tangible impact in schools.
Being 10% Braver
Multi-award-winning inspirational speaker and one of the top female motivational speakers in the UK, Jaz is a force of nature who galvanises people to take action.
This world class re-framer has a unique ability to help people reframe their stories and situations, bringing transformation in their work, life and communities. This is Jaz’s alchemy.
Jaz combines lessons learned from a challenging and often brutal childhood with those from her rise to TV presenter, TEDx Speaker, stand-up comedian and Z-list reality TV star.
Her authentic honesty and humour consistently empower people to think differently about leading themselves and others.
Along with her husband Ed, Jaz is co-founder of the leadership development consultancy Be Human First Limited. Together, they help leaders who want to influence, inspire and motivate their teams with greater engagement in order to grow their businesses and leave a lifelong legacy.
Is School Leadership Sustainable?
Toby will present emerging findings from the ESRC-funded Sustainable School Leadership study he leads. The research is exploring approaches to the recruitment, development and support of senior school leaders – particularly headteachers – in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Toby will explore the factors that drain and sustain leaders in role and some of the emerging recommendations for how leadership can be made more sustainable.
Alternative Big Consultation
In response to Ofsted’s limited Big Listen, Prof Colin Richards and Frank Norris launched The Alternative Big Listen in March 2024 to address key issues left out—such as the use of single-word judgements, inspection consistency, and whether Ofsted is fit for purpose. Nearly 1,500 respondents took part, with overwhelming dissatisfaction: 91% said Ofsted was not fit for purpose, and 83% supported a pause on inspections pending a full review.
Despite critical findings from the Gilbert Review and the Education Select Committee, Ofsted’s 2025 consultation offered only one inspection model with little room for alternative views. Richards and Norris created The Alternative Big Consultation to explore more open, fair, and collaborative approaches, aiming for a system that builds trust while maintaining rigorous evaluation.
The session for the conference will be led by Frank Norris and will include details of their survey findings as well as seek views from delegates on how best to progress inspection going forward.
Forging National Cohesion Through School Leadership in a Diverse Education System.
In a fragmented and diverse educational landscape, school improvement services, education authorities and school leaders play a critical bridging role. Their work with school leaders can support national cohesion in the following ways:
1. Developing Shared Civic Values Across All School Types
2. Creating Collaborative Leadership Communities
3. Supporting Inclusive Curriculum Leadership
4. Equipping Leaders to Handle Complex Social Issues
5. Modelling Democratic and Ethical Leadership
6. Providing Equity-Focused Support
7. Embedding Long-Term, Values-Driven Leadership Development
Our Chair from England and our panellists from Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales will share their countries context on this area and own viewpoints.
Panel Chair – AoEA Non-Executive Director
Richard is the CEO of a respected multi-academy trust based in the West Midlands comprising 24 schools, a SCITT and a Teaching School Hub. Under his leadership, ATLP has grown significantly and is now home to 12,000 students and over 1,500 staff. Richard is also the Chair of the Teaching School Hubs Council and collaborates closely with government ministers and policy advisors.
With over 30 years in education, he has contributed to national policy through expert advisory groups focusing on areas such as teacher development and tutoring and is currently supporting DfE around their work in relation to safeguarding and partnership working aligned to children’s social care. He is a sought-after speaker, published writer, and supports school improvement across the country.
Additionally, he serves as co-Chair of the Wesleyan Members Advisory Board and is a lead Ofsted inspector. His achievements have been widely recognised, earning him a CBE in 2020 and an honorary doctorate from Birmingham City University in 2023 for his outstanding services to education.
General Secretary of ADES
I am a values driven, passionate senior education professional, with a firm belief in social justice and am committed to ensuring the provision of high quality outcomes. My natural optimism and tenacity are focused and balanced by an analytical and pragmatic approach to the complex challenges those working in the education sector face on a daily basis.
As a very experienced former Head Teacher, senior manager, Chief Officer in a local authority and now General Secretary of a Professional Association (ADES), I believe it is vital to engage with those we work alongside and those we seek to serve to inform any improvement agenda. In times of significant social change and economic challenges, the leadership of change should be a job for many.
In addition, I spent 10 years working as an Associate Assessor with HMIE; I’m very experienced and comfortable working in assessment, scrutiny and inspectorate roles. I was also seconded to the Scottish Executive for 2 years as a Professional Adviser in the early days of Curriculum for Excellence – a major curriculum review undertaken in the early 2000s in Scotland.
Away from work I enjoy listening to and playing music; and am a regular “gig goer” having recently seen Lyle Lovett, Gregory Porter and Kylie Minogue. Reading, films and theatre are other sources of enjoyment.
Chief Executive, Controlled Schools’ Support Council (CSSC)
Mark Baker is Chief Executive of the Controlled Schools’ Support Council (CSSC) taking up post on 14 June 2021. Mark is responsible for the strategic leadership of the organisation and overseeing the close working relationship with Northern Ireland’s Department of Education, Education Authority and other support bodies. CSSC is the sectoral support body for controlled schools and Mark and the wider CSSC team advocates on behalf of individual controlled schools and the sector as a whole on matters including education policy, underachievement and community engagement.
In September 2024 Mark was invited by Paul Givan, Minister of Education to Chair a Taskforce to develop a proposed model of support for controlled schools.
Mark Baker was Assistant Director of Education with the Education Authority (EA) from June 2017 to June 2021 and was a member of the EA Senior Leadership Team. His responsibilities included operational responsibility for school improvement for over 350 schools and support for effective School Governance including the managing authority role across controlled schools. As a member of the Education Directorate Management Team, Mark led on the implementation of the Education Authority’s collaborative Locality Leadership Network strategy and amongst other areas had strategic oversight for C2k and School Governance.
Mark has a strong background in shared education overseeing the roll out of shared education throughout Northern Ireland for EA from May 2015 and previously working for Queen’s University Belfast to oversee an externally funded shared education research and school collaboration programme which included successfully lobbying for legislative change. The Shared Education Programme was awarded the prestigious Queen’s Anniversary Prize in 2020 recognising excellence, innovation and public benefit in work carried out by colleges and universities.
Mark has a background in international education having managed schools in over 8 different countries. He is an English Language Teacher. He has also set up and managed a number of private enterprises in the areas of online communication and marketing. He has lectured in business for the Open University and Ulster University.
Principal Improvement Partner for Curriculum at the Central South Consortium Joint Education Service (CSCJES)
Cathryn Billington-Richards is the Principal Improvement Partner for Curriculum at the Central South Consortium Joint Education Service (CSCJES). With over 20 years of teaching experience across secondary and all-through phases, Cathryn has made significant contributions to educational standards and curriculum development in various school settings
In her current role, Cathryn is responsible for developing and implementing curriculum support to enhance educational outcomes across the region. She leads initiatives focused on curriculum development and the core skills of literacy, numeracy, and digital learning. Ensuring that best practices are shared and adopted widely. Her expertise in these areas has been instrumental in driving improvements and fostering a culture of continuous learning and development.
Cathryn’s dedication to education is evident in her commitment to professional development. She actively participates in and facilitates training programs, workshops, and collaborative projects aimed at improving teaching practices and student achievement.
Outside of her professional responsibilities, Cathryn is passionate about promoting equity and excellence in education. She believes in the power of education to transform lives and is dedicated to making a positive impact on the communities she serves.
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