Abbi Molyneux (19, left)) and Lilly Holden (18, right) are the newest recruits to the Leeds-based asbestos management specialists, which celebrated its 10th anniversary and doubled its office space last year.

Appointing the duo represents the company’s commitment to inclusivity and diversity and its investment in the next generation of asbestos analysts. Both trainees are on a five-year path to become qualified asbestos management consultants with full support and financing of their British Occupational Hygiene Society (BOHS) qualifications.

With a passion for STEM subjects, Lilly is hoping her new role will inspire others to pursue a career which reflects the things they love. She said: “I’ve always been practical and hands-on and I’m aware I’m entering what’s traditionally a male-dominated profession – but that’s not new to me as I was one of just two girls studying Design Engineering at New College in Bradford!

“After visiting Inspectas on work experience, I realised it was just what I’d been looking for – interactive, because we are constantly meeting people onsite, varied with the amount of travel and different places that we visit including schools, universities and social housing where asbestos has been removed and there’s a clear career path ahead. Everyone is so friendly and I feel I’m learning a lot every day that I shadow the team.”

Abbi, who joins Inspectas straight from studying law, psychology and criminology at New College in Bradford, is also keen to progress through the key stages to become a qualified asbestos analyst surveyor. She added: “Inspectas has so much experience on the team. We are learning on the job every day and being guided through all the different stages of the asbestos clearance process. It is challenging but it’s such an important service – asbestos still exists inside some buildings but removal and its management is a specialist area that I’m excited to be a part of.”

Inspectas was formed in 2013 by asbestos management professionals Craig Candlish and Matthew Fahy who combined their expertise to launch Inspectas Compliance. Today, the company has a portfolio of more than 150 clients in the education, healthcare, retail, construction and industrial sectors.

Director Matthew Fahy said: “Trainee analyst surveyors are the backbone of our industry and we know it’s historically been a challenging environment for women to work in. We are committed to giving equal opportunity to all of our employees and want to contribute to the diversity and career prospects that are available within this sector.

“We are absolutely delighted to welcome Lilly and Abbi onto the team. Their interest in and passion for our sector is a fantastic basis for us to build their knowledge and education through BOSH training and qualifications and we’re looking forward to watching them develop and flourish in this rich, varied and fast-paced compliance learning environment.”

This is one of the reasons Nathan Jenkins (pictured left), newly appointed at Ralph Allen School, joined the Trust. As he said: “Ralph Allen School has earned its reputation as a high-performing school. I looked at its size, and its ambition and was really attracted to the role, but I needed to know where I could add real value. There is such outstanding teaching going on at this school, which is just blowing me away, but there is always something to improve with any school. Here, it is about looking at the provision across the whole school and ensuring every child has the opportunity to meet their expectations and future aspirations. I am not afraid of leading this improvement – it’s where I come alive. Ralph Allen is a phenomenal school. High quality teaching is in place and the subject leads are very strong. But as in all schools we still have work to do. We are striving to create an outstanding school for all our students, staff and parents and carers. It’s a journey and we’re all on board.”

As an ambitious and inclusive head and a supporter of Palladian Academy Trust’s vision and values, Mr Jenkins identified Ralph Allen School as the perfect place to continue his career. Already settled in, he is now looking at moving forward to creating an outstanding school using its new Thrive focus.

As someone who values relationships and expertise, he brought his former deputy head with him and has now recruited a further deputy head to aid school improvement and operations.
He added: “I spent my first few weeks watching, learning, and listening. I have met a considerable number of parents and carers and have already formed a strong bond with Ralph Allen School and the trust. This is a pretty amazing place to work and study. When you find a school with these foundations, you can really start to look at making it something really special.”

Some of the work will include investment in a central team of experts. This will include partnership working aiming to reduce the noise and distractions for school leaders and wider colleagues so they can focus on the things that matter. The Trust has key specialist roles to support all schools including a Trust SEND lead, Safeguarding Lead, Church School Lead, CPLD Lead.

It is also developing its ‘Pupil Champions’ which will see its Culture Champions developing the Culture Charter, Community Champions looking at how the Trust can work in partnership or support its communities, and Curriculum Champions – all working under the same premise of excellent and equitable opportunities in each strand.

To further benefit its Thrive initiative, Palladian Academy Trust has pledged its commitment to ‘Cradle to Career’, and will engage with the community to prioritise and develop the needs of its children from birth to 18 years old, The Trust has looked at the benefits of engaging with pre-natal classes and nurse referrals to listen and understand the needs of their community and young families and see how they can be supported throughout their children’s formal education.

This will aid Palladian’s journey to becoming the first ‘Thrive’ Trust, with ‘Thriving Together’ as its mantra.

Palladian Academy Trust has partnered with Devonshire-based Thrive Approach as it strives to become a ‘Thriving Trust Ambassador’ promoting social, emotional and mental health development.
Through this partnership, the trust will develop its language to improve engagement and connections with their children on an emotional level. One of these models is ‘WIN’ (Wonder, Imagine, Notice) which encourages young people to develop the skills to self-reflect. For example, if a child is finding it difficult to settle, their teacher is being encouraged to use specific wording i.e. ”I wonder if it is too noisy in here for you at the moment? I imagine that was very upsetting. I notice your sounds have changed, shall we go somewhere quiet?” This language engages and supports children in a non-judgemental approach.

Over 600 staff from across the Palladian family of 11 schools recently joined together at Ralph Allen School for the launch of its ‘Thriving Together’ approach. Amongst other guest speakers James Townsend, from Reach Academy, Ben Smith representing the 401 Foundation, and Eva Ford, relationship manager at Thrive Approach, presented a training module to help staff better understand their pupils’ emotional needs.

Eva explained: “I am supporting and guiding key staff at Palladian to give a deeper insight into behaviour and equip them with extra tools to better meet their needs. We talked about stress regulation systems and brain development from newborn to young adulthood. We also talked about the types of behaviours they might see within their classrooms and strategies to ensure the skills that they are developing are age or developmentally appropriate.

“The Trust is working towards our Thrive Ambassador awards. Each school will become a school of excellence for social and emotional development and mental health using Thrive Approach and, within that, the Trust itself will become an ambassador school trust of excellence.

“Palladian is well on its way to becoming a thriving trust and this is really benefiting its pupils.

“It is a leading light in this area and has already come on leaps and bounds in its thinking and deliverables. I’m really encouraged by this trust-wide commitment to the mental health and well-being of its pupils.”

“Using the Thrive Approach as a framework, each Palladian school is given a Thrive subscription and the training required so that the pupils benefit from the full Thrive Approach.”
Sarah Bubyer, Thrive Practitioner at Ralph Allen School, said: “One of the first things we have done since partnering with Thrive is to set up a base for our most disadvantaged pupils and those who struggle to stay in mainstream education.

“We are also working on a project to see how we can embed Thrive into each one of our primary schools by training one of their own staff up to be a Thrive practitioner. We will look at how we can effectively support young people when they become dysregulated and help enable them to ultimately achieve successful academic careers.

“It’s vital that everyone has a clear understanding of the principles behind Thrive and how they can use it – and carry this vision forward so we are able to become a Thrive Ambassador Trust. But ultimately it is about keeping the children at the centre of everything that we do and giving them the best experience that they can have.”

Together, staff from across the Trust schools will use its Thrive Approach and Cradle to Career initiative to embed its vision of providing ‘excellent and equitable opportunities so everyone can flourish and values of ‘respect, courage and curiosity’ across all aspects of school life, while fostering high aspirations and ambition for academic success across all ages.

https://www.palladianacademytrust.com  

Cat Scutt MBE, Deputy CEO, Education and Research at the Chartered College of Teaching, brings a range of sector-wide expertise to the NASBTT Board. A former English teacher, Cat’s roles have since focused on supporting teacher development both online and through face-to-face activities, with a particular emphasis on development using digital technology, through collaboration and by engagement with research and evidence. She has worked as a teacher and advisor in the state and independent sector, as well as in corporate learning and development. Cat leads the Chartered College’s work around teacher development and certification, including the Chartered Teacher programme, and its research activities and publications, including its award-winning Impact journal.

Damilola Dauda is Head of Operations at the Teacher Development Trust (TDT). She joined TDT in 2021 as Delivery Partner Manager, beginning her new role overseeing the operational delivery of TDT NPQs and other offers last March. Damilola’s career in education started with teaching summer school to primary school children in Nigeria as a teenager, before gaining a teaching English as a foreign language qualification and then becoming a qualified teacher via the PGCE route. She spent six years as a secondary Maths teacher in an inner-city school in London and then two years teaching abroad in Peru.

Jo Anderson, SCITT Programme Director at Wildern Partnership SCITT, has 25 years’ experience in education and has held roles as ITT Programme Director for ten years, External Moderator and more recently DfE ITT Market Associate. She is a secondary MFL specialist and over the years has taught primary MFL, secondary ICT and computing, and has led early career development in a variety of settings.

Keith Ford, Programme Manager at Somerset SCITT, has been a primary education class teacher, middle leader, senior leader and Headteacher of both a small rural school and large primary school, including autism centre. Across his career spanning 25 years he has always supported ITT and ITE. Keith has been a governor of various primary and secondary schools alongside his professional roles, giving him an understanding of the strategic importance as well as the accountability of governance.

Kikelomo Agunbiade, a Research and Training Consultant, trained as a science teacher through the Teach First scheme and has worked for a number of education charities and teacher training organisations. Her roles have included leading the DfE-funded Researchers in Schools niche ITT route, North London Manager for Teach First and running CPD for Teaching Schools, Heads, middle and senior leaders for SSAT. She currently provides education consultancy services including training on race and diversity, education and market research (qualitative and quantitative) and strategy development.

Stephanie Rodgers is Deputy Headteacher – Curriculum and Assessment at Dr Challoner’s Grammar School. Her senior leadership responsibilities have included the set up and leadership of Astra SCITT in Buckinghamshire which has been through the ITE Ofsted inspection process in both 2018 as a new SCITT, and in 2023 under the current ITE Inspection Framework. Stephanie led the reaccreditation process for Astra SCITT as part of the ITT Market Review and the formation of Astra Teaching School Hub, and is now also an Ofsted inspector for ITE.

The appointments follow the arrivals of business and finance specialists Alison O’Dornan and Sidikat Taiwo in the past 18 months, and new Chair of Trustees Anna Richards last November.

Anna said: “We are delighted to welcome our new Trustees who bring such a wealth of experience in ITT, education and commercial professionals to NASBTT. The diversity of our Board is now truly reflective of our membership, and together we look forward to reviewing, shaping and supporting NASBTT’s strategic direction.”

NASBTT Executive Director Emma Hollis added: “I would like to formally and warmly welcome our new Trustees. Damilola, Kikelomo, Cat, Keith, Stephanie and Jo joined us for their first meetings earlier this month and we are really excited to be working with them as we, and the ITT sector, enter a new phase moving into 2024-25.”

Next week (28th and 29th November), NASBTT is holding its online Annual Conference 2023 Mind the Gap, sponsored by MOSAIC. Speakers include DfE, Foundation for Education Development, nasen, National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER), Ofsted, TDT and a number of SCITTs, HEIs, and Teaching School Hubs.

A new Head of Safeguarding, Health, Children & Families, a School Improvement Lead, a Digital Technology and Accessibility Lead, and IT Manager have all now taken up positions at the Trust, which supports 15 schools across Milton Keynes and Corby.

Victoria Blackmore has joined IFtL as Head of Safeguarding, Health, Children & Families after two-and-half-years working for Herefordshire Council as Manager of Safeguarding in Education and Social Inclusion. She was formerly Education Safeguarding Lead at Central Bedfordshire Council, and prior to that a Family Support Worker. Having started her journey in safeguarding a decade ago, Victoria has a real passion for both safeguarding and SEND. She has worked in a variety of education settings and this has given her vast experience and a focus on maintaining a ‘child-centred’ approach.

Isabel Parker has arrived as the Trust’s School Improvement Lead, bringing extensive experience as an Executive Head Teacher at Bedford Nursery Schools Federation, and also as a senior leader at Middleton Primary School and West Town Primary Academy in Peterborough. Previously she was the National Early Years Lead on the Teaching School Council. As a National Leader for Education, Isabel has supported many leaders to improve their schools. Most recently, Isabel has held the role of His Majesty’s Inspector for Ofsted since 2020, and continues to be a serving inspector.

Shaun Hughes is the new Digital Technology and Accessibility Lead. Shaun completed his PGCE in 2013-14 at Two Mile Ash Initial Teacher Training Partnership and began his teaching career at Two Mile Ash School. At Two Mile Ash, he went on to become Head of Computing and Technological Innovation and Deputy Head of Year 6, before taking up a role at GEMS Wellington Academy Silicon Oasis in Dubai in 2018. There Shaun was Head of Year 6 and Lead Practitioner of Digital Pedagogy before returning to the UK in 2020 to become Assistant Head and latterly Deputy Head Teacher and SENCO at Quainton Church of England School in Aylesbury. For the past 10 years, Shaun has sought opportunities to impact on schools, in particular in digital technologies and SEN.

Ray Smith has started his role as IFtL’s IT Manager, after working for Oxley Park Academy Trust for the past 17 years. Since moving into education in 2006, Ray has worked in a wide range of non-teaching roles including facilities management and safeguarding, as well as IT. These appointments follow the arrivals earlier this academic year of Bridget Daffern as Trust Business Manager, Nicola Molloy as Financial Controller, and Charlotte Howard and Philisiwe Jones as Marketing & Business Support staff.

IFtL Chief Executive Sarah Bennett said: “We are delighted to welcome our new colleagues to the Trust. Attracting, retaining and developing the best leaders, teachers and professional services staff is an essential ingredient of being successful in our vision to inspire the futures of us all through learning together. Young people only get one chance and everyone who works for IFtL, within our schools and within the central team, takes this very personally.”

Anna Richards (left), who has worked in ITT since September 2014 and been a NASBTT Trustee since December 2017, will lead the Board of highly experienced ITT, education and commercial professionals whose core remit is to review and agree NASBTT’s strategic direction. She succeeds former Chair Ian Hollingsworth, who stepped down in October after five years in post.

“In my view teaching is the best job in the world – and now more than ever we need inspirational teachers joining our profession to inspire and support the next generation,” Anna said. “Working for a SCITT, and previously as a Headteacher for five years, I have seen first-hand the positive impact that trainee teachers can have on a school community and children’s lives. I am honoured to be appointed Chair of NASBTT’s Board of Trustees to both represent and further develop school-led ITT, and in turn support school improvement.”

Recognising the challenges brought by the recent ITT market review and accreditation process, Anna explained what she sees as the core role of NASBTT and the Board of Trustees. “Firstly, whilst needing to remain agile, it is important that the organisation does not stray from its core mission,” she said. “That means providing member support and reassurance, representing our members at the highest level and passing information on to them as much as possible, and delivering more focused services that can help with the requirements of accreditation. The opportunity to come together is also really important. As a NASBTT member I have recently attended Espresso Shot Networking Events on accreditation, Ofsted and curriculum design, and by sharing our experiences we become much stronger.”

Anna continued: “As Trustees we exist, by definition, to hold the organisation and Emma Hollis (Executive Director) to account. However, the nature of education is far more collegiate and supportive, and so I see our role as shaping the direction of NASBTT. Our Board has professionals drawn from both within and outside of the ITT sector, which means we can provide more robust challenge and supporting thinking to ensure we are giving Emma what she needs to facilitate the development of school-led initial teacher training provision, whilst navigating an extremely challenging political landscape.”

When Anna joined Suffolk and Norfolk SCITT, which is one of the biggest SCITTs in the country with 200 primary and secondary trainees every year, she immediately turned to NASBTT for support. “Knowing that the organisation is there is a huge comfort, it always has been, and actually when I started in ITT the first thing I did was sign up to NASBTT membership,” she said. “The organisation has shifted and developed dramatically over the past five years. Initially it was more of an advice/support service to members. Now we have a wide range of products and services, all of which are designed to help the sector to develop. Accessing our online CPD modules and video resources for teacher educators, mentors and early career teachers, for example, is hugely valuable as we are giving people content they had either not thought about creating or had the time to develop themselves.”

Anna spoke about her pride in working for Suffolk and Norfolk SCITT and challenged schools to “do everything you can to support the future of the profession”. She explained: “We are proud of our profession and privileged to be able to work with so many inspirational trainees as they start their journey to become excellent teachers and future school leaders. The depth and strength of our partnership with schools across Suffolk and Norfolk means that we train our trainees to be part of the whole teaching profession rather than training them to teach in just one type of school. But we know nationally that some schools do not engage in ITT at all. If everyone took that approach we would not have teachers.”

NASBTT Executive Director Emma Hollis added: “I would like to formally welcome Anna as our Chair of Trustees. Our Trustees provide incredibly valuable support and challenge, as Anna herself has for over five years’ now, and I am really looking forward to working with Anna in her new role. I would also like to take this opportunity to once again thank Ian Hollingsworth who offered unerring support during his time as Chair. Professionally, he has been my guide and my supportive challenger as I have grown in my role leading NASBTT. He has also directly helped our team to grow the organisation to what it is today.”

Paul Burrows has been announced as the new head teacher of Royal School for the Deaf Derby, in Ashbourne Road, after current head teacher Helen Shepherd stepped down at the end of the last academic year.

Although the position is Paul’s first headship, he has been in education for more than 30 years, most recently as deputy head teacher of Alderswasley Hall School, a special school for children with autism, for the last six years.

One of Paul’s last roles there was to jointly lead the school through an OFSTED inspection in July 2022, which it rated as outstanding in every area. The inspectors particularly acknowledged the “ambitious curriculum”, that the teachers “precisely track what pupils know and can do” and how “teachers use their strong subject knowledge very effectively to deepen pupils’ understanding”; these were all key areas within the school which Paul led.

His first teaching job was in a mainstream school with a unit for hearing impaired children and, although Paul already has basic British Sign Language (BSL) skills, he has pledged to master the language as soon as possible. He passed his BSL 101 exam before the start of term to enable him to greet the new students when they returned.

In fact, it was a lightbulb moment during the interview process that has made Paul, who is a physics teacher, determined to break down communication barriers for every pupil.

He said: “During the interviews all the candidates were asked to sit at different tables with small groups of pupils. At first, I felt utterly helpless and frustrated that I couldn’t communicate with them but fortunately I was able to use lip reading, mime and gestures and by the end of the session we were having a full blown conversation and all laughing together.

“But those initial moments stayed with me because I felt extraordinarily vulnerable. Then I realised that this must be how deaf people feel so often in a hearing world – exposed and defenceless. That moment stirred something in me and I felt that I couldn’t allow this to happen.

“So, I hope to be an advocate for deaf people in a hearing world and create a nurturing environment where our pupils can thrive and be themselves.”

Although Paul was born in York, he has been based in the city for many years after marrying a Derby girl and his two children attend St Mary’s Catholic Voluntary Academy, in The Broadway.

He started his new position this month, although he got to know several students, parents and staff on transition days at the end of last term as he prepared for his new role.

During these sessions he was invited to give himself a sign name – everyone in the deaf community is assigned a unique and individual sign that not only identifies them, but also encompasses their personality.

Paul added: “I was asked what I would like my sign name to be and I didn’t really know. It was suggested that I could have something like bunny or burrowing, because of my surname, but I wasn’t very keen on being named after a rabbit!

“I was sat having lunch with two secondary pupils and my BSL teacher asked them what they thought my sign name should be. They both said that I was dressed very smartly, so that has become my sign name – Smart! I’m pretty happy with that.”

Paul accepts that there are big shoes to fill, following in the footsteps of the previous headteacher Helen Shepherd. She led the school out of special measures to being named ‘good’ by Government inspectors, who also found the residential unit – and Helen herself – to be ‘outstanding’.

But Paul is at pains to point out that he will not be making sweeping changes, instead taking his time to ensure that the transition away from Helen is seamless for the school and wider community.

He added: “I knew I wanted to be a headteacher for several years, but I also knew it had to be the right school – I didn’t want to take the first job that came along, I wanted somewhere with a heart and soul.

“As part of the interview process I came for a pre visit and I was here for two and a half hours on my first look around and I fell in love with the school – even though there weren’t any pupils on site because it was late afternoon. The essence of the school felt right and the ethos and values of the staff that I met was exactly the same as my own.

“I’m also very aware that the school’s place in the deaf community is vivid and the history and heritage of the school is an important part of modern-day school life.

“This school is a family and I feel very lucky that I am being welcomed into the fold. My hope is that we will work together to continue the school’s upward trajectory to outstanding and that the nurturing and community roots that underpin the school are maintained and continue to blossom.”

The latest key addition is Warren Porter (pictured), who joins the company as MAT Product Specialist. Warren was previously Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at Nottinghamshire-based Esteem Multi-Academy Trust. A qualified accountant, he has also worked as a Management Accountant at the Transform Trust and Finance Consultant at SAAF Education, a leading provider of business support services in education. Warren will utilise his vast MAT experience to help shape the IMP roadmap whilst also providing support to the product and sales teams within IMP.

“I am really excited about the opportunity to join IMP Software and am looking forward to supporting the next phase of its growth,” Warren said. “As a former MAT Finance Director, and a qualified accountant, this is the perfect role for me as I have always had a keen interest in systems and software. Having previously been an IMP customer I have never used another piece of software that has delivered so much value to the sector. It transformed finance within my trust overnight. The support and implementation team was the best support from a provider, software and non-software, I have experienced as a customer. I am proud to be part of a company that has had such a significant impact across the sector.”

Warren’s arrival is the 16th appointment made by IMP Software in the last year, with other roles spanning development, implementation, support, marketing and sales, and he explained the IMP ethos that also attracted him to the role. “Having got to know them as a customer, they understand MATs completely, but every cog in the machine works extremely well, every function supports the business extremely well, all at a high level of competency,” he said. “I wanted to be able to work with an elite group of people in this space. They value their staff – and that gives you every opportunity to succeed. I want to be a person who is critical to IMP and making significant impact in various areas of the business, and whose ideas help to define the product and bring new products to market.”

Will Jordan, Co-Founder of IMP Software, added: “We are delighted to welcome Warren, and all our new arrivals, in what has been a hugely successful year for the company. We position ourselves as the experts in MAT finance and our customers look to us to provide guidance on key sector issues, so we need credible and expert people to ensure that we are able to provide the best possible advice, whilst also ensuring that our solutions keep offering significant value as the sector goalposts change. The political direction of travel, following the recently-published Schools White Paper, is for MATs to grow in size and IMP is the only system that naturally supports MAT finance teams with this challenge. In anticipation of consistent future growth, as a business we are always recruiting so the door is always open for proactive approaches from individuals who have relevant expertise, are passionate, and have a deep commitment to customer service. We are very aware that our ability to both attract and retain the very best people will be tightly linked to our continued success.”

Emma Ringe has recently been promoted to Global Schools Director responsible for expanding Whizz Education’s value and customer centric approach; Elaine Smith has been appointed as UK Country Manager and Ben Slack, former teacher of nine years, has been appointed as Education Success Partner.   Emma, Elaine and Ben have all previously represented their country in different sports and this passion to achieve means they are well placed to support schools.

Emma explains: “As an education partner dedicated to improving learning outcomes in maths, Whizz Education’s work now spans six continents, reaching 1.5 million students and thousands of teachers.  Our team is passionate and committed and use this energy to design and drive learning programmes in partnership with education stakeholders to overcome barriers and deliver measurable, improved outcomes. By tailoring implementations to the needs of the local context, capacity building and deploying a unique course correction approach through regular review and adjustment we empower teachers to make the best use of our digital technology solution.  This combined with whole school access to our award-winning virtual tutor Maths-Whizz, means we ensure tangible education outcomes are reached and students can achieve accelerated learning in maths.

“Our strengthened team has a single objective: to enable school communities to reach their full potential.  They now bring their vast experience in education plus their unique insight within competitive sporting environments forward, to implement successful EdTech and hybrid learning programmes.  They will play an active path in helping and guiding decision making, enabling all students to reach their full potential and empowering teachers to use our platform to facilitate teaching skills in the classroom and beyond.”

Emma has considerable knowledge of the national curriculum in primary/secondary education gained through almost 15 years collaborating with schools in education provision.  Prior to joining Whizz Education, Emma Ringe held senior roles at Explore Learning, a leading provider of after-school tuition for 4–14-year-olds.  Emma has also worked for the social care charity Sense, supporting the development in communication and self-care skills and education, so children born deaf and blind can reach their full potential.  Emma has a Sociology Degree with a minor in social sciences awarded by Loughborough University,and has represented her country for basketball.

Elaine Smith, UK Country Manager also joins Whizz Education from Explore Learning where she worked as business process manager, regional manager and centre manager for ten years.  Elaine also has a Psychology Master’s Degree from Nottingham Trent University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Sports Science from Loughborough University and has represented GB in rowing.

Ben Slack, Education Success Partner worked as a primary school teacher for nine years in two schools before being so impressed with the award-winning virtual tutor Maths-Whizz, he joined Whizz Education.   As a qualified teacher, Ben used Maths-Whizz as a tool in the classroom to facilitate his teaching and as a result he is an expert on implementing a hybrid learning model.  Ben has represented his country in Hockey.

For further information please see: www.whizz.com

Armstrong, who retired from Education Scotland in April 2021 after a 40-year career across the Scottish education sectors, will take on the role of Programme Validator.

Digital Schools Awards Scotland was established in 2016 in partnership with Education Scotland, HP, Microsoft and Intel, to bring together government bodies and businesses to support the teaching of digital skills in schools. The highly successful initiative has seen more than 77% of secondary schools and 59% of primary schools across Scotland participate, and has recently expanded to include a stand-alone digital wellness initiative which aims to give young people the knowledge and confidence they need to navigate the digital world.

As one of the most experienced educational leaders in Scotland, Armstrong will bring extensive knowledge and wisdom to Digital Schools Awards Scotland, which is set to unveil some major developments, including the roll-out of the programme at a European level.

Armstrong is well placed to guide Digital Schools through this new chapter, having overseen a number of significant innovative programmes while at Education Scotland. During this time, he led Education Scotland’s support for the implementation of the national Digital Learning and Teaching Strategy, and played a key role in initiating and leading the National e-Learning Offer to provide access to high quality learning opportunities during school closures due to Covid-19.

In his new role as Digital Schools Validator, Armstrong’s focus will be on maximising the opportunities offered by digital technology in education, which will also support the implementation of Scotland’s national Digital Learning and Teaching Strategy. He will also work with educational leaders and practitioners to build their confidence and assist them to embed digital skills in their everyday learning, while also guiding them through the programme and advising on areas where progress can be made.

In addition, Armstrong will support the development and implementation of the Digital Schools Awards vision and strategy, helping to shape the programme in line with the inevitable evolutions in digital technology.

At the heart of his vision is a desire to encourage the progressive development of digital skills which will help young people, now and in their future lives and work.

Alan Armstrong said: “During my career, I have seen at first-hand how the advancements in technology have impacted in education and positively changed the way in which our children and young people learn.

“Digital learning in schools is an ever-evolving process, and it is vital that schools are given the support and tools needed to provide all our children and young people with skills they require for a modern world.

“Having watched closely the developments at Digital Schools Awards at national level over recent years, I have seen for myself the fantastic achievements they have made across Scottish schools.

“To date more than 1607 Scottish schools have participated in the programme with hundreds recognised for their commitment to digital excellence. I hope to build upon this success, and drive forward the programme, allowing our team to engage with, guide and support more young people across Scotland.

“I have always been passionate about promoting and extending learning beyond school, enabling practitioners, learners, parents and many others to connect, collaborate and improve learning experiences. My role with Digital Schools gives me the platform to drive forward this vision and I look forward to the challenge.”

Anna Doody, Programme Manager for Digital Schools Awards Scotland, said: “Alan has a wealth of experience in this sector and we are excited to welcome him on board.

“His knowledge and skillset are extremely valuable, and with his guidance and support we will be able to continue growing the programme and facilitating excellent practices in digital learning in schools – something which has never been so important.”

To find out more, schools are encouraged to visit www.digitalschoolsawards.com

An established figure in the education landscape and former Head of Mathematics, Jemma is a published author, and has been writing and reviewing content for education publishers for a number of years, including for TES and Teach Secondary. She’s also worked on textbooks, revision workbooks and teacher guides, as well as guest starring on well-known podcast Mr Barton Maths.

Ms Sherwood is a PD Lead for the National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics (NCETM) and has sat on an Ofsted working party for mathematics inspection. She was awarded with a Silver Pearson Teaching Award for Teacher of the Year in a Secondary School, and has spoken at a number of national conferences, including MathsConf and ResearchED.

She was drawn to the Senior Lead Practitioner role at Ormiston Academies Trust by the opportunity to bring her teaching skills and creativity to the table whilst also supporting other teachers, all of which she already has had a lot of experience in.

Ms Sherwood joins alongside David Didau, successful author and English expert, who has taken up the role of Senior Lead Practitioner for English at Ormiston Academies Trust.

Ms Sherwood said: “I am extremely pleased to have taken up this new role at Ormiston Academies Trust, which combines my love of teaching with the opportunity to develop and create a curriculum that will help students to enjoy mathematics as much as I do. I really admire the Trust’s approach to ensuring every child can excel. I’m excited to learn more about their methods and hope I can make a valuable contribution.”

Tuesday Humby, Ormiston Academies Trust’s National Director of Teaching and Training, said: “Jemma brings with her an absolute wealth of experience to the role, as well as an unrivalled enthusiasm for mathematics and the doors it can open for everyone. We are all really pleased to have her on board and looking forward to seeing her passion and ingenuity inspire our students.”