Welcome remarks from Katherine Walsh, Director of Inclusion, River Learning Trust and Chair of CST's SEND and inclusion professional community.
Director of Inclusion, River Learning Trust
Katherine Walsh is the Director of Inclusion for River Learning Trust. She is an experienced teacher and school leader and has led SEND provision in primary and secondary schools in England and America. Over the past ten years, Katherine has developed particular expertise in working with leadership teams to develop school-wide systems, establishing shared and inclusive visions for the education of children and young people with SEND. Katherine was a lead author on the Department for Education commissioned Whole School SEND Teacher Handbook: SEND.
Opening remarks from Leora Cruddas CBE, Chief Executive, CST.
Chief Executive, CST
Leora Cruddas is the founding Chief Executive of the Confederation of School Trusts – the national organisation and sector body for school trusts in England. She has advised successive governments and sits on several Department for Education advisory bodies. She was recently the vice chair of the Head Teacher Standards Review Group, a member of the external advisory group for the Schools White Paper, SEND National Implementation Board and the Regulatory and Commissioning Review.
Prior to founding CST, she was Director of Policy and Public Relations for the Association of School and College Leaders. Leora has six years of experience as a director of education in two London local authorities. She is a visiting professor at UCL Institute of Education. Leora was made a CBE in the 2022 New Year’s Honours.
Director, Teacher and Author of Beautiful Lives: How We Got Learning Disabilities So Wrong
Stephen Unwin is an experienced theatre and opera director. He is also the father of a young man with profound learning disabilities and campaigns for the rights and dignities of people with learning disabilities. His recent book, Beautiful Lives: How We Got Learning Disabilities So Wrong, was described by The Guardian as ‘a landmark book’.
Tom Rees will share his reflections on the Government’s Schools White Paper, plans for SEND reform, and the implications for trusts.
CEO, Ormiston Academies Trust, and Chair, DfE‘s Expert Advisory Group for Inclusion
This panel will reflect on the policy landscape post-White Paper and explore what this means in practice for our young people, schools, and trusts. Katherine will be joined by a panel of trust leaders, who will discuss how we move forward in planning our policies and processes to enact change in the lives of our young people and families. Panellists: to be confirmed
Director of Inclusion, River Learning Trust
Katherine Walsh is the Director of Inclusion for River Learning Trust. She is an experienced teacher and school leader and has led SEND provision in primary and secondary schools in England and America. Over the past ten years, Katherine has developed particular expertise in working with leadership teams to develop school-wide systems, establishing shared and inclusive visions for the education of children and young people with SEND. Katherine was a lead author on the Department for Education commissioned Whole School SEND Teacher Handbook: SEND.
In this session, Emeritus Professor Edward Melhuish will explore the link between early years and the development of SEND in children. His presentation will draw on research which evidences the importance of Early Childhood Education and Care for children, families and communities, how this can influence children’s long-term development, and the implications for how we plan practice and policy.
Emeritus Professor of Human Development, University of Oxford
Ted Melhuish is Emeritus Professor of Human Development, University of Oxford
He has undertaken research in 12 countries, and is currently undertaking large-scale longitudinal studies in Norway, the UK, and Australia involving family, community and pre-school influences on child development, and policy implications. He is also taking part in an EU-project (ISOTIS) on inequality in childhood involving 11 countries.
His studies contributed to social policy in the UK in the area of families, young children, early education and social disadvantage, including the 1989 Children Act, the 2005 Children Act, 2006 Childcare Bill. He has served as an expert witness to several House of Commons Select Committees, and is a member of a child well-being working group of WHO, and the Human Capital and Economic Opportunity Working Group Early Childhood Interventions Group. He is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences and in 2016 was awarded an OBE for services to social sciences.
Over many years, he has acted as an advisor and consultant on a pro-bono basis to many charities and voluntary organisations involved with child well-being, including NSPCC, Save the Children and Action for Children. He has been a trustee of the WAVE trust and the Foundation Years Trust.
This panel brings together a range of different expert perspectives to share practical examples on how we can give our children the best start in life and education, setting them up for future success. Panellists: to be confirmed
Group Chief Quality Officer and Safeguarding Lead, Busy Bees Nurseries
Gill works for Busy Bees Nurseries as their international lead for quality and safeguarding.
Until recently, Gill was the deputy director for schools and early education at Ofsted, where she was responsible for school inspection policy, the curriculum unit, SEND, early years regulation and inspection, ITE, literacy and inspector training. She also led on the inspection of reading and worked closely with the DfE English hubs. As a HMI, she inspected schools, children's centres, SEND, local authorities and early years settings.
Before joining Ofsted, she was a headteacher of several primary schools. Her specialist subjects are English, particularly the teaching of reading, and music.
Director of Inclusion, River Learning Trust
Katherine Walsh is the Director of Inclusion for River Learning Trust. She is an experienced teacher and school leader and has led SEND provision in primary and secondary schools in England and America. Over the past ten years, Katherine has developed particular expertise in working with leadership teams to develop school-wide systems, establishing shared and inclusive visions for the education of children and young people with SEND. Katherine was a lead author on the Department for Education commissioned Whole School SEND Teacher Handbook: SEND.
