Felicity Gillespie

Director, Kindred Squared

Felicity Gillespie is the Chief Executive of Kindred2, a private foundation focused on improving the quality of early childhood development. She is currently a member of the independent expert panel advising Sir David Bell’s Review of Early Years, commissioned by the Labour Party. Felicity has been an Advisor to the UK Department for Education since 2011 and the lead specialist Academy Governance Advisor for six years. A board member of Ofsted, previous roles include establishing the Broadcast Training and Skills Regulator and The National Teaching Awards. As the education and training advisor at the Confederation of British Industry, she represented the UK on EU education and training programme boards. A former Associate of the Prime Minister’s Delivery Unit and of the National College of School Leadership, Felicity has served as a national judge of the UK National Training Awards on many occasions and speaks on the British education system at conferences and seminars in the USA, Middle East and UK.

Early Years

1 Breakout sessions: Series one

Place-based connections: Working together to set expectations of school readiness

Demonstrating the value of civic collaboration, this session highlights a cross-sector initiative in York to increase the number of children who are toilet trained when they start school. Drawing on research and guidance from Kindred Squared, Ebor Academy Trust teamed up with York Children's Services and the Healthy Child Service to deliver a city-wide communications and support programme for families. The leaders who came together to make it happen will share their journey from issuing the offer letters to welcoming children in September, and what they've learned for next year's campaign. Chaired by Felicity Gillespie of Kindred Squared, this session shows the power of low-resource, high value partnerships to deliver meaningful change.

10:00

1 Main programme

Panel: Foundations for learning: Neurodevelopment and school readiness in practice

This session explores what educators need to know about early child development and the foundations for learning, with a focus on neurodevelopment and school readiness. Drawing on the latest KindredSquared findings and resources, Felicity sets out the scale of the challenge and why early development matters for later outcomes. The panel brings a trust and school-level perspective, focusing on what this looks like in practice - from working with families and early years settings, to setting clear expectations and supporting staff to have confident conversations. Through real examples, they will share what is and isn't working, where challenges persist, and how schools are responding to the growing gap between responsibility and readiness.