John Halliwell

Executive Director of Primary, STEP Academy Trust

John is originally from Liverpool and spent his secondary years on the Isle of Man, giving him experience of both urban and rural education. His teaching career began in 2001 in a middle school in Settle, North Yorkshire, before moving to London in 2003, where he has remained. During his time in London, John has held senior roles including SENCo, inclusion leader and deputy headteacher, and has been headteacher in three schools across Newham, Barking and Dagenham, and Croydon and Sutton. He is now Executive Director of Primary at STEP Academy Trust. John’s work has consistently focused on serving communities facing high levels of deprivation, with a clear moral purpose to raise aspirations and improve outcomes for children. Since joining STEP, he has been recognised as a National Leader of Education and now leads trust wide leadership development and the strategic oversight of SEND, including training, coaching and talent mapping.

1 Workshops series one

Building inclusive career pathways and maximising your apprenticeship levy

This workshop explores how values-led, intentional workforce planning can transform recruitment, retention, and career progression across trusts. Ben and John will examine how aligning recruitment practices at STEP Academy Trust with organisational values can attract and sustain a more inclusive workforce. The session will also explore how creating diverse entry routes such as apprenticeships, can build inclusive career pathways that support progression for all, including alumni, building a stronger, more connected workforce.

1 Workshop series one

Stewarding sustainable outcomes: designing coherence in school improvement

How do trusts move beyond short-term improvement to sustain strong outcomes over time, particularly as organisations grow and contexts diversify? Drawing on trust-wide practice, this session explores how senior leaders deliberately design coherence across strategy, leadership behaviours, teaching, inclusion and the early years so that moral purpose becomes lived reality. Through concrete examples from SEND, EYFS, teaching quality, leadership development, alongside longitudinal impact evidence, the session will examine how clarity, shared language and disciplined priorities enable improvement to be embedded and sustained.