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Emma Darcy

Emma Darcy is Director of Technology for Learning at Denbigh High School in Luton, recognised as a UNESCO Digital Strategy Best Practice Case Study.   For ten years she held the same role at Chiltern Learning Trust, culminating in 2024 with the trust winning the MAT Excellence Award for Digital Innovation.   In 2021, Emma joined the BETT Advisory Board and won the Gold Pearson National Teaching Award for Digital Innovator of the Year.    In 2023, Denbigh earned the Edufuturists Award for Secondary School of the Year and Emma received the Global EdTech Award for Most Impactful Senior Member of Staff.   She is now a Trustee for Apps For Good, a Workstream Lead for the A.I. in Education initiative and a member of the Digital Futures Group.

Gary Henderson

Gary has over 25 years in education, as a teacher, senior leader and consultant in the UK and Middle East.    He currently leads technology strategy and the technology services team as Director of IT at Millfield, a large UK Independent School, as well as being vice chair of the ISC Digital Advisory Group, a member of the Digital Futures Group and an Association of Network Managers in Education (ANME) ambassador.   He was named as a finalist in the EduFuturist Network Manager of the Year 2022 and in the Global EdTech Awards 2023, Most Impactful Senior Member of Staff category, plus regularly speaks at conferences in the UK and internationally on subjects such as cyber security for schools, AI, digital citizenship and Technology Strategy.

Laura Knight

Sapio

Laura Knight, Founder of Sapio Ltd, specialises in digital strategy and innovation. Previously, she served as Director of Digital Learning at Berkhamsted School for over a decade. With two decades of teaching experience across both maintained and independent sectors, Laura excels in strategic technology development for teaching and learning, 1-1 devices, AI, digital skills training, and online safeguarding.

As a disruptive thinker, international keynote speaker, and coach, Laura empowers leaders in schools, universities, and commercial organisations. Leveraging technology, she transforms outcomes, systems, and teams. Leveraging technology, she transforms outcomes, systems, and teams. Her upcoming book,  has recently been published by Sage.

Laura contributes to advisory boards, including EDUtech Europe, the Good Future Foundation, and the Independent Schools Council Digital Advisory Group. She also advises international governments, edtech companies, and school groups on digital strategy and educational policy, providing training and insights for associations like the Independent Schools Association, the Independent Schools’ Bursars Association and the Society of Heads. She also works with the highly regarded international consultancy EDT&Partners, providing strategic educational consultancy to clients around the world. 

Lord Jim Knight

Jim Knight works in education, digital technology and as a legislator.

Jim is the Non-Executive Chair of a number of education boards: E-Act Multi Academy Trust, Council of British International Schools, Century-Tech and STEM Learning Ltd.   He also sits on the Pearson Qualifications Committee and provides advice to Nord Anglia Education, the Brookings Institute, GoodNotes, Edwin Group and Everfi.

As a government minister and MP, Jim’s portfolios included rural affairs, schools, digital and employment.    He was a member of Gordon Brown’s Cabinet, before joining the Lords in 2010.    He regularly speaks in the Lords on education and technology policy.   He is a member of the Communications and Digital Committee of the Lords.

Mark Steed

Mark Steed has spent the past 23 years leading top UK independent school; and international schools in Dubai and Hong Kong.

Mark now runs Steed Education (), an international educational consultancy committed to supporting school leaders.   Steed Education provides project management services for key strategic initiatives, such as school mergers, opening new campuses and developing digital strategy; as well as undertaking IT and cyber-risk audits and implementation programmes.   As part of this work, he is currently working as the Interim Principal and CEO of Stamford School in Lincolnshire

Mark worked in the UK as a Teacher, Head of Department, and Boarding Housemaster prior to his two senior leaderships roles as Headmaster of Kelly College in Devon; and then as Principal of the Berkhamsted Schools Group.   He moved aboard in September 2015 to be Director of JESS, Dubai, before moving to Hong Kong in September 2019 to be the Principal and CEO of Kellett School.

Mark has degrees from Cambridge and Nottingham Universities and from Ashridge-Hult Business School where he researched ‘Alternative Business models for Secondary Schooling’.   He has a particular interest in how new technologies can be used in education and chaired the UK Independent Schools Council Digital Strategy Group from 2007 to 2015.   He recently completed the Harvard course on Cybersecurity: Managing Risk in the Information Age.

Miles Berry

Miles is Professor of Computing Education at the University of Roehampton, where he runs the secondary PGCE in computing course, teaches on the University's digital media and social science research methods degrees, and is a member of the University's AI working group.   Prior to joining Roehampton, he spent 18 years in four schools, much of the time as an ICT coordinator and most recently as a head teacher.

Over the years he has contributed to a number of computing related projects including England's national curriculum computing programmes of study.   He chairs the National Centre for Computing Education's academic board and the BCS England computing curriculum committee. 

Simon Balderson

Director of Innovation at Wishford Education

Simon Balderson, Director of Innovation at Wishford Education, has over two decades of experience spanning independent and grammar schools.   Formerly Deputy Head Academic at Westonbirt School and Director of Studies and Assistant Head for Digital Strategy at Wells Cathedral School, he brings a unique blend of classroom insight and forward-thinking leadership to the future of education.

With a background in Philosophy and a Master’s in Computing Science, his work sits at the intersection of ethics and emerging technologies.   A passionate advocate for the thoughtful use of artificial intelligence in schools, he has spent the last few years developing a number of educational tools - from personalised assistants to sophisticated marking agents powered by large language models and RAG frameworks.

His writing has been featured in numerous publications, and he has been quoted in the Times Educational Supplement and Sir Anthony Seldon’s The Fourth Education Revolution.   A member of the ISC Digital Advisory Group, the Futures of Education Group (affiliated with the Harvard Human Flourishing Programme), the RSA, and the Association of Professional Futurists, he is a leading voice on the opportunities and challenges AI brings to the classroom.

An experienced speaker and innovator, he bridges the gap between pedagogy and technology, helping schools embrace the future with wisdom, creativity, and care.

Julie Carson

Julie brings over 25 years of teaching experience, including 18 years in educational leadership roles such as Headteacher, local authority school improvement advisor, and Executive Headteacher for a Primary Multi Academy Trust, before becoming the Director of Education.   She has led multi-school collaborations and curriculum development initiatives aimed at improving outcomes in a variety of settings.   She has a strong commitment to inclusion and innovation, using AI and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) to create inclusive, technology-enhanced learning environments.   As Director of Education at Woodland Academy Trust, Julie has worked closely with her team to develop a UDL-driven pedagogical framework, leading to one of the Trust’s schools being recognised as an Apple Distinguished School (ADS) and the Trust itself being designated as an Apple Regional Training Centre for Kent and Bexley.   Her focus on innovation ensures that technology is used not only to improve teaching and administrative processes but also to make education more accessible and personalised for every student.

Tom Dore

Vice President, British Esports Federation

Tom is the Vice President of the British Esports Federation and is recognised as a global leader in esports and education, having led the development of both competitive and academic esports programmes in the UK and around the world.
 
He led the establishment the British Esports Student Champs which is now in its 7th year and currently sees 700+ school and FE College teams competing online each week.   In partnership with Pearson, he also led the development of the first vocational esports qualifications of their kind in the world: BTECs in Esports. These UK Government approved qualifications for 16–18 year olds have seen 15,000 student registrations over the last 5 academic years.   Tom also wrote the inaugural Microsoft Esports Teacher Academy and presented it to 2500 teachers in 115 countries around the world.

Learning from traditional sport, he is currently leading the drive to create global standards for safeguarding in esports, along with a recognised framework for esports coaching.   He has recently been invited to join the International Olympic Committee’s Safeguarding Technical Expert Group ahead of the Olympic Esports Games in 2027.   He is also Vice Chair of the Education, Culture, Youth (ECY) Commission of the Global Esports Federation.
 
Tom has a background in secondary education having taught across state, independent and alternative provision schools for nearly 20 years.   This includes experience in different senior leadership roles covering both academic and pastoral responsibilities.   He supports traditional sport in addition to esports and has coached cricket and golf as well as leading school expeditions to Mongolia, Namibia and Venezuela.

Victoria Hedlund

Researcher and Consultant / Founder of GenEd Labs.ai

Victoria Hedlund works at the intersection of pedagogy, technology, and bias, exploring how generative AI is reshaping curriculum, teaching, and professional development.   A former physics teacher with experience lecturing in initial teacher training, she helps educators embed AI ethically, inclusively, and with evidence-informed practice.

Through her consultancy GenEd Labs.ai, she develops research-led strategies and tools to support reflective, purposeful innovation in education.   She is the founder of the Teacher GenAI Toolkit and the TeacherEd AI Network (TEAN), and co-founder of LessonInspector.ai, a formative evaluation tool for lesson planning and professional reflection.

Her current research focuses on bias mitigation, inclusive curriculum design, and the practical realities of AI adoption across the education sector.

Dr Neelam Parmar

Consultant and Advisor, ADY Educate

Dr. Neelam Parmar is a leading consultant and advisor in Digital Education, specialising in digital and AI transformation for schools, colleges, and educational organisations.   An award-winning researcher, author, and keynote speaker, she drives innovation in edtech, helping institutions navigate the evolving landscape of technology-enhanced learning.

With a passion for shaping the future of education, Dr. Parmar serves on advisory boards across K-12, higher education, and global edtech initiatives, championing leadership in digital pedagogy. A recognised thought leader, she combines research, strategy, and hands-on expertise to empower educators and institutions in harnessing the potential of AI and emerging technologies for impactful learning experiences.

Dr Cat Scutt MBE

Dr Cat Scutt MBE is Deputy CEO, Education and Research at the Chartered College of Teaching, the professional body for teachers, and Chair of Cornwall Education Partnership, a collaboration representing all education providers in Cornwall.   

A former English teacher, Cat’s roles have since focused on supporting teacher development, including through collaboration and by engagement with research and evidence; she also has a particular interest in education technology.  

She received an MBE for services to education in 2021 and completed her PhD at UCL IOE in 2024, with a focus on school leaders' use of research evidence.   

She has been a member of several government advisory groups and is a trustee of NASBTT and a governor of Astra Teaching School Hub.