Richard McCann

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Born into poverty on a tough council estate in Leeds, England, Richard was placed on the “At-risk” register before he could walk and talk. Then, just one week before his sixth birthday, his mother was tragically taken from him when she became the first victim of a man who would go on to become one of Britain’s most notorious serial killers, Peter Sutcliffe.

What followed was foster parents, time in a care home, and then a deprived childhood living with his often violent and drunken father. Richard eventually left school with no qualifications and very little self-esteem. After stumbling from one mistake after another, he fell into petty crime and this led to a stint in the same prison as his mother’s killer! When he was released, he had few prospects and entered a suicide pact with one of his sisters. He had reached his rock bottom.

Find out how Educationalists influenced Richard to turn his life around and how he then and went on to become a Sunday Times No1 Best Selling author whose first book, Just a Boy, made sales of almost half a million in the UK alone and was translated into more than 10 different languages.

Today, Richard has delivered over 3000 presentations around the world, inspiring audiences with his story of overcoming adversity, and sharing his powerful iCan approach. In 2009 he founded the iCanSpeak Academy, training individuals and teams to enhance their presentation skills and communicate their message authentically and with confidence, so they achieve more effective results. 

Publications 

Available for purchase on amazon  

• Just a Boy - The true story of a stolen Childhood
• The Boy Grows Up -  Sequel to Just A Boy,  The inspirational story of his journey from broken boy to family man.

Sarah is an Educational Psychologist, Coach and Expert Speaker working with educators and leaders to help them grow their impact. Sarah has experience working within and partnering with Local Authorities and National Organisations to support their learning and growth. Her mission has always been to maximise the impact of Psychology; to help us understand ourselves and each other more deeply in order to be able to relate, learn and lead better together. 

Sarah’s work brings together lived experience, psychology and coaching. She works with you to create a professional learning opportunity that will meet your needs and nurture new ways of thinking and doing.

The three pillars of Sarah’s work are:

• Psychology – human development, neuroscience, learning, emotional intelligence, self-awareness and psychological theory. 
• The craft and practice of coaching – principles, models, tools and approaches of coaching.
• Understanding organisations and systems – organisational dynamics, leadership and improvement.

Specialist Areas

• Leadership – a series of bespoke workshops to support the development of self, others and ‘together’. 
• Coaching – one to one coaching, group coaching, team coaching.
• Coach in Residence – an opportunity to support the culture of the organisation through an individual and collective commitment to coaching.
• Wellbeing – interactive workshops designed to enhance awareness, offer insights and encourage change at the individual and collective level. 
• Resonant Conversations – improving the quality of our conversations by enabling the beliefs, skills and way of being that creates more connected and impactful conversations. 
• We:Align – a group coaching programme for women who want to grow their impact. This programme has been endorsed by Education Scotland. 

Recent Feedback

‘Sarah is an insightful collaborator. She ably applies evidence informed expert knowledge to deeply change practice and thinking’ 

Pauline Stephen, CEO, General Teaching Council, Scotland.

‘Even just one conversation with Sarah can change your trajectory. Having the opportunity to explore and dig deeper with a clear feeling of trust with a 'no judgements' supportive approach has helped me to enlighten my perspective and improve my approach to leading teams. Thanks Sarah!’

Head Teacher

Hywel has been a teacher for over thirty years. His reputation has grown hugely since he stepped out of the full-time classroom. He has found an incredible and innovative niche in the world of model teaching contributing to and advising curriculum designers and innovators from Barnsley to Brussels, from Cairo to Cleethorpes. Hywel is as at home in front of hundreds of Headteachers on the conference circuit as he is when working with EAL children on the carpets of their classrooms. Hywel contributes to the national conversation around education at school and university level. He is an experienced teacher in Special, Primary and Secondary settings, nationally and internationally. He is also a well- respected author and contributes regularly to a variety of publications. 

Hywel leads the PGCE programme in Drama at Huddersfield University and contributes to the Masters programme in Drama and Creative Writing at Leeds Beckett University. He also contributes to University Education programmes in Sheffield, Liverpool, Durham and Wolverhampton, Hywel still works with children, keeping his insight fresh, current and useful. His work deals with curriculum liberation, creative practice, engagement, leadership, literacy, teacher development and Imagineering – the liberation of the art of teaching.

In addition to working in schools, Hywel is a regular contributor to conferences including The Sunday Telegraph Festival of Education, Northern Rocks, Practical Pedagogies, and The University of Belfast Thinking Conference. He is in demand as a conference keynote speaker working alongside colleagues such as Mick Waters, Karen Ardley, The Real David Cameron and Estelle Morris as well as associates of Ian Gilbert’s Independent Thinking Ltd, an organisation he is very passionate about. Hywel has recently worked for Barnardos, The Princes Trust, the National Galleries in Edinburgh, The Hepworth Gallery in Wakefield and the West Yorkshire Playhouse in Leeds as a visiting teacher. Hywel has attained a distinction in his Masters from Leeds Beckett University focussing on Poverty and Achievement in City Schools. Hywel contributed to BBC Bitesize acting as a content provider and script doctor during the Pandemic in 2020.

Publications

His award-winning book ‘Oops! Getting Children to Learn Accidentally’ is published by Crown House Publishing and has proved very popular with educators around the world and now is a feature on the reading list of many university teacher training courses.

His book ‘Uncharted Territories’ is written with Dr Debra Kidd and was published in 2018.

Hywel’s number one Bestseller on Amazon, ‘Botheredness’ was published in 2023

He also writes a regular column for the Times Educational Supplement about his encounters as a ‘travelling teacher’ and a weekly show ‘Hywel’s Teacher Stories’ on Teacher Hug Radio. He has also contributed fiction to a prison-based literacy reading programme developed by The Shannon Trust. 

Hywel is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a Fellow of the Charted College of Teaching.

He also plays the double bass.

Oh, and part owns a commercial cask ale brewery with some pals. 

He was recently described as ‘..a world leader in enthusiasm’. 

Twitter: @hywel_roberts 

Facebook:  Create Learn Inspire Hywel Roberts

Threads: @Hyweleilianwyn

https://createlearninspire.wordpress.com/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">www.createlearninspire.co.uk  

Al is CEO NetSupport / Chair of a Multi-Academy Trust and of an Alternative Provision Academy. As well as his CEO and Chair roles Al is chair of his region’s Governors' Leadership Group and chairs the regions SEND Board.

With 20+ years of governance experience, Al also sits on the DfE’s Regional Schools Directors Advisory Board for the East of England. He is Chair of the BESA EdTech Group and also chairs his regional Business and Skills Board. 

He’s a well-known face in EdTech around the world; author of "My Secret #EdTech Diary" and the best seller "My School Governance Handbook", plus his most recent book “My School & Multi Academy Trust Growth Guide”, as well as co-author of "A Guide to Creating a Digital Strategy in Education". Al writes and speaks internationally on the effective use of Educational Technology and is a Forbes Technology Council Member. 

He is also the winner of the 2022 EdTech Digest Author/Speaker of the Year award, Edufuturist of the Year award 2023, winner of the BESA 2023 award for “Inspirational Leader”, and winner of the 2023 ERA award for “Outstanding Achievement”.

Al continues to support schools and EdTech vendors with consulting and mentoring – as well as writing for the wider education community and speaking at events.  

Specialist areas include

• Digital Strategy
• EdTech
• Safeguarding
• Governance
• Strategic Planning & Growth Strategies
• AI and future Tech

Programmes 

Publications

Al has written books to maximise the use of effective #EdTech in schools, alongside a new handbook for School Governors which helps those either looking to enter governance or for more experienced members looking for those annual checks and balances. A full list of these can be found on Al's website  Books - Al Kingsley - 📒 Education and Technology #EdTech 

Recent Feedback

"Al’s presentation on the future of AI to education leaders was hugely entertaining and thought provoking – certainly one of the highlights of the conference"

Mark London, Head of Marketing, Bromcom Computers PLC

"Knowing where to start and having fears allayed is key for headteachers when considering the opportunities and potential threats of AI.  Al’s good humoured and engaging approach puts people at their ease, but this is underpinned with a wealth of experience so that practicalities can be thoroughly explored. "

Carole Herman, Exec Director, Association of Secondary Heads in Essex.

 "Al's keynote was thought-provoking, engaging and gave delegates practical take-aways to consider further in their schools, settings and trusts. It was an expertly delivered speech that helped set the scene for the conference"

Laurence Shenker, Conference and Events Manager

" Al Kingsley’s presentation was a perfect blend of inspiration, practical advice, and light-hearted humour—leaving us both informed and entertained. He made complex AI discussions engaging and accessible. "

As an experienced teacher educator, inspector, expert speaker and author, I have supported hundreds of schools, colleges and universities, in the UK and overseas, to enhance the quality of education and the learner experience. An experienced researcher and classroom practitioner, my focus is to combine sound educational theory with clear and practical strategies for those planning, delivering, supporting and leading learning. This helps busy classroom practitioners and managers to focus on what will have the greatest impact on their learners and their success.  
 

My experience over the last twenty years reflects my areas of expertise:

• Programme leader for the PGCE in initial teacher education 
• Lead national Growth Mindset consultant
• Lead inspector 
• Specialist on developing learners’ academic buoyancy and resilience
• Author on technology enhanced learning, resilience, and new apprenticeships 

Books

• ‘Helping Students to Thrive, Not Just Survive, in Education’ – Routlege (in publication)
• 'Adult and Lifelong Learning', in Lord J. (ed.) An introduction to theory, research and evidence-based practice in educational psychology. London, Sage Publications. 
• 'The Essential Guide to Teaching New Apprenticeships'. London, Learning Matters.
• 'What is Vocational Learning?', in Lord J. (ed.) Studying Education. London, Learning Matters.
• ‘Enhancing Learning through Technology in Lifelong Learning’. Oxford, Open University Press. 

Now working exclusively with The Learning Line for speaking arrangements, Prof Sam Twiselton is a highly motivated, energetic, and high-profile education professional and academic with a life-long commitment to the transformative potential of education to change lives and create a socially just society.  She was the founding Director of Sheffield Institute of Education – and is now emeritus professor at Sheffield Hallam University.

Sam is a government advisor for multiple policy initiatives linked to teacher recruitment, retention, and development. She is an inspirational keynote speaker and workshop facilitator. Areas include teacher development, teacher expertise, mentoring, supporting ITT and Early Career Teachers (ECTs) curriculum development, education policy development, influencing and maximising impact.

She thrives in situations requiring creative and innovative solutions to complex challenges and is able to speak with inspiration about this.  She has substantial experience of senior leadership and management in a range of education sectors. 

Sam has spent a working lifetime taking the lead and showing initiative, with the ability to build great working relationships, based on understanding, empathy, and trust. She has the ability to get on with people from any background and has taken a leading role in successfully managing change on a very large scale. 

In 2018 Sam was awarded an OBE for services to Higher Education and was named by Education Business as the 10th most influential person shaping education in England. Have worked with leaders and staff in a wide range of educational settings in England and internationally. Leadership experience and highly effective people skills combine to give an impressive skillset:

* Excellent communications skills        * Flexible and responsive                  * Outstanding people skills

* A successful leader                              * Researcher & published author     * A global view of life

* A highly effective public speaker        * Teamwork facilitator                       * Highly diplomatic

 Specialist Areas 

• Initial Teacher Training
• Early career teacher support and development
• Mentoring
• Teacher development
• Teacher expertise
• Strategic approaches to teacher and leader development
• Education policy development
• Education system level strategy

Potential Session Titles (all adaptable to different contexts)

General Teacher Expertise Development

1. “Are you a Concept Builder or a Task Manager? Why does it Matter?”

2. “From Concept Building to Curriculum Building: How to Develop Practice Thinking to Create an Effective Curriculum?”

3. "Mastering the Craft: The Pursuit of Teacher Expertise"

4. "Becoming an Expert Teacher: Deepening Knowledge and Understanding"

5. "The Expert Teacher: Sharing Wisdom and Best Practices"

6. "Expertise in Action: What does Excellence in the Classroom Look Like? How do we help People to Develop it\/"

7. "Leading the Way: Creating Pathways and Support to Develop Teacher Expertise"

8. "The Power of Expertise: Transforming Teaching and Learning"

9. "Teaching with Authority: Building Credibility and Trust in the Classroom through Mentoring"

10. "The Art of Expertise: Cultivating Support, Knowledge and Strategies for Success"

11. "Raising the Bar: Inspiring Teacher Excellence and Advancement"

12. "Empowering Educators: Unlocking Potential in the Classroom"

13. "Building a Culture of Continuous Learning: Supporting Teacher Development"

System Level

14. “ Golden Threads and Tapestries: Using the Learning for Government Teacher and School Leader Development Policy”

15. “Exciting Times for Teacher and School Leader Development”

16. “Teacher and School Leader Retention and Development: Why it Matters and How to Improve it”

Reflections on Influencing Policy

17. “Multiple Perspectives, Multiple Stakeholders: Finding the Common Ground”

18. “System Level Thinking: Challenges and Opportunities

19. “The Art of Negotiation: Learning from Advising Governments”

Quotes

Sam is one of the most inspiring, insightful and engaging speakers we have been fortunate to have speaking at our Challenge Partners events. Her honest, authentic and practitioner focused approach to working with HTs and CEOs is evident from the extremely warm and positive feedback we have received from colleagues. Sam is very well respected in the educational world and a tour de force in the field of teacher education and continuous professional development. She has been very generous with her time and always responsive to our requests for support. In summary, Sam is an exceptional educational leader who continues to have a systemic impact on our education system.

Dame Sue John, Executive Director, Challenge Partners

Through her hard work, level-headedness and willingness to speak out and cut through many of the tensions within ITT, in her time advising the government on ITT Sam has been able to contribute to breaking down many of the barriers that existed within the sector. She recognised that collaboration – not competition – was the only way progress could be made and has advocated for that approach ever since – winning colleagues around on her way.

The sector is now a much more joined up one, with universities and school-led provision seeking new and ever more innovative ways to collaborate to create exceptional programmes of teacher education. 

Emma Hollis, CEO of NASBTT

‘Samantha Twiselton is a respected figure throughout the education sector and can be relied on to provide honest, robust, informed and politically astute advice. I have worked with her for many years and would recommend her without reservation’. 

James Noble Rogers, CEO of UCET

Phil is an internationally recognised expert on teaching who has been at the sharp end of classrooms for nearly thirty years. The winner of multiple awards, he has an unparalleled record of delivering transformational results with his students and his experience in the classroom is current.

He has written fourteen books that have been published in ten different languages. These include ‘The Fascist Painting: What is Cultural Capital?’ (a Schools Week Book of the Year), ‘How to Teach’ (which was awarded 10/10 by the TES) and ‘Dancing About Architecture’ (described as “a strong pointed vision for the nature and origin of creativity” by the influential Brain Pickings website).

Alongside his work in schools, he works regularly in elite level professional football, has advised Garreth Southgate and senior FA staff on relational behaviour management and has worked with Manchester United, Manchester City (for whom he was asked to write a CPD programme for academy coaches) and Brentford.

He wrote a column, ‘On Teaching’ for the Guardian newspaper for ten years, during which time he was nominated for a European Commission Award for the promotion of equality in journalism.

He is renowned in Australia where there are terms dedicated to his work at major universities and has advised the New South Wales education department and the New South Wales police. He has also worked in Sweden, Finland, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, the UAE and the US and has out speaking dates in New York, Chicago, Sydney and Adelaide.

Phil is one of the most experienced, most credible and most entertaining educational speakers around. His expertise is in the areas of behaviour, literacy, metacognition, oracy and in democratic approaches to pedagogy. He has two honorary doctorates for services to teaching and two Royal Television Society Awards for the Channel 4 series ‘The Unteachables’ and ‘Can’t Read: Can’t Write’.

I am a presenter/speaker, trainer, mentor, coach and adviser. I have delivered at conferences at home and abroad, including TEDx Buenos Aires, Northern Rocks and I work with schools throughout the UK and internationally, alongside some of the most influential people and the best practitioners in the world of education and training.  You can use the links to access reviews and videos.

I want to make a difference and believe that I can.

The difference that I want to make is ensuring that all young people have an education that brings richness to their lives.

I want them to be able to think for themselves and to be committed to building a better world than the one that they are inheriting.  I think that I can do this by helping those working with them to recognise their strengths and to find the energy to build on them.

I want to offer support, perspective, analysis, approaches and tools so that aspirations become ambitions and ambitions become realities, all to the beat of some banging tunes, heartrending videos and a lot of laughter!

Lest anyone thinks that I am some mere chancer with a line in motivational quotes, here is my professional pedigree. It might not get me to Crufts, but it has served me pretty well.

I was Director of Children’s Services for Stirling Council. Before that I was Head of Education in East Lothian.  I have been an Area Manager providing support and challenge to a large group of schools in Fife, Performance Review  Manager with overall responsibility for Quality Assurance and, before that an Adviser responsible for curriculum development and assessment.

I worked in schools up to the early ‘90s and have extensive experience in school management at all levels and experience of leading a major national development of curriculum and assessment in Scotland introducing new Standard Grade courses.

I was President of the Association of Directors of Education Scotland and have been involved with a range of national groups, notably on Curriculum for Excellence, Outdoor Education and Looked After Children.

As a consultant, I have supported Midlothian Council in their reorganisation of services to Children and Families and engaged with Skills Development Scotland in a major review of policy procedures and practice.  I have since led reviews on class size regulations and arrangements for devolved school management.