top of page
Keynote Speakers
Ed Kirwin
Empathy as a superskill
Empathy is more than a soft skill - it’s the superskill that education needs most. This dynamic, film-infused keynote redefines empathy as a vital, future-ready capacity that strengthens student wellbeing, teacher effectiveness, and school culture. By challenging common myths and misconceptions, it shows how empathy enhances leadership, collaboration, and adaptability in today’s fast-changing world. Attendees will leave inspired to see empathy not as an optional extra, but as a powerful, teachable skill at the heart of thriving schools.
Nikki Scavolo
Inventing Tomorrow: The Courage to
Rethink Education
Education is at a crossroads. As the world changes faster than our systems, schools risk preparing children for a future that no longer exists. This keynote challenges educators to reimagine their purpose - shifting from knowledge to meaning, competition to collaboration, and uniformity to humanity. Using bilingualism as a metaphor for multiple ways of seeing the world, it highlights how curiosity, empathy, and individuality must replace standardisation and compliance. Through reflection, storytelling, and interactive moments, participants will rediscover their power as educators - not just to teach facts, but to nurture creative, compassionate, and adaptable young people who can shape the future, not simply survive it.
Laura Williamson
Belonging First: Building the Foundation for Learning and Wellbeing
Belonging is not a luxury in education - it’s a necessity. This keynote explores how a deep sense of belonging underpins pupils’ wellbeing, engagement, and achievement. Drawing on research and lived school experience, it reveals that belonging is built through consistent values, strong relationships, cultural responsiveness, and the power of everyday interactions. When pupils feel accepted, respected, known, and valued, they don’t just participate - they thrive. Attendees will leave with practical levers for change and a renewed conviction that every educator has the power to shape a culture of belonging, one intentional act at a time.
bottom of page