BETT - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- IT Director
- Google Certified Trainer
- IT Director, Newham Community Learning
- Leader of the Google Educator Group
Abid has been working in schools & EdTech for over 20 years. As the IT Director for Newham Community Learning, he leads on digital strategy, cyber security and delivery of all digital learning experiences for the Trust.
Abid is a Google Certified Trainer & Innovator. Abid is also leader of the Google Educator Group, GEG UK. During the height of the global pandemic, Abid collaborated with other Innovators and leading educators from around the world to help found the Global GEG.
Abid has presented and spoken at many conferences and events globally. In recognition of his efforts in helping to improve digital outcomes for learners, he was awarded the title of EduFuturists Network Manager of the Year and also named in the EdTech50 "Ones to Note".
Abid is a passionate advocate for sustainable digital transformation in schools. He was described by one of his fellow innovators as "a natural positive force and dreamer with 10X ideas".
Job Titles:
- Director of Production, King 's College London
Amy Hollier is a prominent figure in the field of digital education with over 17 years of experience in Further and Higher Education. She currently holds the position of Director of Production at King's Digital, King's College London. Amy's career has been marked by her commitment to advancing digital learning. In her previous role as the Director of Blended & Online Learning at Heart of Worcestershire College, she led the UK's Blended Learning Consortium (BLC), comprising 164 colleges across Britain. Under her guidance, the BLC curated and developed a suite of digital learning resources used by over 500,000 students and received recognition in the EdTech 50 Awards.
Amy's influence extends beyond her college roles, as she currently sits on the Department for Education's Digital and Technology Standards Group and the BETT UK Advisory Board. In 2018, she was awarded a Principal Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (PFHEA) for her pioneering work in enhancing teaching, learning, and assessment through digital innovation. In 2023, Amy was awarded the prestigious Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 and ETF Technical Teaching Fellowship for her work in digital learning and technology. In her role at King's Digital, Amy continues to shape the future of education technology.
Job Titles:
- Head of KS2, Teacher, Pontyclun Primary School
- KS2 Leader
Bethan Ware is a KS2 Leader and Year 3 Teacher in Pontyclun Primary School in South Wales and is the first teacher from Wales to be part of the BETT Advisory Board. The New Curriculum in Wales places Digital skills in the same vein as Literacy and Numeracy and Bethan has taken part in several Working Parties aimed to develop the Digital Competency Framework. She has worked alongside a team of educators with Computing at School to help create the ‘Primary Leaders' Toolkit', and written several articles and resources surrounding the use of EdTech in the classroom.
Bethan also runs the Instagram page ‘@tenminuteteach', a teacher page full of useful tips and advice surrounding all aspects of Primary School life. During Lockdown in January 2021, Bethan's Instagram page became a source of inspiration by hosting a range of Instagram Live sessions with other expert educators that showcased EdTech tips to help with the demands of remote learning.
Job Titles:
- Digital Education Lead / University of Birmingham
- Digital Education Lead, University of Birmingham Dubai
- Strategic Education Technology Leader
Dare is a strategic education technology leader, dedicated to advancing pedagogical practices in Higher Education through the integration of digital tools. He is a passionate teaching and learning analyst, focused on enhancing student experience through data-driven decision making.
Dare has attained the esteemed status of Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA), a testament to his exceptional contributions to teaching and learning support in Higher Education.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Director
- Assistant Director, Teesside University
- Associate Professor and Assistant Director of Digital Transformation at Teesside University
Dr Ann Thanaraj (NTF, CATE, PFHEA) is an Associate Professor and Assistant Director of Digital Transformation at Teesside University. She is also the Chair of the University's AI Operations Group who is doing some tremendously innovative work around reimagining what an AI fuelled digitally empowered curricula looks like. Her practical and research work intersects between AI and digital both in Higher Education Learning, Teaching, and Assessments, as well as in Legal Education and practice. Ann's scholarly work in digital lawyering received eighteen citations from the House of Lords for its research strength and impact with wide implications about automated decision-making in 2018, strongly supporting her contributions to the national conversation on digital literacies in curriculum, the need for a multidisciplinary approach to train students in research, contributing to the future of law and tech scholarship, informing and shaping the policy and legal work in the UK, and most importantly influencing and instituting new legal governance regimes to manage emerging technologies.
Job Titles:
- Senior Lecturer
- Senior Lecturer ( Marketing ), King 's College London
Dr Chahna Gonsalves is a Senior Lecturer in Marketing at King's College London with a PhD in Marketing from the University of Westminster. She specialises in assessment and feedback practices in Higher Education, the integration of AI in marketing education, and democratising rubrics for international students. With extensive experience in teaching and module leadership at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels, she is passionate about inspiring student engagement through active and experiential learning.
Chahna is a recognised scholar with multiple publications, including co-authoring "Improving Learning Through Assessment Rubrics," and has secured over £15,000 in research funding from the Education Innovation Fund and the Academy of Marketing.
As a strategic leader, she has contributed to assessment policy at King's College London, developing AI guidance and training materials on rubrics. She is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a Chartered Business and Management Educator, actively shaping assessment practices and policies at institutional and national levels.
Named in 2024 as one of the Top 5 Visionary Women in Education, Dr Fiona Aubrey-Smith is an award winning teacher, leader and academic with a passion for supporting those who work with children and young people. As Founder of PedTech and Director of One Life Learning, Fiona works closely with schools and trusts, professional learning providers and EdTech companies. She is also an Associate Lecturer, PhD supervisor and Consultant Researcher at a number of universities, and sits on the board of a number of multi academy and charitable trusts. Co-author of the global best selling book From EdTech to PedTech: Changing the way we think about digital technology, Fiona is a regular contributor to national and international events and publications about Education, Pedagogy and Digital. She is a Founding Fellow of the Chartered College of Teaching, and has been awarded Fellowships by RSA, NAACE and the HEA. In 2023, Fiona was made a Freeman of the Worshipful Company of Educators and in 2024, granted Freedom of the City of London.
Fiona is known for her pedagogy-first approach to digital, learner-focused vision of education, boundless energy, and a bit of an obsession with earl grey tea!
Job Titles:
- Digital Consultant and Advisor
- Director of Digital Education and Professional Learning
- Director of Digital Education and Professional Learning With AISL Harrow Schools, Chief Digital Officer, E - ACT Academies
Dr. Neelam Parmar is a digital consultant and advisor, working with AISL Harrow Schools in Southeast Asia and E-ACT MAT in the UK, and as a digital education specialist with Emkaan Education and PwC in the UAE. She supports global edtech startups with Mastercard in Africa, advises governments on digital and AI transformation, and drives innovation in education policies. An award-winning researcher, author, and speaker, Neelam serves on prominent boards across K-12, colleges, universities, organisations, and commercial sectors, fostering leadership and shaping the future of education globally.
Job Titles:
- Manager and Assistive Technology Lead, TechAbility / Natspec
Fil is passionate about the advantages the right technology can give to enhance life, learning and communication. He has provided training in assistive technology hardware and software to a wide range of professionals from schools, colleges, universities, charities and healthcare.
Fil moved to managing TechAbility full time in February 2021 after three years in a split role between TechAbility and Beaumont College in Lancaster. At Beaumont College, Fil was the Lead Assistive Technologist where he managed a team which assessed and supported students to gain maximum advantage from technology.
Prior to Beaumont College, as part of The BRITE Initiative, Fil delivered Assistive Technology training and support to every college in Scotland. He has also been part of the training team at Inclusive Technology and developed the first assistive technology post at Seashell Trust specialist school and college.
Job Titles:
- Director of Partnerships, ACS International Schools
Graeme is a qualified teacher and has been teaching for 25 years specialising in Technology, Computing, Electronics and Design. Starting his career at Oakham School in the Midlands as a teacher and house parent in a boarding house, he moved to Sevenoaks School in Kent in 2006 to take on a Head of Department role. In 2009 he accepted the role of Head of Faculty for Science, developing the largest free Science event in the UK at the time, before progressing to the position of Director of Innovation and Excellence in 2012, which evolved into the role of Director of Outreach and Innovation in 2016.
Graeme has held several other roles during his teaching career: working for OCR, AQA and the IB authoring guides, exams and other materials, Teaching from Space UK advisor for NASA, and a yearlong secondment at Buckingham palace as a Special Advisor in 2015.
Graeme has been awarded an MBE for his ‘services to education' as part of the Queen's Birthday Honours 2020. Graeme received the Lloyds trust teacher of the year in 2005, Pearson Teacher of the year in 2012 and was named by TES as one of the top 5 UK Science teachers in 2014. Graeme is passionate about social mobility and increased social capacity through education, and has worked with hundreds of schools, refugee camps and other charities over the last 10 years to give many opportunities to those in less fortunate circumstances. Outside of the school walls Graeme is a keen climber and motorsports enthusiast, spending most of his down time tinkering with engines, building robots or spending time with his two children Joe and Finn.
Job Titles:
- Director of IT, United Learning
James is Director of IT at United Learning, a Multi-Academy Trust of over eighty academies and independent schools; until recently he was also the programme lead for the EdTech Demonstrator Delivery Partner managing the EdTech Demonstrator programme on behalf of the Department for Education. At United Learning he leads the Education Technologist, Technical Specialists and IT systems Teams at United Learning, supporting schools to implement technology successfully to support teaching and learning in the classroom and enable schools to leverage the benefits of technology to: reduce workload, improve communications, and enable more flexible working. He led United Learning's Cloud First strategy and developed their Group Digital Strategy, currently being adopted by the schools, prior to taking on his role with the EdTech Demonstrator Programme. This enabled over 2000 schools and colleges to benefit from peer led EdTech support. He is also a school Governor and a Trustee of Sheffield Theatres Trust.
Job Titles:
- Educational Leadership Mentor and Advisor / John Murphy Education Ltd
During my tenure as CEO of the fourth largest Multi-Academy Trust in England, I have led on improvement of 45 schools moving from special measures/failing status to Good and Outstanding, whilst successfully establishing and opening a number of Government funded schools through the Free school route and targeted basic needs routes. With 52 Primary and secondary Academies serving some of the most disadvantaged communities, and a workforce of 5000 staff, I am proud to have led, grown, and developed one of the UK's leading academy Trusts. I have overseen the growth of the Trust onboarding 41 of the schools.
Job Titles:
- Leader
- Assistant Professor in Computer, Science & Education Practice
Mark aka @Urban_Teacher is an Assistant Professor in Computer Science and Education Practice. Mark is a thought leader in #EdTech and a hugely popular speaker, sharing his expertise and insights to educators around the world. He is a teacher/advisor for the major global tech brands and continues to advocate for home-grown talent, digital skills and education equity. In May 2022, Mark was recognised as one of the top 50 most influential people in UK IT by computer weekly. In 2019, he was awarded an MBE for services to education, technology, and diversity in UK technology.
Job Titles:
- Computing Subject Leader, Lanchester EP Primary School
Martin Bailey has been a Primary School Teacher and Computing Subject Leader for over 20 years at various schools around the North East of England. He is currently employed in a part-time role as Digital Enrichment Leader at Lanchester EP Primary School (Co.Durham) where he teaches Computing from EYFS ' Year 6 as well as overseeing the schools' digital strategy and use of technology across the curriculum.
Martin combines this role with that of running his own company (Animate 2 Educate) where he works as a Primary Computing Advisor delivering pupil workshops and staff training sessions to schools around the world with the aim of 'bringing the curriculum to life'. He is also a lecturer at Durham University where he delivers the Computing element of the course to BA and PGCE students.
Job Titles:
- Education Consultant
- Researcher
Penny Rabiger was a teacher for 10 years and since 2007 has been working with education charities and social enterprises on their start-up to grown-up journeys. Roles include Director of Business Development at The Key for School Leaders, Head of Membership at Challenge Partners and Director of Engagement at Lyfta. Penny is a Phd researcher at the Leeds Beckett University Centre for Race, Education and Decoloniality, and a coach on the Anti-Racist School Award and the Mental Health Leads training programme. She is a school governor, Trustee and Co-Founder of the grassroots charity The BAMEed Network, member of the Haringey Education Partnership BAME Achievement Group, and supports schools working towards more equitable practice for staff, students and the communities they serve.
Job Titles:
- Headteacher, Bishopswood School
Priya is a Headteacher in a SEN school in Oxfordshire. She has experience as a senior leader and teacher in SEN and mainstream schools. She has worked as a Specialist Leader in Education and created and set up an Outstanding SEN provision. Priya has a MA in Special Education, is a qualified and experienced SENCO and has a NPQH.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Principal Teaching and Learning, Barnsley College
- Senior Leader in Further Education
Rachel is a Senior leader in Further Education with experience in teaching and learning, quality, and curriculum. Her work has contributed to improvements in learning experiences and outcomes for learners in varied FE contexts. Rachel leads on the digital strategy for the college, where she created Discover Digital, an innovation space, CPD platform and event series to ensure all college staff participate in bespoke training whilst digitally transform learning environments, curriculum, and delivery. Rachel is passionate about ensuring teaching and learning, enhanced by digital is accessible to all to transform the lives of learners, staff and stakeholders.
Job Titles:
- Head of Learning Technology and Digital Learning
- Head of Learning Technology and Digital Learning, NCG
Rob is the Head of Learning Technology and Digital Learning at NCG and has worked in education since 2008. He began his teaching career at Newcastle College, delivering across Further and Higher Education as well as Apprenticeships within the School of Computing.
He graduated in 2012 with a BSc Hons in Computing and then began delivering pioneering online courses to Higher Education students throughout the UK. In 2018 he graduated with an Masters in Education and was appointed as the Head of Curriculum for Business at Newcastle College.
Now the Head of Learning Technology and Digital Learning and using his long term interest in EdTech, he has been working closely with teaching staff and a number of external companies to support the development and create the future of education.
Job Titles:
- Head of Corporate Engagement and Events / Universities and Colleges Information Systems Association
- Head of Corporate Engagement and Events at UCISA
- Head of Corporate Engagement and Events, Universities and Colleges Information Systems Association ( UCISA )
Si n is the Head of Corporate Engagement and Events at UCISA, responsible for providing strategic and operational leadership and management of the UCISA events programme and leading its Corporate Member Scheme. Si n plays a lead role in creating, developing and managing high quality and efficient services to UCISA members. Si n joined UCISA in 2018 bringing a wealth of experience gained from her career as an Event Manager within hospitality venues and has been at the forefront of UCISA's transformation programme.
Job Titles:
- Advisor
- CEO Designate, the Bishop Fraser Trust
Tuesday Humby is a school improvement advisor and the CEO Designate for The Bishop Fraser Trust for January 2024.
Previously she was the Director of Curriculum, Teacher and Personal Development at Ormiston Academies Trust where she led a team of lead practitioners who worked in academies developing provision. They were subject experts who help bolster school improvement through enhancing curriculum and teacher development, supporting teachers at all levels. She was also responsible for teacher development from ITT (through SCITT) to delivery of the Early Career Teachers programmes and the full suite of NPQs and internal leadership training programmes to Headship.
She was also a former principal and executive principal having led Ormiston Chadwick Academy in Widnes from special measures to outstanding in just over two years. The school was in the top 100 schools nationally for progress for three years running under Tuesday's leadership. She was also the former regional director for the north for OAT.