A grassroots organisation that supports the North East education community
Set up by schools for schools, Schools North East is a movement for change giving a voice to North East schools in the national education debate. School engagement and input drives everything that we do. We are the definitive, apolitical voice of North East schools, influencing the shape of regional and national policy to deliver on their vision for our young people. North East schools are at the very heart of what we do.
Schools North East is unique:
We are the first and only school-led regional network in the UK, representing all 1,150 schools in our region.
As a charity, we are independent, but not neutral. We are entirely self-funded. We campaign to improve conditions for North East schools and every child in them, engaging with partners across all sectors. Innovation is at our core. We seek fresh solutions to the challenges of the present to shape our future, and have a strong social purpose, which is the foundation of our work. Our integrity underpins all that we do.
From humble beginnings…
In 2007, following a region-wide consultation, a group of Head Teachers came together to establish Schools North East. Born out of a desire to have their voices heard in the education debate, their aim was to create a unique culture of collaboration and mutual support amongst North East schools to ensure the best possible outcomes for all of our region’s young people.
There was a vision that, through the power of collaboration and the strength of a collective voice, our school colleagues and young people could flourish within well-resourced, nurturing, and purposeful school environments. We knew that, together, our schools could “lead not plead”; stepping up to lobby those in power about the issues most important to our school communities, and demand the changes we know our region’s schools are in desperate need of.
The Voice
As The Voice, we put a strong regional accent on the education debate, ensuring the national conversation reflects the urgent needs and concerns of North East school leaders. Schools North East is a hub, gathering the latest information and diverse perspectives from our school leaders, spreading them far and wide to ensure the North East’s voices are amplified in shaping the educational landscape.
The Voice challenges myths.
The Glue
Schools North East is for all North East schools – regardless of size, type, faith, structure or location. As The Glue, we bring our schools and trusts together to create a purposeful community for the benefit of all of our region’s children and young people.
The Glue keeps the community connected and helps relationships flourish. Our events programme unites over 3,500 school colleagues from across the North East and beyond each year.
The Bridge
As The Bridge, we help connect our region’s schools and trusts with the outside world. We ensure a strong link between the North East’s schools and politicians, policymakers, universities, think tanks, and funding organisations that operate far away.
Our Directors sit on a range of regional and national boards and stakeholder groups, ensuring that the regions schools are at the heart of all strategic conversations.
Our amazing schools are the heart of everything we do
We believe in sharing a positive narrative of our schools, ensuring their many successes are recognised both regionally and nationally. Our schools are truly amazing and they deserve the fullest support of everyone involved in education, from the media to Ministers, from the Department for Education to Ofsted; our schools and their children deserve the very best.
Because of the Schools North East network, people no longer accept the idea that the North East falls behind other areas because our “leaders and teachers are not as good as those elsewhere.”
As a network of all of our region’s schools, our strategy is entirely driven and directed by them. Through our consultations, networking, surveys, roundtables, podcast, annual calendar of events, and ongoing discussions with individuals and local networks, we Lead not Plead.
