Inclusion Conference 2025
Teesside University, Middlesbrough
The Schools North East Inclusion Conference 2025 is your essential opportunity to tackle one of the most pressing challenges in education today: inclusion. As schools across the North East face mounting pressures from rising SEND needs, a shortage of specialist placements, and seismic changes to the Ofsted framework, this event will equip you with the tools, strategies, and inspiration to lead in this new landscape.
Evolving from our successful Healthy MindED and Challenging Behaviour conferences, the Inclusion Conference reflects a critical shift. Mainstream schools are increasingly at the forefront of delivering inclusive education, supporting children with diverse abilities, needs, and circumstances in the face of complex systemic barriers.
The event will provide you with:
- Practical Strategies: Learn actionable methods to address resource gaps, break down barriers, and create inclusive environments.
- Expert Insights: Hear from thought leaders, practitioners, and policymakers who are redefining inclusion in education.
- Hands-On Workshops: Explore topics such as:
- Designing Inclusive Curricula: Represent diverse needs and perspectives in your teaching.
- Challenging Systemic Inequalities: Equip your school to better support marginalised groups.
- Building Positive Attitudes: Create a whole-school culture of acceptance and celebration of diversity.
- Collaborating Effectively: Partner with families, external agencies, and the wider community for holistic support systems.
Who Should Attend?
- Head Teachers and School Leaders
- SENDCOs and Inclusion Leads
- Pastoral and Wellbeing Staff
- Policy Influencers and Governors
Event Organiser
Event Costs
Partner School£90 +VAT
Non Partner School Delegate£130 + VAT
Commercial/ Education Supporter Member£250 +VAT
Non School, Non Member£300 +VAT
Book your placeEvent Overview
SEND Strategic Development at Bishop Bewick CET – Purpose, Planning and People – Nicola Taylor, Trust Lead for SEND, BBCET
In a changing landscape, this session will be of interest to those leading SEND developments across an organisation and brings an opportunity to hear about the Bishop Bewick journey to establishing a core SEND offer at Trust level:
- Why we have done what we have done – our intent
- What we have done over the past 2 and a half years – our implementation
- How we have done it
There will also be an opportunity to reflect on and discuss with each other your priorities for SEND leadership across your school, or group of schools.
Trauma Informed Practice: A Whole School Approach – Dr Asha Patel, Clinical Psychologist & CEO, Innovating Minds CIC
The session will focus on how schools can implement trauma informed practices to support the whole school community. The session will explore the strategic and systemic changes that can take place and how to bring the staff and the wider school community on the journey of becoming a trauma informed school. The session will be focused on practical strategies as well as giving the delegates opportunities to reflect on their existing practices and whether they align with trauma informed approaches.
Integrated Services for Inclusive Education: Supporting Pupils with Physical Health Needs – Emma Smith, Independent Adviser, ESC Management Services
There is a growing expectation for schools to be “all things to all pupils,” but the reality is that when pupils have physical health needs/medical conditions, they may require an NHS-commissioned healthcare service — a role that schools cannot and should not be expected to fulfil. For pupils needing NHS-commissioned healthcare in school, a legal framework exists to ensure access. However, this is an area often marked by missteps and misunderstandings.
This session will provide an overview of the frameworks that support the integration of NHS healthcare services with education services and explain why this integration is essential. Additionally, practical tips will be offered on how schools can take proactive steps to enhance the coordination of NHS services, ultimately promoting greater inclusion for pupils, both with and without EHC plans.
Children In Care – How to Provide the Best Support in the Classroom and Beyond – Hollie Rankin and Corrin Watson
This session will delve deeper into what life may be like for a child in care. It will explore the complexities around supporting the child, parents, carers and professionals involved in a challenging situation. Within this we will look at best practice for how the child can be supported in school with the hope of improving educational outcomes and emotional wellbeing.
The session will:
- Focus on understanding how attachment, trauma and ACE’s can present in the school environment (particularly with Children in Care)
- Provide practical strategies for how to support these children within school
- Share how to best advocate for the child and good practice examples when working with other agencies
Staying Well for the Kids: Prioritising Your Wellbeing in a Job That’s Never Done – Gemma Scotcher
An interactive and reflective session on how those with pastoral or safeguarding responsibilities can protect and prioritise their own wellbeing. These types of roles mean taking on a big emotional load, and it can get weighty. Join us for a session where we’ll explore how you can stave off burnout by thinking differently about boundaries, rest and making room for yourself.
- What’s happening in my body when something stressful happens, and how can I use this knowledge to protect myself from burnout?
- How can I think differently about my personal energy levels to avoid the ‘sprint and collapse’ rhythm of term-time and holidays?
- What are the seven types of rest and how can I benefit from them?
Dame Christine Lenehan, DBE
Christine began her career as a social worker in 1980.
In 2000 Christine joined the Council for Disabled Children, part of the National Children’s Bureau. Christine has carried out Reviews for both the DoH and DfE, both Reviews received a very positive response from Government, and implementation of their recommendations is likely to make a significant impact on practice in this area and the experiences of the children and young people affected. Most recently, Christine was a lead member for the review of safeguarding children and young people with disabilities and complex health needs in residential settings in partnership with The Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel. The recommendations urge government departments to work together to transform the education, health and care offer so that disabled children and young people and those with complex health needs thrive and are supported to achieve.
In 2009 Christine was awarded an OBE for services for disabled children and young people and in 2013 was made an Honorary Fellow of the RCPCH. In 2016 she was awarded a Damehood in the Queen's Birthday Honours List in recognition of her outstanding work for disabled children and young and those with special educational needs spanning over 35 years. In October 2024 she was appointed by the Government to the role of Strategic Advisor on SEND to support the Government on developing reforms to the system.
Katherine Cowell
Regional Schools Director for the North East, Department for Education
Katherine Cowell started in her role as Regional Director for the North East in July 2022 as part of a change programme within the Department of Education to bring improvement and intervention in SEND and CSC together with the stewardship of the schools system.
Prior to this Katherine was Regional Schools Commissioner for North in May 2020, following an interim position since July 2019.
Katherine is an experienced civil servant with a broad range of experience including:
an area director within the Cities and Local Growth Unit
FE and skills policy
an education advisor in the Prime Minister’s Delivery Unit
Dr Asha Patel
Clinical Psychologist & CEO, Innovating Minds CIC
Dr. Asha Patel is a qualified Clinical Psychologist specialising in trauma-informed care. She is the founder of Innovating Minds CIC, where she leads initiatives to support children in accessing mental health services. Dr. Patel is passionate about up-skilling frontline practitioners in education, health, and social care through EduPod and the Healing Together programmes.
Her work focuses on creating safe, supportive environments for children to heal and thrive. With a commitment to improving mental health outcomes, Dr. Patel is a recognised leader in her field, making a significant impact on the lives of many children and their families.
Hannah Wilson
Director, Diverse Educators Ltd
Hannah Wilson is a Leadership Development consultant, coach and trainer. She is the Co-Founder of #WomenEd and #DiverseEd. She is the Co-Editor of Diverse Educators: A Manifesto.
She previously taught English, Drama and Media Studies over a 20 year career in schools. She has held multiple leadership roles including Head of Department, Head of Year, Assistant/ Deputy/ Executive Headteacher and trust-wide/ Teaching School wide roles as well.
She has been a governor and a trustee in multiple settings, she is a newly appointed trustee and Vice Chair of the trust board at SGSAT in the SW.
Find out more about the services, resources and training that she and the REAL (Resilient Empowered Authentic Leaders) team provide here: www.hannah-wilson.co.uk
Find out more about the services, resources and training that she and the Diverse Educators team provide here: www.diverseeducators.co.uk
Nicola Taylor
Director of SEND, Bishop Bewick Catholic Education Trust
Nicola is Director of SEND at Bishop Bewick Catholic Education Trust, a Trust of 5 secondary schools and 34 primary schools across the local authorities of Newcastle, North Tyneside and Northumberland.
Nicola has worked her whole career in the field of SEN across a range of roles and within a range of school settings, as well as spending a period of time specialising in delivering pre-school services to the families of deaf children. In recent years, she was a strategic leader of SEN Services at Northumberland County Council, working closely with schools to deliver rapid improvements before moving to BBCET in September 2022 following its rapid expansion from 3 – 39 schools in 3 years.
She is entirely focussed on improving outcomes for children and young people, and on harnessing the passion and energy of staff. She contributes to a range of national, regional and local networks and is a school Governor, alongside being a Trustee for a Northumberland based charity investing in nurturing wellbeing amongst young adults.
She is particularly interested in developing people; practitioners and leaders. She currently facilitates the NPQ SENCo award and delivers wider leadership training across the Trust.
Emma Smith
Independent Adviser, ESC Management Services
Emma Smith is an independent consultant and advises schools/MATs, special school networks and national organisations on the arrangements for health services in school settings. Emma previously worked in the health sector for over 20 years and held roles in NHS commissioning and provider organisations. She has led national and regional projects in both the health and education sectors and her work has featured in national publications. She holds Masters degrees in the Legal Aspects of Medical Practice and Psychology.
Gemma Scotcher
Communications and Public Affairs, Education Support
Gemma is Director for Communications and Public Affairs at Education Support. She has a background in corporate public affairs and crisis communications for brands in the technology, healthcare and arts & leisure sectors. She is a former board director for the Brighton charity LGBT Switchboard, and is currently a listening volunteer for the Samaritans. She is also a passionate mental health advocate, with training in psychotherapy and analytic psychology.
Hollie Rankin
Pastoral Team Manager and Designated Safeguarding Lead, Wise Academies
Hollie is a counsellor with over 16 years of experience supporting families and currently serves as the safeguarding lead across three primary schools in Blyth, Northumberland. She is a passionate advocate for trauma-informed practice and regularly trains school staff on supporting children’s emotional wellbeing.
Hollie is also the author of four books, including Guide to Supporting Children through Bereavement and Guide to Rebuilding Trust with Traumatised Children, offering practical tools for adults working with vulnerable children.
Corrin Watson
Lead SENCO, Croftway, Malvins and Morpeth Road Academies
Corrin is an experienced teacher with 17 years of working in education across Northumberland. She is the lead SENCO across three schools in Blyth, where she champions inclusive and creative support for children with additional needs.
With a particular focus on children with Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) needs, Corrin is dedicated to helping school staff develop strategies to better understand and support these pupils, ensuring they have every opportunity to thrive.
Chris Zarraga
Director, Schools North East
Chris has been part of the Schools North East team since its inception in 2007 and in 2019 he was appointed Director.
Chris works with other leaders across the North East, the education sector and charity sector to represent the voice of North East schools, and lobby policy makers to ensure that the North East is not left behind when it comes to education policy. Chris has overseen the launch of the Ednorth evidence-based excellence programme, as well as the partnership with SHINE bringing over £500,000 worth of funding to North East schools.
Under Chris, Schools North East has moved to a greater focus on lobbying around education policy, with the launch of the Manifesto for North East Education in December 2019. As well as being a trustee of a local MAT, Chris sits on various boards including the board for Opportunity North East. Prior to joining Schools North East, Chris worked with over 165 schools in the North East and various education organisations including local authorities, Excellence Partnerships, 14-19 Groups, the Specialist Schools & Academies Trust, and School Improvement Officers. He led a large scale culture change project in education across the North East and was the development consultant for the LEGI funded Wansbeck Enterprise Education Network.
Parking
Public Transport
Middlesbrough train station is just a short 15-minute walk from Teesside University.
Arrival
Please enter the Students’ Union building and register your arrival at the Schools North East registration desk on the second floor.
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