Stronger together: Why collective action matters more than ever
This morning, Schools North East held its seventeenth Annual General Meeting – a small but mighty gathering that serves as more than just a piece of formal business. Yes, there were agendas and accounts, but more importantly, it was our moment to pause, reflect, and look ahead together.
The themes running through this year’s meeting were clear: power, unity, and ambition.
The power of a collective voice
Schools North East exists because individual schools are stronger when they work together. In 2024/25, more than 3,000 colleagues engaged with our events and briefings, and our network grew to its highest ever membership – 723 Partner Schools and 55 Trusts. That reach is what allows us to put a strong regional accent on the national education debate.
From headlines on BBC and ITV, to ministers using our platforms for their first major speeches, to MPs quoting our evidence in Parliament, the North East is no longer a quiet voice at the back of the room…
We are at the table.
And that matters, because when we speak with one voice, our message cuts through.
Celebrating success, confronting challenge
Our AGM reminded us that the challenges facing our schools are real and persistent. The widening gap in top GCSE and A-level grades between the North East and London tells a story not of weaker schools, but of structural inequalities: underfunded services, a lack of early years provision, and entrenched deprivation.
Yet the story of this region is also one of resilience and creativity. This year, we shared over 100 good news stories that showed what is possible when schools innovate, collaborate, and refuse to let disadvantage define destiny.
Building for the future
The coming year will be a pivotal point. With a new Ofsted framework, a government White Paper, and the SEND and curriculum reviews all on the horizon, decisions made now will shape education for years to come.
That’s why Schools North East is evolving – restructuring to increase our capacity, sharpen our policy insight, and amplify the voice of our schools even more loudly. Our aim is simple: to ensure the North East is first in the queue, not last on the list.
An invitation to act
The AGM closed with a call to action: get involved, share your case studies, join our Advisory Board, and be part of the conversation at Summit 2025. Because if we don’t tell our story, someone else will – and they’ll get it wrong.
Together, we are more than the sum of our parts. Together, we are a powerful organisation. And together, we can help reboot education for the future of our region.
