The Schools & Academies Show and EdTech Update have taken place as fully interactive virtual experiences from 27–30 April 2021.
Both shows were co-located online to allow the 3,700+ education leaders from schools, colleges and universities in attendance to visit both events.
The virtual event format allowed attendees to peruse an online exhibition, tune in to live panels discussions, take part in live roundtables, workshops and networking sessions, whilst also having access to over 50 hours of CPD-certified best-practice case studies and presentations.
The Schools & Academies Show kicked off with a highly topical presentation from Mufti Hamid Patel, CEO of Star Academies who provided practical leadership lessons from his experience building Star Academies into one of the country’s foremost academy trusts.
EdTech Update started with a keynote address from platinum sponsor, Computacenter, with Adam Levy, head of digital solutions at Computacenter and Jermaine Sutton, education executive at Microsoft discussing ‘Remote not Removed: The New Era of Digital Education’.
The success of the virtual shows has enabled us to reach a wider regional audience and also given us food for thought for how we combine the benefits of the virtual format with the traditional face-to-face event – Chris Callaghan, event director
After Gavin Williamson’s announcement during the week of the show regarding the Government’s vision for every school to become part of a family of schools in a strong multi-academy trust, there was also a session with Baroness Berridge, parliamentary under secretary of state for the school system.
Baroness Berridge’s presentation titled ‘Coming Out of Covid-19 and the Future of Academy Trusts’ stated: “This is not about ideology and structural change in and of itself. Our ambition is for more schools to benefit from being part of a strong family because multi-academy trusts and their schools exist to advance education for the public benefit.”
The next venture will be the return of physical shows, with the Schools & Academies Show Birmingham and EdTech Summit 2021 taking place on 17 and 18 November at the NEC.
Chris Callaghan, event director at Schools & Academies Show and EdTech Summit, said: “The virtual format and event platform has provided us with an invaluable tool to ensure we continue to reach school leaders and support our community within the sector.
“The success of the virtual shows has enabled us to reach a wider regional audience and also given us food for thought for how we combine the benefits of the virtual format with the traditional face-to-face event.
“A big thank you to all of our visitors and sponsors who made the shows possible and we hope to see everyone again in November to celebrate a return to some kind of normality.”
To find out more about the Schools & Academies Show and the EdTech Summit, please visit the website
