Research School Network: UnlockED – Conference A conference about Inclusion: Opening Doors for Every Learner

Keynote – Inclusion in Perspective: Making Sense of the Moment

Gary Aubin leads on a SEND School Improvement programme with Whole Education, supporting schools and Trusts to drive a whole-school approach to supporting pupils with SEND. Gary sits on the Government’s Curriculum and Assessment Review panel.
Gary is the Education Endowment Foundation’s SEND Associate. In this role, he has worked extensively on sharing the evidence base behind high-quality teaching for SEND, as well as advised on the development of the SENCO NPQ.
As a Consultant, Gary has spoken internationally, advised the BBC, written content for the National Institute of Teaching and given talks to hundreds of Trust, Local Authority and school audiences.
Gary Aubin is the author of The Lone SENDCO, a handbook of 300 questions and answers for busy SENDCOs. His second book, The Parent’s Guide to SEND, is being released in early 2025. Gary led on SEND provision for a Multi Academy Trust of 10 primary and secondary schools for several years. He is a secondary teacher, former primary and secondary SENDCO and former secondary Head of Year. Gary also authors the SENDMattersUK blog.

Keynote – Knowing Learners and their Hidden Lives: Inclusion as a Teaching Superpower

Bennie Kara is a former deputy headteacher in the East Midlands. During her years in school leadership, she specialised in curriculum, teaching and learning. She started her career in the inaugural cohort of Teach First in 2003, teaching English in East London.
Since then, she has taught in four London boroughs and in South Oxfordshire, before her return to the Midlands to teach in Derby. She co-founded Diverse Educators in 2017.
Bennie now speaks, writes and trains on leadership of the curriculum. Alongside supporting schools to develop their curriculum, she is the author of ​‘A Little Guide for Teachers: Diversity in Schools’ (Sage Education). She has written on the subject of diversity in the curriculum for publications such as Schools Week and the Chartered College of Teaching’s Education Exchange, as well as contributing to many books by educators.
She is a nationally and internationally recognised keynote speaker. Her second book, ​‘Diverse Educators: A Manifesto’, a co-edited book with her Diverse Educators co-founder, Hannah Wilson, was published in April 2022.
Bennie is a qualified coach with RLE accreditation, with a special interest in leadership coaching for middle leaders.
Notable awards:
2020: Joan Goody Award for Outstanding Contribution to Diversity (NATE)
2022: Sage Social Justice Book Award (Sage Education)

Ambition and Access for All – A practical exploration into the barriers some pupils experience in our classroom, the underlying principles of supporting all pupils to do the hard stuff and 10 take away strategies to use tomorrow.

Re-engage: Supporting Pupils Back in School – Addressing Severe Absence and Emotionally Based School Avoidance – This session will explore how we have responded to increased absence and school avoidance through a range of proactive strategies and initiatives, alongside developing a strong culture of belonging. This includes our RISE project, an intensive academic and pastoral programme which has supported 10 severely absent pupils to successfully re-engage with school. We will explore how schools can create a culture where pupils feel known, valued and connected, and how this can contribute to improved attendance and engagement.

Through the Lens of Disadvantage: Identifying the Most Powerful Levers to Create an Inclusive Whole-School Culture - Drawing on the practice at Charles Dickens Primary School, identify the most powerful levers to create an inclusive whole-school culture.

Flexible Grouping as a Responsive Approach: Supporting Access, Participation and Progress for All Pupils - This session explores flexible grouping as a responsive approach to teaching that supports access, participation and progress for all learners. Drawing on the EEF’s 5‑a-day principles, it will examine practical strategies for grouping students purposefully and adaptively to maximise learning, scaffold understanding and promote independence. It will also explore the evidence demonstrating the positive impact of flexible grouping approaches for students when grouping is used intentionally within high quality classroom teaching.

Maths Manipulatives for Inclusive Teaching – Bringing together the EEF Guidance Report on Improving Mathematics in KS2 and 3 and the newly published Guide to Inclusive Teaching, discover how manipulatives can support all learners to master the foundations of mathematics.

Anticipating Barriers in Reading - This workshop explores how teachers can anticipate and address potential barriers to reading before they limit pupils’ participation and progress. Drawing on EEF evidence around inclusive teaching, Kat Branco considers how teachers can identify likely barriers within texts and tasks and plan appropriate support in advance. Participants will explore practical examples and strategies for enabling all pupils to access challenging texts while maintaining high expectations.

From Plan to Practice: Implementing Inclusion – How do we move from an effective inclusion strategy to meaningful, sustainable change in everyday practice? This workshop explores how schools can effectively deliver their inclusion strategy, drawing on research into adult behaviour change to build staff capability, motivation and the conditions needed for change. Participants will explore practical approaches to implementing, embedding and sustaining change related to their inclusion strategy in their settings.

Supported Writing: Building Writing Units that Support the Writing Process for All - Not all writing units are equal – some guide children and learners to produce tightly honed outcomes, full of finely crafted sentences which clearly express their ideas. Others, for some reason, don’t cut the mustard. Drawing on the EEF’s Guidance to Improving Literacy at Key Stages 1&2, along with a broader range of research evidence, this session will unpack what makes a successful writing unit for all learners, supporting those who are struggling while extending those who need it.

Inclusive and Equitable Practice: The Power of the ShREC Approach for All Children – This session focuses on why communication and language development should be a priority for every child, and how educators can use the ShREC Approach to support inclusive and equitable practice.

What Does It Mean to Lead an Inclusive School – for Pupils and Staff? - This session will draw on over 10 years’ experience of leading a large comprehensive school in South London with a diverse pupil and staff population. It will look at how we have cultivated a highly inclusive culture from large whole school developments to smaller, everyday gestures.

Seen and Heard: Ensuring Every Pupil Finds Their Voice in the Curriculum and the Classroom – This workshop will equip school leaders with the knowledge and tools to create strategies to build an inclusive curriculum and school culture. Utilising evidence and the EEF guide on inclusive teaching, attendees will be able to build clear and robust plans that enable all students to see themselves within their school contexts.

Adaptive Teaching: From Pipe Dream to Embedded Practice - Adaptive teaching is often seen as the holy grail of effective practice. But with one teacher and 30 pupils, on a windy Thursday afternoon with a wasp in the room… it’s tough to get it right! Leave this session with a helpful diagnostic tool for identifying what is tripping up your practice (or that of colleagues you lead), and a range of practical strategies to shift adaptive teaching from a nice idea to a classroom reality.

The Right Support at the Right Time: Scaffolding Writing – This workshop explores how teachers can use scaffolding effectively to support pupils to become confident, independent writers. Drawing on EEF evidence and guidance on inclusive teaching, it considers scaffolding as part of strong universal provision, alongside carefully chosen classroom adaptations. Participants will explore practical examples of scaffolds for writing and consider how we can provide the right support at the right time while maintaining appropriate challenge and opportunities for independence.

From Potential to Success: Supporting Boys to Thrive – Boys’ underachievement remains a significant challenge for many schools, affecting engagement, attainment and long-term opportunities. This session will explore the key factors contributing to the gender achievement gap and introduce practical, evidence-informed strategies to strengthen boys’ learning and success. Together, we will consider how schools can build motivation, deepen belonging and create environments where every student can thrive.