Trust Matters: Lessons in Leadership

In this episode, we're joined by Sarah Knight, co-founder of The Allergy Team, an organisation dedicated to helping families and schools manage allergies safely and confidently. After a successful career in television production, Sarah's experience of raising 2 children with severe food allergies led her to recognise the lack of practical support available to families. What began as a desire to make life easier for parents has since developed into a mission to improve allergy awareness, safety and inclusion in schools across the country. In this conversation, Sarah reflects on the challenges her family faced when navigating the education system, including having a preschool place withdrawn because of concerns about her son's allergies. She explains why the inconsistency in how schools manage allergies has left too many families feeling anxious and excluded, and why a more consistent approach is so important. We also explore the introduction of Benedict's Law, following the tragic death of five-year-old Benedict Blythe from an allergic reaction at school. Sarah shares how she worked alongside Benedict's mother, Helen Blythe, and the Benedict Blythe Foundation to campaign for stronger protections, and what the new requirements mean for school and trust leaders. From staff training and emergency procedures to school trips, dining halls and everyday classroom activities, Sarah offers practical advice on how schools can move beyond simply meeting statutory requirements to create a culture where allergy safety is everyone's responsibility. We explore: What inspired Sarah to leave her career in television and co-found The Allergy Team The emotional impact of raising children with severe food allergies, and why families can feel isolated and overwhelmed How common childhood allergies are, and the misconceptions surrounding their causes and management Sarah's experience of having a preschool place withdrawn because of her son's allergies, and what it revealed about inconsistencies between schools The story of Benedict Blythe and how his mother's campaign led to the introduction of Benedict's Law What Benedict's Law means for schools, including allergy policies, staff training, spare adrenaline devices and designated allergy leads Why strong leadership and a whole-school approach are essential to effective allergy management How schools can recognise the warning signs of anaphylaxis and respond quickly and confidently in an emergency The difference between meeting statutory requirements and embedding genuine best practice in allergy safety Why being a 'nut-free school' doesn't necessarily mean pupils with allergies are safe What schools can learn from allergic reactions and near-misses, and how reviewing incidents can reveal wider gaps in procedures How to educate pupils about allergies without creating unnecessary fear or anxiety How schools can balance allergy safety with inclusion, ensuring pupils aren't singled out or excluded because of their medical conditions Why allergy risks extend far beyond the dining hall, from school trips and science experiments to everyday classroom activities Practical changes school leaders can make to improve allergy safety and inclusion without creating unnecessary additional workload How emerging treatments and technology could transform the lives of children and families living with allergies What successful implementation of Benedict's Law could mean for the future of allergy management in schools This is an important and practical conversation for trust leaders, school leaders and anyone responsible for pupil safety and wellbeing. It offers valuable insight into how schools can approach allergy management with confidence, strengthen their systems and create environments where every child feels safe, included and able to thrive. LINKS For more on how The Key can support your trust, visit: https://key.sc/trustsupport Subscribe to our newsletter, Trust Matters: https://key.sc/trustmatters Find out more about The Allergy Team: https://www.theallergyteam.com/ All views expressed in this episode are the guest's own. Any mention of commercial providers, resources or products is on the guest's recommendation and should not be considered an endorsement by The Key.

In this episode, we’re joined by Dame Alison Peacock, Chief Executive of the Chartered College of Teaching and one of the UK’s leading voices on teacher expertise, professional trust and the future of teaching. Across her career as a teacher, headteacher, researcher and system leader, Alison has consistently argued that teaching is not simply a job of delivery or compliance, but a deeply skilled, intellectually demanding profession. From her work on Learning Without Limits to her leadership of the Chartered College, she has spent years championing teachers as experts and challenging the systems, assumptions and accountability pressures that can stop the profession from being treated that way. In this conversation, Alison reflects on her career journey so far and why she believes teaching must be recognised as an expert profession if we want schools to thrive. She shares what still needs to change for teachers to feel genuinely respected and trusted, why professional growth and intellectual stimulation matter so much for retention, and what society still misunderstands about the complexity of great teaching. We also explore what teacher voice should look like in policymaking, how accountability pressures can narrow both professional autonomy and children’s opportunities, and why inclusive teaching and high expectations should sit at the heart of an ambitious school system. Along the way, Alison discusses SEND, evidence-informed practice, AI, and what gives her hope for the next generation entering the profession. We explore: Alison’s career journey so far, from classroom teacher to Chief Executive of the Chartered College of Teaching Why she believes teaching must be treated as an expert profession and what people outside education still misunderstand about the job What practical changes would genuinely make teachers feel more respected, professionally trusted and valued Why teacher retention is about more than pay and workload and how professional growth, agency and intellectual stimulation all shape whether teachers stay What teachers might change first if they had more influence over education policy How accountability culture and performance pressures can constrain teachers and narrow what education becomes Why Alison believes schools need the space to prioritise both academic achievement and children’s wider flourishing What genuinely inclusive teaching looks like in practice, and why SEND and inclusion have become such difficult policy issues The core ideas behind Learning Without Limits and why Alison has spent so much of her career challenging fixed ability labels How schools can maintain high expectations without narrowing success to a single definition What role evidence-informed practice should play in everyday teaching  and how to stop it becoming another education buzzword Why Alison believes AI should support teaching, not diminish the uniquely human parts of it What gives her optimism about the future of teaching and the next generation entering the profession This is a thoughtful and timely conversation for trust leaders, school leaders and teachers interested in teacher professionalism, retention, evidence-informed practice and what it will take to build a school system that genuinely values teaching as an expert profession. LINKS Teacher Agency: https://chartered.college/research-and-policy/policy-and-advocacy/teacher-agency-working-group/  Chartered Status: https://my.chartered.college/store/  Safe and Effective AI in Education: https://chartered.college/safe-and-effective-use-of-ai-in-education/  Early Years: https://my.chartered.college/early-childhood-hub/ For more on how The Key can support your trust, visit: key.sc/trustsupport  Subscribe to our newsletter, Trust Matters: key.sc/trustmatters  Connect with Dame Alison on LinkedIn.  All views expressed in this episode are the guest’s own. Any mention of commercial providers, resources or products is on the guest’s recommendation and should not be considered an endorsement by The Key.

In this episode, we’re joined by Steve Chalke MBE, founder of Oasis and one of the UK’s most influential voices on community, inclusion and tackling disadvantage. Across decades of work in education, housing, anti-trafficking, youth work and community leadership, Steve has focused on one central idea: if we want children and young people to thrive, we have to go beyond isolated interventions and start building communities where people feel they belong. In this conversation, Steve reflects on the experiences that first shaped his vision for Oasis, from growing up in poverty and experiencing racism to realising, as a teenager, that schools, homes, healthcare and community all shape opportunity in interconnected ways. He explains why Oasis was never just about starting schools, but about creating a more holistic response to disadvantage – one rooted in dignity, belonging, opportunity and long-term flourishing. We also explore the Oasis Hub model, what it means to build genuinely inclusive communities around children and families, and why schools are increasingly being asked to respond to challenges they cannot solve alone. Along the way, Steve shares his thoughts on attendance, Ofsted, teacher retention, social fragmentation, and the kind of hopeful, courageous leadership communities need now. We explore: What first drove Steve to found Oasis, and how his own childhood experiences shaped that vision Why lasting change in communities has to tackle the root causes of disadvantage, not just the symptoms Why Oasis has always focused on schools, housing, youth work, healthcare and community together, rather than in isolation How Steve’s own experience of school shaped his view of what education should feel like for children What it takes to scale a mission-led organisation like Oasis without losing sight of its core values What the Oasis Hub model looks like in practice, and why local partnership matters so much Why schools are being placed in an “impossible situation” as more and more social responsibilities are pushed onto them Where Steve thinks the limits of schools’ responsibilities should lie – and what needs to sit alongside them instead What true inclusion means in practice, and why it has to be about belonging, not just attendance Why schools serving disadvantaged communities can be penalised for being more inclusive What it will take to keep great teachers and leaders in the profession, especially in the most challenging communities Why community, volunteering and human connection matter more than ever in an increasingly fragmented society What Steve means when he talks about hope as action, strategy and collective responsibility – not just optimism What still gives him hope after decades of working in some of the country’s most disadvantaged communities This is a powerful and deeply human conversation for trust leaders, school leaders and anyone interested in what it really takes to build communities where children, families and staff feel they truly belong. LINKS For more on how The Key can support your trust, visit: key.sc/trustsupport  Subscribe to our newsletter, Trust Matters: key.sc/trustmatters  Connect with Steve on LinkedIn.  All views expressed in this episode are the guest’s own. Any mention of commercial providers, resources or products is on the guest’s recommendation and should not be considered an endorsement by The Key.

In this episode, we’re joined by Professor Becky Francis CBE, Chief Executive of the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) and one of the leading voices in England on educational inequality and the attainment gap. Across her career in research, policy and education leadership, Becky has focused on one central question: why do educational outcomes remain so closely tied to disadvantage – and what would it actually take to change that? In this conversation, Becky reflects on what first drew her to this work, why the attainment gap remains so stubborn, and what it would mean for the system to genuinely treat closing it as its “north star”. She explains why high-quality teaching remains the single biggest lever schools have to improve outcomes for disadvantaged pupils, but also why schools cannot tackle educational inequality alone when poverty, attendance, language development and wider family hardship sit outside the school gates. We also explore the Curriculum and Assessment Review that Becky chaired, including the idea of “high standards for all”, the challenge of curriculum overload, and why England needs an education system that offers both excellence and equity. We explore: What first drew Becky to the issue of educational inequality, and why it has remained central to her work Why the attainment gap narrowed for a period, but has since stalled and widened again What it would mean for closing the attainment gap to become the education system’s true “north star” Why high-quality teaching has the biggest impact on outcomes for disadvantaged pupils What great teaching looks like in practice – and the misconceptions schools need to avoid Why disadvantaged schools face a “double penalty” when it comes to teacher recruitment and retention What the evidence says about attracting and retaining excellent teachers in the schools that need them most Why early language development and early intervention are so crucial in tackling inequality How much schools can realistically do on their own when child poverty and wider disadvantage are driving educational outcomes What Becky has learned about the relationship between research, policy and political decision-making The key themes that emerged from the Curriculum and Assessment Review, including curriculum overload and the balance between breadth and depth What Becky means by “high standards for all” – and why different routes for disadvantaged pupils can risk entrenching inequality How the attainment gap grows from early years through to secondary school, and why acting early matters so much Why attendance is such an important part of the picture for disadvantaged pupils Looking ahead to 2035: what success would look like if England genuinely began to shift educational inequality This is a thoughtful and timely conversation for trust leaders, school leaders and anyone interested in what the evidence really tells us about educational inequality and what it will take to build a system that delivers both excellence and equity for every child. LINKS For more on how The Key can support your trust, visit: key.sc/trustsupport  Subscribe to our newsletter, Trust Matters: key.sc/trustmatters  Connect with Becky on LinkedIn. All views expressed in this episode are the guest’s own. Any mention of commercial providers, resources or products is on the guest’s recommendation and should not be considered an endorsement by The Key.

In this episode, we're joined by Michael Kane, Policy Manager at Public First and one of the lead researchers behind the Commission into Countering Online Conspiracies in Schools. Drawing on new national research with pupils, parents and teachers, Michael explores the growing spread of misinformation, disinformation and conspiracy beliefs among young people, and what this means for schools. From deepfakes and AI-generated content to online conspiracy theories and extremist narratives, schools are increasingly finding themselves on the front line of a rapidly changing digital landscape. As smartphones become more common at younger ages and social media continues to shape how young people consume information, teachers are being asked to navigate complex conversations that many feel underprepared for. Michael shares insights from the Commission's latest report, including the impact misinformation is having on classrooms, the challenges teachers face when responding to false or misleading content, and why media literacy is becoming an increasingly important part of education. We explore: Why young people are finding it harder than ever to tell what's real and fake online The growing influence of AI-generated content, deepfakes and misinformation What teachers are hearing from pupils in classrooms across the country Why misinformation and conspiracy theories are becoming a bigger issue in schools The impact smartphones and social media are having on younger children Why many teachers feel underprepared to tackle these conversations The challenges schools face around political impartiality and safeguarding What the latest updates to Keeping Children Safe in Education mean for schools The role parents play in helping young people navigate online information Why media literacy needs to be a whole-school priority What practical steps leaders can take to better support staff and pupils This is a timely and thought-provoking conversation for trust leaders, school leaders and anyone interested in helping young people navigate an increasingly complex digital world. LINKS For more on how The Key can support your trust, visit: key.sc/trustsupport  Subscribe to our newsletter, Trust Matters: key.sc/trustmatters  Connect with Michael on LinkedIn. All views expressed in this episode are the guest’s own. Any mention of commercial providers, resources or products is on the guest’s recommendation and should not be considered an endorsement by The Key.