Strengthening schools in the South region: building resilient, inclusive and future-ready learning environments
We are inviting education stakeholders from across the South to attend the National Education Assembly (NEA) South meeting where we will discuss ‘Strengthening schools in the South region: building resilient, inclusive and future-ready learning environments’.
The National Education Assembly (NEA), powered by the Foundation for Education Development (FED), provides a space for people with day-to-day experience of the education system to share insights that can help shape national policy. Its purpose is simple: your voice – heard, shared, amplified.
FED & NEA South, delivered in partnership with FED and The Edwin Group and Co-Chaired by Phil Hedger (CEO, LEO Academy Trust) and Dr Nicole Ponsford (Founding CEO, Global Equality Collective), launched in Spring 2026.
Date & Time: Tuesday 9th June 2026, 11.45am-3pm
Location: Delta Hotels Bristol City Centre, 2 Lower Castle Street, Bristol BS1 3AD
Format: Working lunch – informal and collaborative throughout
12pm: Welcome
John Faulconbridge and Louise Martin – Executive Team at FED
Welcome to our NEA South meeting and intention of our time together. Introduction to key people for today’s meeting.
12.15pm: Scene-Setting for the meeting
Sarah Monk – Chief Strategy Officer at EDWIN Group
Introduction to the day’s themes, framing the policy context around education priorities in the South of England and the White Paper.
12.30pm: Keynote Address: Raising Ambition in Our Schools
Neil Blundell – AMPLIFY MAT, Bristol
Drawing on the White Paper’s central ambition of Every Child Achieving and Thriving, Neil Blundell explores what raising ambition means in practice, particularly for schools serving coastal and under-resourced communities in the South.
1pm: Lunch
Working lunch. Continued informal conversation and networking.
1.30pm: Address from Carl Ward, Chair of FED
Dr Carl Ward — Chair of The Foundation for Education Development
NEA’s role and priorities for the journey ahead.
1.50pm: Collaborative Discussion
Led by the NEA South Co-Chairs, Dr Nicole Ponsford and Phil Hedger of Leo Academy Trust
What are the long-term shifts we want to see across the South and what needs to happen now to make those shifts possible?
- What promising practices already exist across the region that could be amplified without waiting for national policy change?
- How can FED best balance responding to immediate policy opportunities with shaping a longer-term vision for the system?
- If this network is to grow successfully over the next five years, what do we envisage our roadmap for growth to look like?
2.50pm: Close
Led by John Faulconbridge and Louise Martin
Summary of outputs and next steps. Event concludes.
Date & Time: Tuesday 9th June 2026, 11.45am-3pm
Location: Delta Hotels Bristol City Centre, 2 Lower Castle Street, Bristol BS1 3AD
Format: Working lunch – informal and collaborative throughout
Who can attend?
This meeting is free to attend, open to anyone working within NEA South: Berkshire; Bristol; Buckinghamshire; Cornwall; Devon; Dorset; East Sussex; Essex; Greater London; Hampshire; Hertfordshire; Isle of White; Kent; Middlesex; Somerset; Surrey; West Sussex; Wiltshire.
Spaces are limited. Sign up closes on Friday 5th June 2026
Contact: NEA South Queries, Louise Martin/John Faulconbridge at [email protected].