The Excel in Education Summit

9th October 2026 | 9:00–16:00
Macdonald Burlington Hotel, Birmingham (B2 4JQ)

The Excel in Education Summit is a national event designed to support education professionals in building and sustaining the culture of high performing teams.

Bringing together expert speakers, practical workshops and sector-leading partners, the summit focuses on how strong cultures - underpinned by clarity, collaboration and disciplined execution - drive meaningful and lasting improvement.

Book your place today.

Why attend?

High performance doesn’t happen by chance - it is built through intentional leadership, aligned teams and consistent practice.

This summit is designed to help you:

  • Build and sustain high-performing teams across your organisation
  • Translate strategy into consistent, effective practice
  • Strengthen collaboration, accountability and professional culture
  • Apply evidence-informed approaches in both leadership and teaching

You’ll leave with practical insights you can implement immediately - at classroom, department and trust level.

Headline speakers

Mark Denton

Leadership | Collaboration | Change

Mark brings a powerful, real-world keynote on leading high performing teams through challenge and uncertainty. Drawing on his experience guiding an amateur crew through the world’s toughest round-the-world yacht race, he shares hard-won lessons on resilience, trust and collective performance.

Keynote: Mastering the Waves of Change

 

Tom Sherrington

Teaching & Learning | Evidence-informed practice

Co-author of Teaching WalkThrus (Volumes 1–3) and author of The Learning Rainforest and Rosenshine’s Principles in Action, Tom offers sharp, practical insight into how strong teaching cultures are built, sustained and scaled across teams.

What to expect

A carefully structured programme that connects culture, leadership and classroom practice - ensuring every session contributes to building high performing teams.

Highlights include:

  • AI in education: enhancing teaching while maintaining professional consistency
  • Leadership strategy: why strong plans stall - and how to prevent drift
  • Team design: structuring leadership to sustain performance over time
  • Trust finance: using ICFP to support long-term organisational health
  • HR and people strategy: enabling teams to perform at their best

Each session is grounded in the same core principle: strong outcomes come from strong teams working within a strong culture.

Programme overview – with plenty more to be announced soon

08:00 – Arrival and registration
08:30 – Welcome address
Morning
  • Mark Denton keynote and Q&A
  • Sponsor spotlight: Keystone
  • Workshops on AI, leadership and HR
12:00 – Lunch
Afternoon
  • Tom Sherrington keynote and Q&A
  • Workshops on teaching, leadership design and trust finance
  • Closing reflections on building sustainable, high performing teams
16:00 – Close

Venue

Macdonald Burlington Hotel
Birmingham city centre (B2 4JQ)

  • Excellent rail connections
  • Multiple nearby parking options
  • Central, accessible location

Visit the Burlington Hotel website for the best options to get there.

Pricing

  • ÂŁ299 standard ticket
  • ÂŁ249 early bird (available until 1st June 2026)
  • ÂŁ2,000 table of 10

Spaces are limited and expected to fill quickly.

Sponsors

We are proud to be supported by organisations committed to strengthening education systems and teams:

Key Sponsor: Keystone

Other sponsors:
Telex | MAC | Maths No Problem | Third Space Learning | PLMR

Who should attend?

  • Trust and school leaders
  • Senior leadership teams
  • Heads of department and subject leaders
  • Teachers and practitioners
  • Education professionals committed to building high performing teams and cultures

Book your place:

Join us in Birmingham for a day focused on what matters most: building the culture of high performing teams that deliver lasting impact.

Secure your place today.