Conference series, 2026-2027

In June 2026 we welcomed over 800 members of the Steplab community to our national conference.

We’re taking a year off from running a single national conference - rest assured, it’ll be back in June 2028 - and instead bringing you three smaller conferences in 2026-27:

• 1.
  Great teaching for every student - SEND and inclusion conference - Tuesday 1 December 2026, Birmingham
• 2.
  Improving teaching at scale - Trust leaders conference - Thursday 11 March 2027, Birmingham
• 3.
  PD for impact - Driving change through effective professional development - Friday 2 July 2027, London

These events are open to all, whether you’re a Steplab user or not. Places are limited, so we recommend booking early.

Tickets are priced at £195 for users and £225 for non-users.

Book by Friday 9 October for super early bird tickets - £155 for users and £185 for non-users.

Book by Friday 23 October for early bird tickets - £180 for users and £210 for non users

Please contact us at [email protected] for discounts on group bookings.

Tuesday 1 December 2026, Birmingham

How do we ensure that children with SEND experience consistently great teaching in every classroom, and how do we make that happen across a whole school or multi-academy trust?

Building on the release of our new Inclusive teaching curriculum and our soon-to-be-released Specialist AP and SEND curriculums, the conference will explore this question by:

• 1.
  Establishing a model of great teaching for all learners
• 2.
  Providing a shared language for SEND, teaching and learning
• 3.
  Exploring how collaboration can support the development of effective inclusive teaching
• 4.
  Identifying how leaders can reliably implement a PD programme at scale

The conference is designed for school and trust leaders responsible for teaching and learning, CPD or SEND, as well as SENDCOs.

At the conference, you’ll hear from:

• 1.
  Margaret Mulholland - SEND and Inclusion Specialist, ASCL
• 2.
  Gary Aubin - Founder, SEND Matters UK
• 3.
  Krissy Yates - PD Specialist, Steplab and former trust Director of SEND & Inclusion
• 4.
  Rachel Ball - PD Specialist, Steplab and author of The Scaffolding Effect
• 5.
  Abbie Williams - Content Lead, Steplab

Thursday 11 March 2027, Birmingham

Most leaders know how to improve one classroom - but how do you improve teaching across a hundred, or a thousand?

We’re bringing together trust leaders to explore this question. The conference will look at how multi-academy trusts are using Steplab to improve teaching at scale.

During the day, there’ll be opportunities to collaborate with like-minded trust leaders, hear case studies from trusts using Steplab and learn from members of Steplab’s PD specialist team.

Who’s it for? The day is designed for trust leaders responsible for teaching and learning, school improvement or professional development. We warmly welcome trusts that don’t currently use Steplab.

At the conference, you’ll hear from:

• 1.
  Our team of PD specialists
• 2.
  Trust leaders from our network
• 3.
  Other speakers - TBC

Friday 2 July 2027, London

Great teaching transforms children’s lives - and great professional development makes it possible. Join educators from across the sector to explore what truly effective PD looks like and how it helps teachers thrive.

With two keynotes and six workshops to choose from, there’s something for everyone, whether or not you’re currently part of the Steplab community.

During the day, we’ll bring effective professional development to life, showcasing the practices that make it work. You’ll see theory in action and explore how to build a PD programme that really works.

Who’s it for? The conference is designed for trust leaders, school leaders, middle leaders, coaches, mentors, teachers and PD professionals.

At the conference, you’ll hear from:

• 1.
  Josh Goodrich - Co-founder, Steplab
• 2.
  Ania Townsend - Director of Institute, Steplab
• 3.
  Peps Mccrea - Director of Education, Steplab
• 4.
  Rachel Sewell - Senior Director of Implementation, Steplab
• 5.
  Other speakers - TBC

You can also explore our Professional Development Leadership and Instructional Coaching intensive training days.