ASCL Sustainability Conference 2025

The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester

"Lots of relevant information and suggestions which can easily be implemented in school." (Delegate feedback, 2024)

Following the success of our inaugural conference in 2024, we are delighted to now offer the ASCL Sustainability Conference 2025, providing you with the support and tools you need to build a sustainable culture in your school, college or trust, and wider communities.  

The programme will feature practical advice and support from a range of inspirational speakers and workshops to support you on your sustainability journey. The content will also be linked to meeting the aims within the DfE's Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy

There will also be workshops throughout the day linked to these three strands:
  • operations
  • education and curriculum
  • DfE support programmes
The ASCL Sustainability Conference 2025 coincides with World Environment Day; a reminder that it is time for us all to act and be a good ancestor for future generations.  
 
Speaker
speaker thumbnail
Yewande Akinola

Award Winning Engineer, Global Innovation and Sustainability Consultant

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Emma Harrison

Business Leadership Specialist

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Paul Edmond

Chief Finance and Sustainability Officer, HEART Academies Trust

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Andrew Charlton-Perez

Head of School of Mathematical, Computational and Physical Sciences and Professor of Meteorology, University of Reading

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Robert Gould FRICS

Partner, Barker

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Sam Hartley

Senior Programme and Partnerships Manager, National Education Nature Park

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Alex Green

Head of Schools for Ashden and Head of Let’s Go Zero

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Gemma Tunstall

Finance and Business Manager (CFO), Wellington School

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Tarina Chow

Executive Business Manager, Stanton Vale School

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Charlotte Brown

Management Accountant, Esteem Multi Academy Trust

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Jodie Bailey-Ho

Department for Education's Youth Focal Point

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Jenn Plews OBE

Trust Leader (CEO), Northern Star Academies Trust

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Russell Abbey

Head of Catering, Heart Academies

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Polly Higginson

School Plates Programme Coordinator Scotland and Northern Ireland, ProVeg

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Jess Amaral

Project Manager, SOS-UK

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Jenny Wilson

Final year student, University of Manchester

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Wendy Litherland

Director of Sustainability and Associate Assistant Headteacher, St Christopher's CE High School and Sixth Form

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Dr Alison Kitson

Co-founder and Programme Director, UCL Centre for Climate Change and Sustainability Education

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Ann Finlayson

CEO, Sustainability and Environmental Education (SEEd)

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Emily Brunton

Senior Sustainability Lead, United Learning

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Cozzi Baring

Head of Marketing, Food Waste Heroes Programme, Olio

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Alex Seal

Climate Action Specialist, Let’s Go Zero

Read More
speaker thumbnail
Matt Keyse

Climate Action Advisor, Let’s Go Zero

Read More

  • Standard rate: £245+VAT (ASCL members) or £265+VAT (non-members)
  • 10% discount for groups of two or more

ASCL PD reserves the right to change the programme as circumstances dictate. 
 

8.30am     Registration, networking, exhibition and refreshments
       
9.30am     Welcome and scene setting
Emma Harrison, ASCL Business Leadership Specialist
       
9.40am     Keynote
Jodie Bailey-Ho, DfE Youth Focal Point and Founder of Teach the Teacher
       
10.00am     Climate justice workshop
Jessica Aramal, Project Manager Education, Students Organising for Sustainability (SOS-UK)
Jenny Wilson, Coordinator Climate Action Plans, SOS-UK and student, University of Manchester

An interactive workshop that introduces the complexities of climate justice in an accessible way for KS2+ and adult learners. The workshop will explore the social and ethical dimensions of the climate crisis and how different communities are impacted disproportionately.
       
10.30am     Headline sponsor: Barker
Rob Gould FRICS, Partner, Barker
       
10.35am     Refreshment break and exhibition
       
11.00am    

Workshop session 1 - delegates can attend one session

  • Education and Curriculum
    • Delivered by students from Tytherington School supported by SOS-UK 
  • Operations and Decarbonisation: Energy Freedom with Solar PV   
    • Rob Gould FRCIS, Partner, Barker
    • Gemma Tunstall, CFO Wellington School and Co-Chair UKSSN Ops Group
  • DfE Support Programmes: Getting started with your Climate Action Plan
    • Andrew Charlton-Perez, Professor of Meteorology and Head of School, University of Reading 
    • Alex Green, Head of Schools for Ashden and Let’s Go Zero
11.45am     Movement time
       
11.50am     Keynote                                                                                                        Yewande Akinola, award winning engineer and global innovation and sustainability consultant
       
12.45pm     Lunch and exhibition
       
1.30pm     DfE Sustainability and climate change strategy update
Speaker tbc
       
1.45pm     Panel: Title tbc
Jodie Bailey-Ho
Ann Finlayson, CEO, Sustainability and Environmental Education (SEEd)
Wendy Litherland, Director of Sustainability, St Christopher’s CE High School and Sixth Form
Facilitated by: Paul Edmond, Chief Finance and Sustainability Officer, Heart Academies Trust
       
2.15pm     Case Study: One Year In: Green beginnings: Esteem MAT’s journey with sustainability
Tarina Chow, Executive Business Manager, Esteem Multi Academy Trust
Charlotte Brown, Management Accountant, Esteem Multi Academy Trust
 
Exploring the early stages of Esteem Multi Academy Trust's commitment to sustainability through the formation of their Climate Task Force. We will discuss the motivations behind establishing the task force, the initial steps taken to integrate sustainable practices within the trust, and the key challenges and successes encountered along the way.
       
14.30     Case Study: Five Years In; Embedding environmental sustainability in education: a Trust’s journey                            
Jenn Plews, CEO, Northern Star Academy Trust

Discover how Northern Star Academies Trust has made environmental sustainability and climate change education a core part of its strategic vision for the past five years. Committed to empowering young people as change-makers for a sustainable future, the Trust actively invests in the green future that today’s students will inherit.

Join Jenn as she shares insights and practical examples of their inclusive approach to sustainability— deeply addressing climate change education in the curriculum, equipping a new generation for the green economy, fostering ‘green growth’ learning experiences, and driving meaningful climate action across the Trust.

       
2.45pm     Refreshments and exhibition
       
3.05pm     Workshop session 2 - delegates can attend one session
  • Education and Curriculum: Embedding climate change and sustainability across the whole school curriculum
    • Dr Alison Kitson, Co-Founder and Programme Director, UCL Centre for Climate Change and Sustainability Education
  • Operations and Decarbonisation: Sustainable Catering and Waste Management 
    • Russell Abbey, Head of Catering Services, HEART Academies Trust
    • Cozzi Baring, Head of Marketing, Food Waste Heroes Programme, Olio
    • Polly Higginson, School Plates Programme Coordinator, ProVeg
  • DfE Support Programmes
    • Sam Hartley, Senior Programmes and Partnerships Manager, National Education Nature Park
    • Emily Brunton, Sustainability Lead, United Learning Trust
       
3.50pm     Close
       

Suitable for business leaders (including director of estates and sustainability leaders), CEOs, headteachers, senior leaders, trustees and governors.

11.00 Workshop Session 1

Education and Curriculum  
Delivered by students from Tytherington School, supported by SOS-UK
Join us as we explore the youth perspective on climate change, climate justice, climate anxiety, and climate education. In this interactive workshop you will be able to hear directly from young people about their views on climate education and the simple yet impactful ways you can bring climate into your classroom no matter what subject you teach

Operations and Decarbonisation: Energy Freedom with Solar PV – How we did it 
Rob Gould FRCIS, Partner, Barker
Gemma Tunstall, CFO Wellington School and Co-Chair UKSSN Ops Group
This session will explore the transformative potential of solar photovoltaic (PV) technology in schools, focusing on achieving energy independence and sustainability. Gemma Tunstall will share a practical case study from Wellington School, highlighting her approach, challenges faced, and lessons learned. Rob Gould will provide an in-depth look at the importance of solar PV for schools, covering the critical aspects of design and procurement. The session will conclude with a Q&A segment, offering delegates the opportunity to engage directly with the speakers.

DfE Support Programmes: Getting started with your Climate Action Plan 
Andrew Charlton-Perez, Professor of Meteorology and Head of School, University of Reading
Alex Green, Head of Schools for Ashden and Let’s Go Zero
Alex Seal, Climate Action Specialist, Ashden

The Department for Education Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy was first published in April 2022. This session will reflect on the DfE’s expectations of schools and trusts in regards to sustainability and climate action:

  • What are the threats and the opportunities of climate action
  • Understand the support services and networks available to schools as well as the emerging best practice in the development of a School or Trust Climate Action Plan 
  • What practical next steps schools can start to take or progress their Climate Action Plan

15.05 Workshop Session 2

Education and Curriculum: Embedding climate change and sustainability across the whole school curriculum 
Dr Alison Kitson, Co-Founder and Programme Director, UCL Centre for Climate Change and
Sustainability Education
What is the role of all teachers and all subjects in responding to the climate and nature crisis and preparing our young people to lead more sustainable lives?  In the current curriculum, geography and science have a role to play.  However, this workshop will explore the many opportunities to build on this throughout the curriculum in ways that are empowering and engaging for young people.  This is not about overwhelming young people but about demonstrating, in much of what they learn, that humans and nature are not separate from each other.  Approaches can be as simple as the images shown in a lesson or as ambitious as a cross-subject project to explore the future of sustainable cities.
Drawing on UCL’s flagship programme of free, research-informed professional development for teachers, the workshop will showcase examples of what a whole-curriculum response can look like in primary and secondary schools and explore different ways to take this work forwards in schools.
 
Operations and Decarbonisation: Sustainable Catering and Waste Management
Russell Abbey, Head of Catering Services, HEART Academies Trust
Cozzi Baring, Head of Marketing, Food Waste Heroes Programme, Olio
Polly Higginson, School Plates Programme Coordinator, ProVeg
 
DfE Support Programmes  
Sam Hartley, Senior Programmes and Partnerships Manager, National Education Nature Park
Emily Brunton, Sustainability Lead, United Learning Trust