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Welcome to the November edition of MATNews — your monthly update from the MATNetworks community! 🍁 Explore the latest insights, stories, and opportunities driving education forward this season. Stay connected, stay inspired, and let’s make this month one of growth and collaboration. 🚀 | |
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Future MATNetworks Community Events 💬 | |
Join fellow Trust leaders and education professionals at our upcoming events — where ideas are shared, challenges are explored, and connections are made.
📅 Save the dates and be part of the local conversation driving improvement across the education sector in your region.
5th February 2026 MATNetworks South East
Chair: Catherine Stalham, CEO South Essex Academy Trust
18th March 2026 MATNetworks The East Midlands
Chair: Kathy Hardy, Affinity Learning Partnership
23rd April 2026 MATNetworks The West Midlands
Chair, Carla Whela, Empower Multi Academy Trust
Click the links to register as a delegate and if you'd like to exhibit with us please contact Lucy to find out more.
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At Empower, we believe every child deserves the chance to achieve, regardless of their background. Through our FAME framework of Feedback, Assessment, Modelling and Explanation, we ensure high-quality teaching in every classroom.
Our approach goes beyond lessons. We focus on understanding pupils’ lives and creating supportive learning spaces where everyone feels safe and ready to learn.
We use data intelligently to guide interventions and help every learner make progress. By investing in professional development, wellbeing, and collaboration, Empower is building a future where every child achieves, every adult thrives, and every school shines.
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Why Computing Education Matters: Evidence, Goals, and Challenges. | |
Computing plays a vital role in modern life and is now a core subject in the UK curriculum. It focuses on three areas: computer science, information technology, and digital literacy.
However, schools face challenges such as limited time, a lack of teacher expertise, unequal access, and gender imbalance. These issues can prevent some pupils from developing essential digital skills.
At School Coders, we believe that clear curricula, strong teacher training, engaging tools, and inclusive role models can make a difference. With structured and supportive approaches, every learner can succeed in an increasingly digital world. | |
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Edurio’s 2025 National Education Insights Reports. | |
Edurio have released their latest national reports which summarise the experiences of nearly 400,000 staff, pupils and parents during the 2024/25 school year, captured via their surveys.
As school and trust leaders look ahead to 2025/26, the findings offer both reassurance and concern. Staff retention is showing signs of recovery for the first time since the pandemic and there are signs of improvement in the experience for all three stakeholders. However, less than half of secondary pupils report being happy studying at their school, and only 16% say they regularly learn about people like themselves in class.
All three reports, Staff Experience, Pupil Experience and Parent Experience, are free to access now. | |
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The Reflection Gym — The Gym No One Told You About.
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We can’t expect to get physically fit from one gym session — it takes consistency and practice to build strength and resilience. The same approach applies to our minds. So what’s the workout for reflection, clarity, resilience, and mental agility?
That’s where reflective supervision comes in — the regular workout for staff wellbeing. | | | |
It offers a structured space to pause, celebrate wins, process challenges, and build confidence, perspective, and emotional balance.
Now’s the time to step into The Reflection Gym, where HumanEdge Performance helps staff strengthen their wellbeing and sustain their performance.
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Diving into Dyslexia with James.
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Dyslexia affects around one in ten people in the UK, impacting reading, writing, and spelling, but it is not linked to intelligence. Many individuals with dyslexia show strengths in creativity, problem-solving, and big-picture thinking.
With early identification, tailored teaching, and supportive tools, dyslexia does not have to limit achievement. Creating inclusive environments where differences are recognised and supported helps people reach their full potential in school, work, and life.
James shares his personal experience to raise awareness and highlight the tools and resources available to support children with dyslexia in education.
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How Do We Empower Students to Speak Up and Act? | |
Creating a culture of student voice means moving beyond listening - it means enabling action. At Ormiston Sandwell Community Academy, pupils used the First Give programme to champion causes close to their hearts, from youth mental health to food poverty. Their campaigns showcased empathy, teamwork, and a deep sense of purpose. | | | |
This case study shows how First Give enables student-led action that builds pride, strengthens community ties, and empowers young people to speak up and make a meaningful difference. | |
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How Let’s Play Builds
Character, Leadership and Wellbeing.
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Let’s Play, by Commando Joe’s, turns unstructured breaktimes into purposeful, pupil-led play. Centred on the RESPECT framework — Resilience, Empathy, Self-Awareness, Passion, Excellence, Communication and Teamwork — the programme helps children build confidence, leadership, and wellbeing through play.
Funded through the PE and Sport Premium, Let’s Play provides a sustainable system that supports inclusion, reduces staff workload, and increases physical activity. With trained Junior Joes leading daily activities, schools can create lasting impact across physical, social, and emotional development.
Let’s Play is more than games — it’s a culture of leadership, growth, and connection. | |
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Collaborative Accountability for Inclusive Improvement.
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Inclusion is increasingly recognised as a whole-school responsibility, not just the SENCO’s remit. Yet turning that vision into reality is far from simple. Effective collaboration and robust peer review can be powerful levers for change.
That’s why the Schools Partnership Programme is working with Trafford Council and a pioneering group of 20 schools committed to tackling this challenge together. Their journey towards structured, evidence-informed dialogue will enable leaders to embed collaborative accountability - moving beyond compliance to deliver change and build inclusive cultures where every learner thrives. | |
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Every Moment Matters:
The Impact of a Good First Impression.
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Anago Education is growing. And as we grow, we’re onboarding more and more academy trusts to our budgeting and forecasting platform.
First impressions have been key to winning these new partnerships. But what’s equally critical is the initial stages of our platform implementation.
“We want to know that if there’s a problem, we have somebody on the other end of the platform who is invested in our success and will look after us – and I felt like this was the case with Anago”, says Sean Pinhay of Crofty Multi-Academy Trust.
A smooth onboarding introduction is so pivotal because it engenders a positive working relationship from day one, and ensures there is an open dialogue between customer and support team – something that can be the difference between success and failure. | |
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An AI model That is Easy To Remember.
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Richard Smith from AmazingICT is pleased to collaborate with MATNews to support schools with expert guidance on AI and Online Safety.
He has developed an AI model that highlights the importance of bias awareness, encouraging educators to consider content, audience, and bias when crafting effective prompts.
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Capitalise on the National Year of Reading with Peters. | |
We’re delighted that the Secretary of State for Education, Bridget Philipson, has declared 2026 as The National Year of Reading!
This nationwide campaign is a brilliant opportunity to reignite a love of reading and build a lasting reading-for-pleasure culture across your multi-academy trust.
With our exclusive 30% discount for MAT partners, expert librarian team, and wide stock of the latest titles, Peters is ready to help you make 2026 a year to remember. | |
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Join The MATNetworks Community.
Regional MATNetworks are designed to bring together Trust leaders, and those aspiring to Trust and School leadership, within localised regions throughout the UK.
MATNetworks events are focused spaces for real conversations, mutual support, and practical advice-sharing among those who live and lead in the same communities.
MATNetworks creates a community that thrives beyond events. Mentoring offers tailored support to individual people’s needs.
Our new MATNetworks platform will allow you to Be a Mentor, Find a Mentor, Get Expert Advice.
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You can now view all event presentations in our Community Members Area. | |
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New features coming to this area soon too! | |
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If you'd like to find out more about us, we'd love to meet you. | |
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You can also follow us on our LinkedIn and X social media accounts. | |
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Wishing you a great new half term! 😊 The MATNetworks Team | |
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