London Borough of Havering Annual 2026 Headteachers’ Conference & Exhibition

Day 1 - Ben Walden

Back by popular demand! Following his inspirational session at the 2025 conference (98% Outstanding!), Ben is back for 2026! Ben Walden is an international speaker and workshop leader in the realm of education. He has been a main keynote speaker at many conferences in Europe, Asia, the Americas and Australia. He also works with many individual schools, looking at themes of leadership and inspiring communication with both staff and – especially – students. In the 1990’s he played several leading roles in London’s West End theatre and as a member of the inaugural company at the new Shakespeare’s Globe. He has also spoken on leadership and the arts at many business conferences, including at both Harvard and Columbia Business Schools.

Day 1 - Ben West

Ben West is a prominent British mental health advocate, author, and social media influencer who has become a leading voice in the UK's mental health landscape. His journey began in 2018 when, at the age of 17, he tragically lost his younger brother, Sam, to suicide. This devastating event propelled Ben into activism, where he has since dedicated himself to transforming mental health awareness and suicide prevention efforts across the nation. Harnessing the power of social media, Ben has cultivated a substantial following, with over 87,000 followers on Instagram and a significant presence on TikTok. His content resonates particularly with younger audiences, offering relatable perspectives and practical advice on navigating mental well-being. Ben launched a petition advocating for mandatory mental health first aid training for teachers, which garnered over 300,000 signatures and led to collaborations with the UK government. In April 2022, he published his debut book, This Book Could Save Your Life – Breaking the Silence Around the Mental Health Emergency. His work has been featured in high-profile publications and media outlets, including The Sunday Times Magazine, ITV's Lorraine, and BBC One's Morning Live.

Day 1 - Bradley Busch

Bradley Busch is a Chartered Psychologist and Director at InnerDrive. He is one of the world’s leading experts on how schools and college can translate cognitive psychology research to improve teaching and learning. He is the co-author of the international best-selling books ‘The Science of Learning’, 'Teaching and Learning Illuminate' and 'Evidence Informed Wisdom'. He has worked with hundreds of schools, both with staff and students, running training that focuses on memory, motivation and AI. Outside of education, he has worked with Premier League footballers as well as with Olympians and Paralympians who have medalled at London 2012, Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020.

Day 1 - Laura McInerney

Laura McInerney is an education journalist, co-founder of the daily survey app, Teacher Tapp, and renowned keynote speaker. She taught in challenging east London schools before being taken to court by the government for asking a question. She eventually became the Guardian’s education columnist and editor of the investigative newspaper. Since 2013, Laura has been a columnist for The Guardian and has written for other publications including The Observer, the New Statesman, The TES, and Prospect. She regularly uses her schools expertise to appear on broadcasts including Radio 4’s Today, Radio 5 Live, BBC London, LBC, Talk Radio, and Sky News. Laura has authored two books, The Leadership Factor, co-authored with Drew Povey (from ‘Educating Manchester’), and The Six Predictable Failures of Free Schools (And How To Avoid Them). Laura has keynoted and hosted at most major education events in the UK.

Day 2 - Bonita Norris

Bonita Norris is an award-winning motivational speaker and the youngest person ever to reach both the summit of Mount Everest and the North Pole. She did this having never climbed a mountain before the age of 20 and then reached the summit of Everest only two years later at the age of 22. This rollercoaster journey taught her the power of taking radical responsibility - for our own mindset, for how we show up in our team, and for finding the resilience to keep moving forward in life’s toughest moments. Bonita went on to climb multiple 8,000m peaks including Everest (8,849m), Lhotse (8,516m), Manaslu (8,163m); she has also skied to the North Pole, and attempted to become the first British woman to successfully climb K2 (8,611m). It is her rich and diverse experiences in the mountains that have honed her understanding of high performance under pressure - and now she shares these unique insights with audiences all over the world.

Day 2 - Gary Aubin

Gary Aubin leads on a SEND School Improvement programme with Whole Education, supporting schools and Trusts to drive a whole-school approach to supporting pupils with SEND. Gary sits on the Government’s Curriculum and Assessment Review panel. Gary is the Education Endowment Foundation’s SEND Associate. In this role, he has worked extensively on sharing the evidence base behind high-quality teaching for SEND, as well as advised on the development of the SENCO NPQ. As a Consultant, Gary has spoken internationally, advised the BBC, written content for the National Institute of Teaching and given talks to hundreds of Trust, Local Authority and school audiences. Gary Aubin is the author of The Lone SENDCO, a handbook of 300 questions and answers for busy SENDCOs. His second book, The Parent’s Guide to SEND, was released in early 2025. Gary led on SEND provision for a Multi Academy Trust of 10 primary and secondary schools for several years. Gary also authors the SENDMattersUK blog.

Day 2 - Sonia Gill

Sonia Gill, a qualified teacher and the founder of Heads Up, has taught children from Reception to age 16. After leading multi-million-pound business areas in the prestigious John Lewis leadership programme, Sonia returned to her passion for education. She founded Heads Up in 2011, working with recently outstanding schools to uncover what truly makes them exceptional. Sonia and her team share these insights with ambitious school leaders aiming to move from good to great. Sonia is also an international speaker and the author of two best-selling books, helping headteachers build outstanding schools without solely focusing on the Ofsted framework.