Waltham Forest Head & Deputy Head Teachers’ Conference & Exhibition 2024

Chris Moon

Chris Moon helps people and organisations around the world grow and improve personal and team performance. He’s been a keynote speaker and run change and leadership programs for twenty years working with the public and private sector and international business schools. He’s one of the most fortunate people to be alive you’re likely to meet. His exploits have been covered in a Discovery documentary I Shouldn’t Be Alive. Chris is a former British Army Officer with three year’s operational experience who left to work for a charity clearing landmines. He’s survived being taken prisoner in Cambodia by the Khmer Rouge (one of the most brutal terror groups in history) and negotiated his release and that of two colleagues from threatened execution. In 1995 he was blown up in a supposedly safe area of a minefield in remote East Africa losing an arm and a leg (ironically doing one of the least dangerous things he did). He survived initially because he treated himself. About fourteen hours after injury, he arrived in South Africa where doctors say they’d never seen anyone live with such a small amount of blood. He recovered four times faster than expected and in 1996; within a year of leaving hospital ran the London Marathon, raised significant sums to help disabled people in the developing world and successfully completed a full time Master’s Degree in human behaviour. Chris taught himself to run and is thought to be the world’s first amputee ultra-distance runner after completing the Marathon De Sables in 1997. He’s run the world’s toughest ultra-marathons, most recently the Badwater Death Valley 135 mile ultra and the Devon Coast to Coast 117-mile Race. He’s led numerous teams to complete rigorous challenges ranging from climbing mountains to cycling the length of Cambodia. When it comes to challenging the concept of limitation, adapting to change, and overcoming adversity Chris walks the talk. He has a passion for the process of achievement and uses his unique experiences to help people do what they do better. Chris speaks with enthusiasm and humour on resilience, diversity, change, personal and strategic leadership, and all aspects of behavioural choices.

Dr Mary Bilton

Dr Mary Bilton was a full-time teacher for 31 years, managing large faculties and building strong teams. During her teaching life, she trained as a facilitator through Edge Hill University to deliver the National Professional Qualifications in Middle and Senior Leadership, which she delivered in the UK and abroad. Mary also qualified as a facilitator for the Olevi ITP and OTP programmes helping teachers develop their practice. Alongside this, Mary studied part-time to gain a Masters degree in education with merit, and then went on to complete her Doctorate in education. Mary’s doctoral research shed light on mid-career teacher attrition and neoliberalistic practice in English schools. Mary is a firm believer that ‘staff matter’ and works to continue to improve the working lives of those in education through her work at Still Human.

Eugene Dwaah

CEO, Evolution Sports Group Eugene previously worked as a head of behaviour and engagement in an inner-city school and was regularly tasked with excluding young people alongside being responsible for visiting them in alternative provision settings. He added: “Some of the provisions I saw I wasn’t happy with and thought it limited those young people’s life chances, so when I set out on this initiative I wanted to work through sports and in alternative provision to help young people who had an interest in sports. Eugene has had an extensive career in two other sections, he was previously community development manager for Genesis housing association and Head of recruitment for premier league Fulham Football Club

Maggie Farrar

Maggie has worked in London and Birmingham in senior leadership positions in schools and Local Authorities. She was the Director for Leadership Development, Research and Succession Planning at the National College for School Leadership in England and interim Chief Executive. Maggie has been instrumental in the development of a school-led self-improving system in England and has led the design and development of leadership programmes that support the growth of system leadership and the development of cluster based collaborative approaches to school improvement. Maggie is a leadership coach to a number of leaders and senior leadership teams and over the last 3 years she has worked with over 1000 leaders on strengthening their leadership and supporting their own wellbeing and the wellbeing of others. She is a Vice-Chair of Trustees at LEAD Multi-Academy Trust, a Trustee of Bedfordshire Schools Trust and of The Story Museum Oxford, a museum dedicated to the power of story to change lives. She is the author of 'Leading with Presence; it's an inside job,' published in 2022 by Cadogan Press. To find out more about her work go to: https://www.empoweringleadership.co.uk/ Maggie was awarded the CBE for services to Education in 2014

Samantha Garner

Mental Health and Inclusion Consultant, Founder Balanced People Ltd Sam is a renowned speaker, trainer and author specialising in Mental Health and Inclusion. She has worked in the education sector as a SENCo and the corporate sector in a variety or roles. She is a qualified Cognitive Behaviour Therapist, Counsellor and Master Mindset Coach. Sam has also founded a company, Balanced People Ltd, providing mental wellbeing and support to individuals and companies. She is in high demand to speak at conferences and events and provides in-house training for schools and companies, nationally and internationally. Lauded for her humour and ‘telling it like it is’ approach to mental health, Sam has had her book Mental Health in Education published by Routledge, and regularly writes for several publications with more books in the pipeline for publication.

Tina Harvey OBE

Until July 2023, Tina was the Executive Head of an Outstanding all age special school for children and young people with severe and profound learning difficulties including those with an additional diagnosis of autism. Tina held this post for over 30 years, during which time the school expanded its roll by 90%. Tina trained at Birmingham University, holds a Master’s Degree in Childhood Autism, and has spent all of her career working within the special education field. Tina was a National Leader of Education until her retirement from Headship. As well as continuing to work as member of the South East South London Regional SEND team for Whole School SEND (nasen), Tina now also works as an Education Consultant, a varied and interesting role which includes SEND-focussed school improvement work and delivering NPQs. Aside from Special Educational Needs, Tina's particular interests are school improvement, ethical leadership and leadership development at all levels including governance. Tina firmly believes in the power of coaching as a supportive professional development tool for colleagues. Tina was awarded the OBE for services to Special Education in the King’s Birthday Honours 2023.