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Convene, 155 Bishopsgate
LONDON, United Kingdom
16 - 17 January 2027

THE WORLD SCHOOLS SUMMIT 2027:

Shaping The Future Together

We are preparing young people for a world changing faster than our systems can keep up.

Artificial intelligence and shifting global demands are redefining the skills needed for 2030 and beyond. No single part of the system can respond alone, it demands alignment across schools, governments, funders, innovators, higher education and industry.

The Summit brings global education leaders together in the United Kingdom to confront one urgent question: How do we prepare young people for the future of work?

This is where the education ecosystem comes together to shape what comes next.

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FIND YOUR CATEGORY:

Selecting The Right Ticket

To ensure all attendees have the most relevant and valuable experience, please select the ticket
category that best describes your role. This helps us tailor sessions, access, and networking opportunities appropriately.

*Please note: all costs are inclusive of VAT.

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EDUCATOR

Early bird cost: £179.99

Public and private schools and universities, including principals, teachers, lecturers, and support/operations staff.

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NON-PROFIT

Early bird cost: £449.99

Philanthropic foundations, think tanks, policy institutes, and advocacy groups driving social impact in education.

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COMMERCIAL OPERATOR

Early bird cost: £899.99

Owners, C-suite, and executives of for-profit organisations, including private school groups, private universities, EdTech companies, and industry suppliers.

LEADERSHIP COUNCIL:

The Council Shaping the Summit

A global group of education leaders helping steer the direction and impact of this year's summit.

SUMMIT SPEAKERS:

The Voices Shaping the Conversation

Fernando Reimers

Fernando Reimers

Ford Foundation Professor of International Education
Harvard Graduate School of Education

United States of America

David Edwards

David Edwards

General Secretary

Education International

Belgium

Olanrewaju Oniyitan

Olanrewaju Oniyitan

Founder & Executive Director

SEED Care & Support Foundation
Nigeria

VENUE

Convene

The World Schools Summit will take place at Convene 155 Bishopsgate, one of London's leading conference venues. Located in the heart of the City, just moments from Liverpool Street station, the venue offers excellent transport connections and is easily accessible from across London and the UK's major airports.

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Location

155 Bishopsgate
London EC2M 3TY
United Kingdom

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Accommodation

A range of hotels are available within walking distance of the venue. We've partnered with Convene to make booking accommodation as simple as possible.

VIEW RECOMMENDED HOTELS

WHY ATTEND:

Why This Summit Matters

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Bringing the system together

Scale · policy & intervention
The future of education depends on alignment across schools, governments, funders, and innovators, taking what works from local impact to national and global scale.

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Beyond schools alone

Innovation · pedagogy & technology
Education doesn’t move forward in isolation. This is where policy, practice, and technology come together to explore what’s shaping student success, including the role of AI.

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Built for action

Growth · leadership & collaboration
This is where institutions strengthen and move forward, through partnerships, major announcements, and commitments that turn ideas into progress.

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The right people in one room

Alignment · one ecosystem
From ministers and funders to school leaders, founders, and CEOs, decision-makers across the ecosystem, all in one place.

IMPACT:

Built For Commitments, Not Just Conversation

The World Schools Summit has established itself as a platform where major commitments are announced and global momentum is created. In 2025 alone, the summit mobilised $15 billion+ in funding, partnerships, and strategic commitments across governments, philanthropy, and industry. Across two editions:

1,600+

LEADERS

90+

Countries

200+

Speakers

$15B+

Commitments

GLOBAL EDTECH PRIZE

Recognising Trailblazing EdTech Solutions

World Schools Summit 2027 will host the second edition of the Global EdTech Prize, bringing global visibility to the innovators creating solutions that are moving education forward.

This adds another powerful dimension to the summit:

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Recognition for emerging solutions

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Stronger engagement from innovators

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A global spotlight on progress and excellence

THE LEGACY OF THE SUMMIT

Turning Conversation Into Action

  • 2025: Leadership for a better world
    More than 1,000 leaders from 90+ countries came together in Abu Dhabi. The conversations carried far beyond those two days shaping ideas, strengthening connections, and driving real progress across education systems worldwide.
  • 2024: Unlocking the hidden curriculum
    In Dubai, leaders from across the world explored the forces shaping education beyond the classroom from culture and values to the environments where students and educators thrive.

Got Questions?

We've got the answers

The World Schools Summit is organised by T4 Education, a global education platform. It is an exclusive international gathering bringing together influential voices from across education, including school leaders, policymakers, innovators, business leaders and non-profit changemakers from around the world.

The 2027 Summit will be the third edition of the event. Previous editions, held in Dubai and Abu Dhabi in 2024 and 2025 respectively, attracted more than 3,000 delegates from over 90 countries and brought together more than 200 world-class speakers.

The theme of the 2027 Summit is: How do we prepare young people for the future of work?

The World Schools Summit will take place on 16 - 17 January 2027 at Convene, 155 Bishopsgate, Liverpool Street, London, UK.

The event is expected to run from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on both days. Please note that timings may be subject to minor changes once the programme has been finalised.

The World Schools Summit is open to leaders from schools of all types and from around the world, as well as representatives from academia, Ministries of Education and other government bodies, the private sector, and civil society organisations including NGOs, non-profits and philanthropic foundations.

Journalists and media representatives are also welcome. Students and young leaders may attend by invitation from the organisers.

The World Schools Summit brings together leaders from across education, government, business and civil society to tackle the challenges shaping the future of education and young people.

Over two days, you will hear from leading voices, exchange ideas with peers from around the world and build relationships across sectors.

You will gain:

  • Insights: Explore the ideas, evidence and developments shaping the future of education.
  • Connections: Meet school leaders, policymakers, entrepreneurs, business leaders and civil society organisations from around the world.
  • Collaboration: Build relationships and explore partnerships that can continue beyond the Summit.

Our partners:

Bringing this summit to life together

World Schools Summit 2027 is made possible through the support and collaboration of our partners.

Strategic Partners 

Partners

Before you continue

To ensure you get the most relevant experience at the World Schools Summit, please take a moment to select the ticket type that best reflects your role. Choosing the right ticket helps us tailor access, sessions, and networking opportunities for you.
*Please note: all costs are inclusive of VAT.

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Educators

£179.99

For staff at public and private schools and universities including principals, teachers, lecturers, and support or operations teams. Note: Business owners should register as Commercial Operators.

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Non-Profit

£449.99

For NGOs, non-profits, philanthropic foundations, think tanks, policy institutes, and advocacy groups focused on education.
Note: For-profit organisations and social enterprises should register as commercial

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Commercial Operator

£899.99

For owners, C-suite leaders, and executives of for-profit companies including private school groups, universities, EdTechs, and suppliers. Note: This includes organisations of any size.

Important: Please ensure you select the appropriate category based on your professional role during registration. If the wrong category is chosen, you may be required to complete the registration and payment process again, including covering any price difference.

Alex Crossman

Alex Crossman

Chief Executive Officer, St George’s School, Italy

Alex Crossman is Principal and Chief Executive of St. George’s British International School in Rome, Italy.

Alex was previously Executive Headteacher of The London Academy of Excellence, one of the highest performing schools in the United Kingdom. During his tenure, the LAE set new records for student applications, fundraising, examination results, student wellbeing and university progression, including record numbers of students winning offers from Oxford, Cambridge and British medical schools.

Alex’s career in education has also included being the founding Head of one of London’s most successful new secondary schools and the Chief Executive of an education consulting firm based in the Middle East but operating worldwide. He is the author of the Powerful Knowledge Substack and, most recently, with Ian Warwick, of Greater Expectations (Sage, 2024). He has also written for publications including The Guardian, The Independent, and Prospect Magazine.

Teaching is Alex’s first calling but his second career. Previously, he was a managing director with global responsibility for strategy at one of the world’s leading investment banks..

Amit Patel

Amit Patel

Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Owl Ventures, United States of America

Amit has been deeply involved with a variety of firm building and investing activities across Owl Ventures since the firm was founded. He has served on the board of directors and led investments in many of the world’s leading education technology companies, including Codecademy (acquired by Skillsoft), RaiseMe (acquired by CampusLogic), Securly (acquired by Golden Gate Capital), Thinkful (acquired by Chegg), Lingo Live (acquired), Tinkergarten (acquired by Highlights for Children) and Whitehat Jr (acquired). He currently works closely with Authentica Solutions, Amira Learning, Apna, Fiveable, Genially, Honorlock, Kuali, Leap, Mighty Networks, Panorama Education, Splashlearn, and Swing Education. Amit has experience scaling several education companies and is actively involved in helping Owl’s portfolio companies reach a global audience, create high quality solutions, and become world transforming. He takes a hands-on approach in helping companies across numerous functions, including distribution, strategic partnerships, talent, fundraising, M&A, exit planning, and outcomes measurement.

Before joining Owl Ventures, Amit founded Personal Academic Trainers, an afterschool tutoring company, and created the quality assurance program and institutionalized sales training for Mathnasium Learning Centers, an after-school math learning center franchise with 1,000+ locations in North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Amit also served as the Director of Technology for Success Academy Charter Schools, a premier charter school network in New York City with 45+ schools. Amit sits on the National Board for uAspire, a nonprofit organization ensuring that all young people have the financial information and resources necessary to find an affordable path to and through college.

He received a B.A. in Mathematical Economic Analysis from Rice University and studied theatre/film at The New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts and New York University. Amit was an Education Pioneers Graduate School Fellow, a Pahara-NextGen Fellow, and he earned a M.B.A./M.A. in Education from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and Graduate School of Education.

Asheesh Advani

Asheesh Advani

President and CEO, Junior Achievement Worldwide

Asheesh is the President and CEO of JA (Junior Achievement) Worldwide, one of the largest youth-serving NGOs in the world focused on entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and work readiness. During his tenure leading JA Worldwide since 2015, the organization has been recognized as one of the ten most impactful NGOs in the world in annual rankings. Asheesh is the co-author of Modern Achievement with celebrated leadership expert Marshall Goldsmith, a book that reconsiders the definition of achievement for aspiring leaders. He is a sought-after keynote speaker with experience speaking at Fortune 500 corporate gatherings, the Great Hall of the People in China, the United Nations, and at major universities. Prior to joining JA, Asheesh was a technology entrepreneur and led two businesses successfully from start-up to acquisition. He holds degrees from the Wharton School and Oxford University, where he was a Commonwealth Scholar.

Cigdem Ertem

Cigdem Ertem

Commercial and Education GTM , Intel Corporation, United States of America

Cigdem Ertem is a global technology executive with extensive experience in go-to-market strategy, sales leadership, partner ecosystem development, and digital transformation. She currently leads Intel’s worldwide Commercial and Education GTM strategy, overseeing 4P planning and field execution for commercial and education client computing solutions. Throughout her Intel career, she has held leadership roles spanning category management, partner programs, and regional business leadership, including serving as General Manager for the Middle East, Turkey, and Africa region. Ertem holds degrees in Computer Engineering and Business Administration and is a former member of the Turkish National Basketball Team, bringing a competitive spirit and commitment to excellence to every aspect of her leadership.

Dame Alison Peacock

Dame Alison Peacock

Chief Executive Officer, The Chartered College of Teaching, United Kingdom

Dame Alison Peacock is Chief Executive of the Chartered College of Teaching, a charitable Professional Body that seeks to empower a knowledgeable and respected teaching profession through membership and accreditation. Prior to joining the Chartered College, Dame Alison was Executive Headteacher of The Wroxham School in Hertfordshire. Her career to date has spanned primary, secondary and advisory roles. She is an Honorary Fellow of Queens' College Cambridge, Hughes Hall Cambridge and UCL, a Visiting Professor of Glyndŵr University and a trustee for Big Change, the Helen Hamlyn Trust and an adviser to the Institute for Educational & Social Equity. She is a Director of the Edge Foundation, a Member of the Star Academies Trust and has honorary degrees from the University of Brighton, University of Bath Spa and University of Greenwich. She is a Deputy Lieutenant for Hertfordshire and a Patron of ASDAN. Her research is published in a series of books about Learning without Limits offering an alternative approach to inclusive school improvement.

Eunice Ogolo

Eunice Ogolo

Director, Girl Capital - Africa, Children's Investment Fund Foundation, Kenya

Eunice Ogolo is a dynamic leader with a proven track record in international development. Over 18 years, she has successfully delivered social impact by forging strategic partnerships. As Director of Girl Capital Africa at the Children's Investment Fund Foundation, Eunice is at the forefront of empowering girls with health, economic opportunities, and agency to shape a thriving Africa. Previously, she led Inclusive Economic Development at the British High Commission, where she designed and implemented impactful programmes. Her earlier experience as Country Director at Kenya Youth Business Trust further solidified her commitment to uplifting disadvantaged communities. Eunice holds an MBA from Strathmore business school and is passionate about harnessing data-driven insights to create programmes that raise the potential of young people, especially girls and women, across Africa.

Becky Francis

Becky Francis

Chief Executive Officer, Education Endowment Foundation, United Kingdom

Professor Becky Francis CBE is CEO of the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF). She was recently seconded to lead the UK Government’s independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, which published its Final Report in November 2025. Prior to her EEF role, Becky was Director of the UCL Institute of Education (IOE), which is ranked #1 in the world for education in the international QS rankings. Her prior roles include Professor of Education and Social Justice at King’s College London and Standing Advisor to the Parliamentary Education Select Committee.

Throughout her career, Becky has sought to maximise the impact of research by working closely with teachers and policymakers. She has spearheaded high-profile national policy and research programmes in the English school system, focused on system improvement and addressing educational inequalities. And she is sought out internationally as an advisor to Governments on education policy.

Becky was the inaugural Charles Yidan Global Fellow at Harvard University. Her academic expertise and extensive publications centre on social identities and inequalities in educational contexts.

Li Wei

Li Wei

Executive Dean, UCL Institute of Education, United Kingdom

Li Wei is Director and Dean of the UCL Institute of Education (IOE), where he also holds the Chair of Applied Linguistics. His research covers many different aspects of bilingualism and multilingualism, including the acquisition of multiple languages in childhood, family language policy, education policy and practice regarding bilingual and multilingual learners of minoritized and transnational backgrounds, and the cognitive benefits of language learning. He is co/author of over 20 books and edited collections and over 130 journal articles and book chapters. His current journal editorships include the International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism and the Applied Linguistics Review. He founded the biennial International Symposium on Bilingualism in 1997 and was founding editor of a number of international journals including International Journal of Bilingualism, Chinese Language and Discourse, Global Chinese, Language, Culture and Society, Educational Linguistics and Research Methods in Applied Linguistics. He has won the British Association of Applied Linguistics Book Prize twice, for the Blackwell Guide to Research Methods in Bilingualism and Multilingualism (with Melissa Moyer) and Translanguaging: Language, Bilingualism and Education (with Ofelia Garcia). He chairs the National Consortium for Languages Education (NCLE), an initiative funded by the UK government’s Department for Education. He is a fellow of the British Academy, Academia Europaea, Academy of Social Sciences, UK, and the Royal Society of Arts. His previous posts include Pro-Vice-Master (Research and Postgraduate Studies) at Birkbeck, and Head of the School of Education at the University of Newcastle.

Sir Dan Moynihan

Sir Dan Moynihan

Chief Executive Officer, Harris Federation, United Kingdom

Sir Dan Moynihan is the Chief Executive Officer of the Harris Federation, a group of academies educating over 50,000 young people in London and Essex. He has led the Harris Federation since 2006, starting with one school where he was head teacher to 59 Academies today, two thirds of which joined in a category of failure. The group is regularly amongst the highest performing large multi-academy Trusts in England. He has co-authored various Economics and Business Studies textbooks for Oxford University Press. From 2015 to 2022 Sir Dan chaired the Cabinet Office Education Honours Committee and now Chairs the National Institute of Teaching and sits on the committee of the Youth Endowment Trust, he is also a member of the Reference Group for the Police Leadership Commission and a member of the Economist Current Affiairs Education Commission.

Tim Fish

Tim Fish

Chief Executive Officer, Dukes Education, United Kingdom

Tim founded Earlscliffe, a Dukes college since 2017, with his wife Julie. Tim is now in his tenth year with Dukes Education, a decade in which the group has undergone rapid growth, not just in the UK, where it remains the largest premium provider of independent education, but more recently across Europe and now, North America.

After undergraduate studies in the USA and England, Tim started his career in international boarding schools in 1990 at St Clare’s, Oxford, gaining invaluable experience in the International Baccalaureate and in running wide-ranging summer courses. At 32, Tim became Headteacher at Buckswood, where he remained for over 12 years and was involved in establishing new schools in Nigeria and Georgia.

Tim established Sussex Summer Schools in 2001, which became a multi-centre provider of residential, junior summer programmes in the UK for international students from over fifty countries. Tim developed innovative short courses for older teenagers such as the Mini-MBA, Su-Fu and Breaking Digital.

In 2019, Tim became Managing Director at Dukes, responsible for its boarding schools, including Cardiff Sixth Form College, the leading school in the UK for A-level results for almost 15 years.

In 2024, Tim became CEO for UK/Ire and Switzerland.

Tim is an advocate of the Physics Nobel laureate Richard Feynman’s belief that ‘the highest forms of understanding we can achieve are laughter and human compassion.’

Vijita Patel

Vijita Patel

Executive Director, Pre-University Education, Qatar Foundation, Qatar

Vijita Patel is Executive Director for Pre-University Education at Qatar Foundation. Vijita is passionate about the role of education in developing an equal society. Her 25-year career reflects system leadership for Inclusion, SEN, and Neurodiversity through roles with policymakers, school systems, EdTech innovators, governance and research entities. Vijita was deployed as a designated National Leader of Education (UK). She is an advocate of empowering educators as leaders of learning design, and the role of school leaders in creating cultures that cultivate teacher agency. She worked with universities on program design for SEN teacher training, research studies, and EdTech incubations at school level. Vijita is a Fellow of the UK Chartered College of Teaching, Expert Advisory Group for SEN, and Trustee for Special Olympics Great Britain, Challenge Partners, Varkey Foundation. Vijita now serves the Board of the Qatar Foundation Education Development Institute.

Vikas Pota

Vikas Pota

Founder and CEO, T4 Education

Vikas Pota is an entrepreneur, advocate and community builder. He is the Founder and CEO of T4 Education, a global platform bringing together a community of over 200,000 teachers from more than 100 countries to transform education, Executive Chair of the Education Leaders Forum, a leading intelligence platform for high-growth companies, co-founder of executive search firm Inicio Partners, and co-founder of global public relations firm Carter Fleet.

He has spent nearly two decades founding, advising and investing in organisations across the education and technology sectors, building up a global network of leading figures.

He has been recognised as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum and as one of London’s 1,000 most influential persons by the Evening Standard. Vikas was named European regional honouree for the YPO Global Impact Award.

Olli-Pekka Heinonen

Olli-Pekka Heinonen

Director General, International Baccalaureate Organization (IB)

Olli-Pekka Heinonen has served as Director General of the International Baccalaureate (IB) since 2021, advancing its mission to develop inquiring, knowledgeable, and caring students.

Before joining the IB, Mr. Heinonen served as Director General of the Finnish National Agency for Education (2016–2021). Prior to that he was State Secretary to the Finnish Prime Minister (2012–2016). From 2002 to 2012, Mr. Heinonen was Director of Yle, Finland’s national public broadcaster.

Earlier in his career, Mr. Heinonen was a prominent figure in Finnish politics, serving as Minister of Education and Science (1994–1999), Minister of Transport and Communication (1999–2002), and as a Member of Parliament (1995–2002).

A graduate of the University of Helsinki with a Master of Laws, Mr. Heinonen holds honorary doctorates from the University of Jyväskylä and the University of Turku.

Craig Shotland professional headshot

Craig Shotland

Chief Executive Officer, Matific, Australia

Craig Shotland is the Chief Executive Officer of Matific and a data-driven technologist dedicated to building education systems that are inherently capable of change. Reaching millions of students across the globe, his work focuses on modernizing learning ecosystems through the deliberate alignment of people, technology, and pedagogy. Craig champions the critical need to effect systemic change at the right pace, ensuring technological progress strengthens educator capacity and school culture rather than outrunning them. In an era increasingly defined by artificial intelligence, he offers an evidence-based voice on the opportunities and ethical complexities of AI, advocating for resilient, human-centered systems that equip learners with the critical reasoning, adaptability, and foundational competencies demanded by the realities of tomorrow.

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