Welcome to our speakers

Paul Whiteman – NAHT General Secretary 

Paul Whiteman took over as general secretary of NAHT in September 2017.  NAHT represents the majority of school leaders in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Paul leads all of NAHT’s campaigns to improve schools for everyone, including the campaigns to achieve a fair funding settlement for schools, improve the systems of accountability and improve the recruitment and retention of teachers and leaders.  

Prior to taking over as general secretary, Paul was NAHT’s director of representation and advice, a post he held for five years. The representation and advice team includes regional officers, organisers, the advice team and the legal team, helping to promote NAHT’s voice across the country while providing highly regarded assistance and protection to members when needed.

Before joining NAHT, Paul spent a decade as a national official at the FDA, the union for civil servants. He has a first-class grasp of education issues as well as many years’ experience in the wider trade union movement.

Emma Balchin - NGA Chief Executive

Emma has been the National Governance Association (NGA) Chief Executive since September 2023. In this role she leads the charity with a focus on improving educational standards and the wellbeing of young people. Working under the direction of NGA’s board of trustees, Emma guides the organisation in achieving its mission while representing the interests of the school governance community at a national level. This includes engaging with legislators, policymakers, education sector organisations, and the media to advocate for NGA’s members.

With over 25 years of experience in education, leadership, and school improvement, Emma has a deep understanding of both maintained schools and academy governance. She has served on Interim Executive Boards (IEBs), has mentored others in governance roles, and is currently serving as a governor in a Multi-Academy Trust. Emma’s expertise extends to supporting NGA’s broader membership and identifying opportunities for new projects and partnerships, ensuring that the organisation adapts to emerging sector needs and continues to enhance governance standards across the education system.

Katie Michelon -  Browne Jacobson, Partner

Katie is a highly experienced education lawyer. She advises schools and academies across England on a broad range of education law matters, including governance, admissions, Ofsted inspection, exclusions and parental complaints. Katie has particular expertise in the area of school intervention, advising schools and academies on matters such as warning notices, interim executive boards and forced academisation. She also has a huge amount of experience supporting schools with challenging Ofsted inspections. Katie has advised on hundreds of academy projects, including the creation and expansion of multi-academy trusts and the conversion of all types of schools, including special schools, pupil referral units and hospital schools. She now focuses largely on group projects, working closely with multi-academy trusts on transfers and conversions. Katie regularly speaks at national conferences and delivers webinars. She also delivers bespoke training to trust boards and leadership teams on topics such as safeguarding, complaints and exclusions.

Angi Gibson NAHT President -  (Sept 2025 – Sept 2026)

Angi Gibson is head teacher of Hadrian Park Primary School in North Tyneside and president of NAHT from September 2025.  Throughout her career, Angi has been driven by a simple, powerful belief: every child matters, every day. Inclusion is the foundation of her work — in her school, in the wider community, and now on the national stage.

Originally from a working-class background, Angi’s values of hard work, honesty and determination were shaped by her family and community. After beginning her career in engineering, she moved into teaching out of a desire to make a difference where it matters most. She believes passionately that education must help children see beyond their circumstances — and that opportunity must never depend on a postcode.

Under Angi’s leadership, Hadrian Park has become known for its commitment to equity, kindness, and inclusion. She has championed bicycles as a symbol of equality — helping children connect with their community, stay active, and experience freedom regardless of their background.

As NAHT president, Angi leads with heart and fire, focused on meaningful action rather than titles or photo opportunities. Her priorities are clear: to reform inspection and accountability, improve pay and funding, address recruitment and retention challenges, secure investment in safe school buildings, strengthen SEND support, and tackle workload so that staff and children can thrive. As she says: “These aren’t wish lists — these are non-negotiables.”

Angi’s presidency is a call to action — to fight for the best for every child, and to ensure that no child is left behind.

 James Bowen - NAHT Assistant General Secretary

James Bowen is assistant general secretary at NAHT, where he leads the union’s policy, research, press and communications teams. He is the former head teacher of an ‘outstanding’ junior school in Hampshire and has held a number of other leadership positions in schools, including deputy head teacher, SENCo and subject leader. James has particular expertise in a number of key policy areas, including funding, assessment, accountability and curriculum. He is a regular education blogger and appears regularly on television and radio as an NAHT spokesperson.

 

 

Marijke Miles - SEND and Alternative Provision (AP) Sector Council chair

For nearly 30 years, Marijke Miles has worked with young people with SEND in many different settings and sectors. Currently head teacher of Baycroft School, a school for secondary-aged students with learning and sensory difficulties and autism, she was previously head teacher of Prospect School, a secondary school for boys with SEMH. Both have become known as centres of excellence for supporting young people and their families, particularly children in care, as well as training units for student social workers from the Universities of Chichester and Winchester. She is known for her innovative practice, which has been featured in several books, and is in demand as both a speaker and a writer. As chair of NAHT's SEND and AP Sector Council and a member of the National Forum for Neuroscience in Special Education, she contributes intellectual and moral advocacy to SEND practice, provision, and strategy.

Ian Hartwright - NAHT Head of Policy (professional)

Ian Hartwright is NAHT’s head of policy (professional) and is responsible for NAHT’s policy work on pay, inspection, funding, recruitment and retention, and workload and well-being.  An experienced educationist, Ian worked as both a history and politics teacher and a curriculum leader in four secondary schools.  Ian led education at a grade 1 listed historic visitor attraction, delivering formal programmes, public engagement and working with European and Transatlantic partners.  As a senior manager at Ofsted, Ian led the policy team responsible for developing statutory inspection frameworks, guidance and procedures, and later worked as a consultant before joining NAHT in 2016.  A committed trade unionist, Ian has been a workplace representative and also served as a national executive member of the FDA.

Paula Porter - NAHT Assistant General Secretary (people, advice and legal)

Paula is a solicitor with more than 28 years’ experience representing teachers, head teachers and other professionals in high-profile legal proceedings. A former partner and practice lead with the largest trade union law firm in the UK.

Paula is also a school governor.

 

 

Dedicated Browne Jacobson lawyers will be present at every location to address parental complaints

Philip Wood - Principal Associate

Philip is a principal associate advising schools and academies. He’s known for his breadth of experience across the key issues facing education institutions, including admissions, SEND, exclusions and discrimination. He regularly advises on complaints and exclusions with Equality Act implications across the full range of protected characteristics, including sex, race, gender reassignment, religion and disability.

Philip frequently represents schools in Equality Act litigation, including in the First Tier Tribunal, the Upper Tribunal and the County Court. In 2024, Philip acted on nearly half of the total Upper Tribunal appeal cases relating to disability discrimination in schools. These include A Multi Academy Trust v RR [2024], which provides the first interpretation of the reasonable adjustment amendments to the Equality Act for schools.

He's frequently instructed on some of the most high-profile and sensitive matters relating to education and pupils. This has recently included cases related to Prevent and pupils deemed at risk of terrorism, child deaths in school, pupil stabbings and sexual misconduct by pupils.

Previously, Philip advised several schools in relation to the ‘No Outsider’ protests, relating to sex and relationships and citizenship education. He also successfully defended a related judicial review claim. This experience means that he is still called upon to advise on continuing issues in a number of schools where parents have ongoing concerns about the curriculum.

Philip also co-chairs the firm’s Education Shadow Board and, in his spare time, chairs the board of a five-school multi-academy trust.

Mark Blois - Partner

Mark is a leading expert in education law and governance and has been recommended as a leader in his field for almost 20 years in Chambers and Legal 500. Chambers ranks him as one of only two lawyers ranked in Band One nationally for recommended schools’ lawyers. Legal 500 includes him in its Hall of Fame, which highlights law firm partners at the pinnacle of the profession.

Mark also has more than 20 years' experience in serving in governance roles in the school, academy and further education sectors. Between 2011 and 2021, Mark served as the chair of the L.E.A.D Academy Trust, a 25-school multi-academy trust operating in the East Midlands, Lincolnshire and South Yorkshire region, educating more than 10,500 children and young people.

Mark continues as the Trust's vice chair. Mark regularly speaks at national conferences, including those of the Confederation of School Trusts (CST), the Association of School & College Leaders (ASCL), the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT), the Institute of School Business Leadership (ISBL) and the National Governance Association (NGA). Mark is also a trustee of the National Association for Special Educational Needs (NASEN).

Charlotte Antoniou - Partner

With 10 years’ experience in the education sector, Charlotte has recently joined Browne Jacobson LLP to head up its London-based education practice.

Charlotte specialises in advising maintained schools, academies, multi-academy trusts and their sponsors on an array of legal matters, including collaborative structures, re-brokerages, governance, data protection, admissions, exclusions and special educational needs issues. Charlotte is ranked by Chambers and Partners as a notable practitioner and has advised on more than 300 academy conversions and 60 free schools to date.

Additional NGA staff will be in attendance to represent the organisation on the discussion panel

Sam Henson - Deputy Chief Executive

Sam has been NGA's Deputy Chief Executive since January 2024 and previously worked as NGA's Director of Policy and Communications. Sam oversees NGA's policy, research, advocacy, external affairs and advice and guidance work. Sam works closely with and deputises for NGA's Chief Executive, leading the organisation to achieve positive change and drive influence at a national level through our policy and influencing work.
 
Sam specialises in several areas, including Ofsted, school accountability, and workforce. He is the lead author of NGA's guide, governing a Multi Academy Trust and authored and co-authored NGA's policy and research reports Moving MATs Forward, the Mature MAT system, Ofsted, and governance and NGA's annual governance survey reports.

Sam has is frequently featured in education media and has also driven NGA's governance focus into national policy conversation, featuring in the Independent, the Times, the Guardian, and BBC Breakfast. Sam has given evidence to several government inquiries and review bodies, including to the Education Select Committee and STRB, and has been a member of multiple government task forces and stakeholder groups for the Department for Education, Ofsted, and others.

Sam has over 15 years of experience working directly in the education sector. Before joining NGA, Sam worked for a large multi-academy trust with more than 30 schools. Sam also worked for a local authority and in the financial services sector. 

 

Katherine Robertson - NGA Regional Governance Development Lead (East of England and East Midlands)

Katherine supports regional and local organisations to strengthen school governance. With a background in community engagement and facilitation, Katherine has worked as a governance professional for over 15 years in primary, secondary, and higher education. 

Katherine brings a unique perspective to governance. Her personal experience as a child on free school meals drives her belief in the transformative power of governance to shape opportunities for children. As the Chair of a primary school academy committee and a member of a multi-academy trust that includes special education and alternative provision, Katherine is committed to making a positive impact.

 

Michael Barton - Head of Policy and Impact

Michael spearheads the National Governance Association's policy work, through which NGA champions governance, and advocates for change through engagement with external partners such as government, parliamentarians, trade unions, and other colleagues. He ensures NGA is effectively advocating on behalf of the thousands of trustees, governors, and governance professionals that they represent - making the case for governance and a stronger education system in England. He has authored a number of reports on the English education system including The Mature MAT Model.