FAQs: Enhancing Education with Speakers for Schools

FAQs

Speakers for Schools is a UK-wide charity, covering over 80% of local authorities each year. We can accept applications from any state-maintained secondary school, academy or college (11-18 yrs) for either our Inspiration speaker programme or our Experience portal for insight days and work experience. Availability of speakers and placements do vary and change year-on-year so be sure to sign up to both programmes to be notified when we are able to work with your school. For speakers and employers, please be sure to let us know if you can help us reach under-served geographic locations when speaking with our team!

Our charity focuses on giving state schools, academies and colleges access to the UK’s eminent, reputable figures from a range of industries—and to make it easier for these figures to give their time to young people in state schools and colleges. They are key prominent individuals leading society or industry today, from technology to arts to business, who are often invited directly or by a major industry body that works with our charity (e.g. BAFTA, 30% Club, Creative Industries Federation and more). For more information about our speaker network and taking part, please see our Speaker Directory. If you are interested in giving school talks but your background falls outside of this or if you are a different type of speaker, be sure to see our sister charity InspiringtheFuture.org and our Schools Hub which lists related organisations looking for other types of volunteer speakers.

Speakers for Schools is administered by the CEO, Nick Brook, and his team, and governed by a Board of Trustees. Please see Our People for more details. The charity is kindly funded in full by the Law Family Charitable Foundation.

Our charity is made up of a network of leading figures committed to giving their time each year to state schools and to help level the playing field for young people of all backgrounds. Our ‘schools network’ is made up of nearly 50% of all UK state secondary schools, academies and colleges, all who have applied directly to our charity for the opportunity to host our speakers. We work across the year to organise events during term time, offering school talks with influential speakers and work experience placements with top companies. Our charity specialises in helping speakers reach schools based not only on availability but also key locations and schools that are the most under-served and who will benefit most as our priority. This includes considering free school meal/pupil premium rates, high-deprivation areas and those which have poorer links to speakers and employers than their neighbouring schools. For specific information on how talks are organised, please see our How it Works page. For more information about how we help with work experience and similar opportunities, please visit S4SNextGen.

No, unfortunately we are unable to provide speakers for events outside of our core work, such as careers days, award ceremonies, teacher events, etc. We are also unable to offer speakers for non-school events such as at libraries, universities or community groups. This is due to the very high demand for our state school talks, the nature of our talks and our priority to reach a broad range of students (who might not take part in extra-curricular events). We do on occasion form national partnerships with large national school networks and/or other charities to host special one-off events. If you are enquiring about a schools partnership please contact: team@speakers4schools.org

Broadcasts are livestreamed to young people during the school day or after school. Speakers will either give a talk or will be interviewed by Speakers for Schools before moving onto a student Q&A session. Our broadcasts typically last between forty-five minutes to 1 hour. Teachers will need to fill out a short registration form for each broadcast. These can be found on our upcoming talks page here

Students are encouraged to submit their questions for our speakers anonymously or through providing their first name only. If a student raises a safeguarding concern during a broadcast, our team at Speakers for Schools will follow our safeguarding procedure. Any safeguarding concerns raised will not be visible to other viewers. There will be no cameras/mics turned on for students either (webinar style). Speakers agree their content with SfS ahead of the event. Should we discuss sensitive content in the broadcast, this will be flagged on our upcoming talks page, in the blurb and in the event via an announcement. Should you have any questions, do not hesitate to email schools@speakersforschools.org. You can read the Speakers for Schools safeguarding statement here

We have launched Virtual Talks (VTALKS) alongside in person talks, as a way for speakers to engage with schools remotely via video link (Skype, Hangout, Zoom etc). This service is free to use (if using a free online platform) and suitable for any audience size. Vtalks last between 40mins and one hour, including Q&A. Content, format, topic and theme are discuss with the speaker/their office ahead of the virtual talk.

Our Vtalks take place during school hours. A teacher must always be present in the virtual talk and the event should follow the school’s safeguarding policies. You can see the Speakers for Schools safeguarding statement. Should you have any questions, do not hesitate to email schools@speakersforschools.org.

Our in person talks are in school. They are large, assembly style events with plenty of engagement. In person events are usually one hour, including a Q&A. Content, format, topic and theme are discuss with the speaker/their office ahead of the talk.

An in person event should always have a teacher present in the room and are a managed visit to the school. You can see the Speakers for Schools safeguarding statement here Should you have any questions, do not hesitate to email schools@speakersforschools.org

All state-maintained secondary schools, colleges & academies in the UK are eligible to apply for a speaker. We will get in touch as soon as a speaker is able to commit to speaking at your school. Please note we prioritise under-served, higher-need schools in our network and aim to reach students with the least access to outside speakers so we hugely encourage these schools to apply. PRU and some SEN schools are eligible to apply but be sure to let us know the type of talk your school is looking for, so we can ensure we are able to provide the right speaker for your students. Unfortunately, we do not serve schools, academies or colleges outside of this remit, such as fee-paying institutions, due to our limited capacity and focus on supporting young people in the state sector. If you are a primary school interested in bringing speakers in, please see our sister charity’s programme Primary Future.

When you apply to Speakers for Schools you are submitting an application on behalf of your institution to become a part of our national school network for the opportunity to host any illustrious figure from our network year-on-year. To apply, SLT and staff in charge of whole-year or school events submit an application online. We might be in touch at any point about a potential speaker so email contact is crucial, and you can update your application online or by contacting us. In addition to broad topics of interest, the applicant also provides a ‘teacher’s statement’ explaining more about why they are applying and the preferred talk message to help the charity determine which speakers might be a fit for your school or students. To help us offer you the best support, please review these FAQs and How it works before submitting an application on behalf of your school or college here.

No. Thanks to our speakers who are donating their time and travel, all of our talks are completely free, and there are no charges to our schools, academies or colleges.

Given the nature of the speakers we work with, especially as a charity, the headteacher/senior leadership team will need to help with off-timetable arrangements and should greet the speaker on the day, but a deputy staff member can assist with coordinating the logistics in the lead up. We also encourage calling our offices at any point in the process to find out more about hosting or what speakers will expect. For more about requirements for planning a Speakers for Schools event see our guides on how to Plan a talk

Themes and formats should be agreed with speakers in advance of the talk. They are bespoke and depend on the individual speaker, but fall into broader themes which can be seen here. Most speakers provide unique insights as successful figures in their field to help inform and encourage students, while others can be more specialised. Talks should be one hour long with a large student audience (assembly style), followed by a Q&A. Exact formats are to be agreed with speakers and can be seen here. Key requirements of a SFS talk include: The session should be moderated by a member of SLT It should include a quick introduction about the speaker, mentioning the focus of the talk and encouraging students to think of questions ahead of the Q&A Be sure to offer your speaker a tour of the school or meet and greet with your headteacher as part of the visit. You can see our ‘On the Day Hosting Tips’ here.

Please look out for our emails! We arrange talks throughout the academic year so these can arrive at any time. This is key to working with the charity. Applicants receive a special notification email once we believe we have an available speaker. We ask that you send us a response confirming your interest as soon as possible. It’s important to act quickly when you hear from us, as any delay in responding may result in your school/academy/college missing out, as speakers often have busy diaries and receive a high volume of requests. To ensure that you do not miss an opportunity please be sure to ask your IT team to add the @speakersforschools.org domain to your safe senders list and check junk folders regularly. Please note, we keep your application open year on year unless told otherwise and you can always update your application or get in touch.

Our participation cycle is an on-going intensive process that takes place throughout the academic year and after considering your application and speaker requirements we will get in touch as soon as a speaker is available. From there, speakers and schools are put in touch to directly confirm timings, audience and the format for their event. When pairing speakers with school applications we take several factors into consideration, including: School, academy or college application and teacher statement Speaker topics and suitability Speaker availability and location School, academy or college frequency of hosting free talks Please note we prioritise under-served schools in high-need locations and aim to reach students with the least access to outside speakers.

Currently the charity has a very high volume of requests that exceeds our speaker availability although we endeavour to arrange at least one talk per year for those in our school network. Your application is kept open year on year, unless you ask us to remove it. Please note we prioritise under-served schools in high-need locations and aim to reach students with the least access to outside speakers. See above about keeping your contact details up to date and being responsive so you don’t miss out.

No. We appreciate careers education and special careers days are hugely important for students in preparing for their future, and awards evenings are a key part of the school year and as much as we would like to cater to all requests, these events fall outside of our remit. Our speakers expect to offer a high-level engaging talk to a large student cohort to broaden horizons. The expectations of a SFS talk include: Assembly style talk with large student audience One-hour session with plenty of student engagement and Q&A Event to be hosted and moderated by a member of SLT Further information about talk themes and formats can be seen here.

Unfortunately not. We do not have control over speakers’ busy diaries for pre-set events and we cannot guarantee that speakers will be in a given area or have availability on the dates requested. Our participation cycle is an on-going intensive process that takes place throughout the academic year and after considering your application and speaker requirements, we will get in touch as soon as a speaker is available.

No, we work on speaker availability and so typically schools cannot request a specific speaker. Once applied, you will receive speaker opportunities via email for speakers from across many industries. If you would like to apply, please apply here

Our speakers are not DBS checked as they are guests hosted by teachers at the school and should not to be left alone by teachers unsupervised with students. Their visit should be treated within school guidelines for visitors to the school.

In addition to speakers, being a part of the SFS national school network means access to our partners and hearing about great opportunities with like-minded organisations. We want to ensure you are in the know about other activities, events and resources your school can take advantage of to support your students. These include: A termly newsletter that highlights like-minded organisations offering free activities, events or resources Our Resource hub which lists related careers programmes, curriculum materials and subject-specific tools for our schools to use. We have also now launched our experience programme – our new portal advertising exclusive work experience and employer opportunities for the students who need it the most. Register your interest so we can notify you when we expand to your location. Be sure to look out for our emails and also follow us on twitter to find out first about special opportunities!

If your question isn’t answered here or on our schools and colleges page, please use the Contact us form

We have launched Virtual Talks (VTALKS) alongside on-site talks, as a way for speakers to engage with schools remotely via video link (Skype, Hangout, Zoom etc). This service is free to use (if using a free online platform) and suitable for any audience size.

Our charity focuses on giving state schools, academies and colleges access to the UK’s eminent, reputable figures from a range of industries – and to make it easier for these figures to give their time to young people. They are key, prominent individuals leading society or industry today, from technology to arts to business, who are often invited directly or by a major industry body that works with our charity (e.g. BAFTA, 30% Club, Creative Industries Federation and more). For more information about our speaker network and taking part, please see Our Speakers. If you are interested in giving school talks but your background falls outside of this or if you are a different type of speaker, be sure to see our sister charity InspiringtheFuture.org and our Resources Hub which lists related organisations looking for other types of volunteer speakers.

SFS talks are meant to be inspirational events that allow speakers to share their unique insights and advice with students as someone leading in their industry or discipline, to help broaden horizons and encourage students in their potential. They are also a chance for a real conversation with figures who are shaping the world today – ranging from real stories of how a speaker got to where they are, to how their industry is changing society as we know it. These are usually 1 hour assembly-style events, with a chance for a Q&A session to encourage an interactive, conversational event. For more information, see our speaker guides for specific formats, planning steps and suggested talk themes.

As a part of supporting our work, our speakers donate their time and travel. Since speaker circumstances vary the S4S team endeavours to make the talk fit in with existing travel plans as needed, but will still advise on locations and schools that will be the best use of time for all involved. We can work creatively to make this fit even for the busiest of diaries (i.e. a Friday before a holiday in the South West, or between meetings at a Newcastle office, or en route between London and an event in another city).

S4S talks are meant to be inspirational events that allow speakers to share their unique insights and advice with students as someone leading in their industry or discipline, to help broaden horizons and encourage students in their potential. They are also a chance for a real conversation with figures who are shaping the world today – ranging from real stories of how a speaker got to where they are, to how their industry is changing society as we know it. These are usually 1 hour assembly-style events, with a chance for a Q&A session to encourage an interactive, conversational event. For more information, see our speaker guides for specific formats, planning steps and suggested talk themes.

All state-maintained secondary schools, academies and colleges in the UK are eligible to apply to Speakers for Schools. Once a speaker becomes available, the Speakers for Schools team will shortlist school applications based on their overall suitability and then confirm our recommendation with the speaker’s office. This initial pairing is based on the speaker’s geographic preferences and date availability. Please note, we prioritise under-served schools in high-need locations and aim to reach students with the least access to outside speakers. Once a talk is agreed, speakers and schools are introduced to one another to discuss timings, audience and the format for their event. More about planning can be seen here. Schools are not able to make direct requests for individual speakers but instead provide us with preferred topics/industries. We do not share speaker contact information until both parties have agreed to an event.

Once a speaker has been introduced to a school, it is a requirement that the speaker (or their office) have a phone call with the school to agree the format of the talk, the key messages and takeaways for students, and to finalise the logistics of the visit. Our speakers guidewill help you craft your talk and outline the format and themes we recommend to ensure your talk has the desired impact on students. Our team is also on-hand to assist should you have any questions. You can contact us at: team@speakersforschools.org.

DBS checks are not required as the speaker will not have unsupported or unsupervised access to students. Schools and colleges have their own processes for vetting external speakers and expect these to be used when hosting Speakers for Schools talks. School staff are required to be at the talk and overseeing every stage of the visit. However for other activities that might come out of the talk (such as mentoring) a check may be required – for more about this visit  the GOV.UK website.

Please contact the team directly on team@speakersforschools.org to let us know about any changes or updates to titles, biographies etc or if you have had a change in circumstance. Importantly, as we work with schools and children, speakers must notify us as soon as possible if there is any reason to pause participation due to circumstances that might create reputational or safeguarding concerns that need to be addressed. These will be treated confidentially but speakers are responsible for alerting our charity to any such circumstances.

Our engagement team manages speakers’ work with the charity and we encourage you/your office to get in touch at any time if you have questions about how we work, preparing or support in arranging your talk. Please email any questions to team@speakersforschools.org

We have launched Virtual Talks (VTALKS) alongside on-site talks, as a way for speakers to engage with schools remotely via video link (Skype, Hangout, Zoom etc). This service is free to use (if using a free online platform) and suitable for any audience size.

The Speakers for Schools Experience service is primarily an advertising and application portal where state school students can apply for work experience and similar opportunities at leading organisations who have advertised via the portal. Employers, schools and students can all access the portal to advertise/apply for placements and access best practice guidance to assist with the running of placement.

Experience facilitates much-needed work experience and engagement opportunities between esteemed organisations and students who need these opportunities the most. Employers: We work with leading firms and organisations across the UK. Schools/Colleges/Academies: Any UK state secondary school, college or academy can apply, but please note we only have placements available in limited locations as we grow the programme. Students: This programme targets students who are lacking access to top professions but are enthusiastic about taking up a placement with a leading employer. As a minimum criteria you must attend a state school/college/academy and be 14-19 years of age.

This programme is free of charge, as an extension of the focused work of Speakers for Schools with state schools/colleges/academies and leading figures. There are basic user agreements and requirements however for using the service to ensure quality and safeguarding.

In order to take part you will need to register for the Experience portal. Click the ‘Sign Up’ button above and follow the simple application process, it takes just a couple of minutes to complete your full registration.

The Experience service was set up in 2017 (originally under the name ‘S4SNextGen’) and is continually growing. We have so far had placements across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and are working hard to broaden our reach further into different parts of the country.

Experience is a programme run by the charity Speakers for Schools, a UK education charity that helps level the playing field by breaking down barriers between state school students and the leading figures of today through free engagement opportunities. Please see our main site and for more details.

Our charity is made up of network of leading figures committed to giving their time each year to state schools, and helping level the playing field for young people of all backgrounds. Our ‘schools network’ is made up of nearly 50% of all UK state secondary schools, colleges and academies, all who have applied directly to our charity for the opportunity to host our speakers. We work across the year to organise events during the term time, now offering over 1,200 school talks a year and over 1000 work experience and insight day placements with top companies linked to our esteemed speakers.

The Experience programme from Speakers for Schools works with UK employers of all sizes who are leaders in their industry. We cater for employers with differing experience of hosting work experience, ranging from smaller organisations with no experience of hosting, those who host ad-hoc placements for family and friends and larger companies with existing programmes who want to engage with new schools and students. No matter your previous experience of hosting or priorities, please get in touch at to see how we can help.experience@speakersforschools.org

Our standard level of support and access to our work experience programme and platform are free to use. In return we require employers to confirm they have:

  • An Equal Opportunities policy in place and Data Protection policy that aligns with the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679
  • Carried out necessary conversations with insurers and managerial teams as required to meet liability and safeguarding requirements
  • Provisions in place to feedback after placements and for students
  • Willingness to share best-practice case studies and use the logo where agreed and appropriate to help in encouraging further organisations to take part
If you have any questions, please contact us directly via experience@speakersforschools.org We do encourage employers to pay expenses for travelling to and from the workplace and lunch where possible, as this allows more students to access the opportunities. If you require a higher level of service than our standard offering, please contact us and we will put together a costed proposal for you. Speakers for Schools is a registered charity and only charges employers to cover our costs. We do not make a profit.

You can register for the portal via the ‘Sign Up’ button above. Registration takes just a few minutes. We will then verify your account and grant you access to the portal. Employers manage their account and processes directly. Most organisations will have an a main user (often in the HR, CSR or D&I teams) but can also have additional colleagues registered to help manage other sites and/or review applications.

Experience is primarily an advertising and application portal for Speakers for Schools affiliated organisations to engage with state secondary students through high-quality workplace experiences. We are looking for employers interested in opening up 1 to 2 week work experience placements or insight days. If there is another activity you would like to advertise through the Experience portal, please do and we would be happy to discuss.

We know organisations need to find a programme that works for their industry, size and team. Importantly there is no required programme formats as it will be essential that you can shape work experience as suited for your organisation. However there are basic guidelines on the elements of a stellar Experience placement that help create a high-quality, high-impact experience in addition to specific industry/job insights. Speakers for Schools Experience placements should:

  • Be in a leading, reputable organisation for insights to a high-standard work environment
  • Enable students to gain and identify transferable skills
  • Encourage students to grow in areas such as confidence and leadership
  • Provide practical insights into opportunities and pathways into work
  • Set expectations for a work environment and professional etiquette
For work experience – we advise that the length be at least one week to give the student a real feel for the environment and a chance to see how your organisation works day-to-day. If you would like to discuss this at all, please contact us directly via experience@speakersforschools.org

Although we do not manage the full process for employers, we support by advertising placements, offering guidance on selection and shortlisting as well as sharing advice and examples for placement programmes. All affiliated organisations can also access a wealth of resources and case studies including guidance on age, duration, time of year, what models and activities are best, checklists, manager guidance, guidance for HR and example schedules. We also offer an initial consultation call for employers who are interested but unsure how to get started.

Ensuring sufficient safeguarding and health and safety policies are in place is incredibly important. However, this is often simpler than than you might think. It is incredibly rare to need DBS checks for staff and usually requires common-sense policies you would expect from workplace health and safety. When a student is selected, it is the responsibility of a school user (teacher) to check that the relevant processes are in place and you will be introduced directly, following selection. For more information please see our Safeguarding policy for employers

If you still have a question that hasn’t been answered or require further assistance, please contact us at experience@speakersforschools.org

Any state maintained secondary school, college or academy in the UK with students 14-19 years old are eligible to use this service. Whilst we are open to everyone, please be aware the programme prioritises schools/colleges with high levels of need without good links to reputable employers. Unfortunately, we do not serve schools, colleges or academies outside of this remit, such as fee-paying institutions, due to our limited capacity and focus on supporting young people in the state sector. If you believe you are eligible but your school does not appear on the registration list, please contact us at experience@speakersforschools.org

The Experience programme was set up in 2017 and is continually growing. We have so far had placements across England, Scotland and Northern Ireland and are working hard to broaden our reach further into different parts of the country. Placements available at any given time do vary so please do register above and click view opportunities to see what is currently available. If there are no opportunities available in your area we will email you as soon as local opportunities are added.

Our online platform primarily advertises one to two week work experience opportunities and one day career insight days. All placements are designed to be learning experiences that help students better understand the world of work, gain transferable skills and valuable insights about industries to help pave the way for their next steps.

All students at eligible schools are eligible to apply for placements. This programme is specifically targeted at high-need schools with poor access to work experience and students aged 14-19 with high need indicators (qualify for FSM, no previous or forthcoming work experience, no family networks to professions) so where high numbers of applications are received these students will be prioritised. Grades, qualifications and existing industry interest are not a factor for application, but enthusiasm, open-mindedness and need for the experience are. Employers hope to reach the students who are least likely to come into their industry or profession, and might not have the awareness, confidence, or links to do so without good work experience. We appreciate all students need work experience but given our remit as a charity and that this is a free service aiming to improve social mobility for young people, we hope educators can help us in reaching and encouraging those harder-to-access young people. If you believe you are eligible but your school does not appear on the registration list, please contact us at experience@speakersforschools.org.

All interested students are welcome to apply to opportunities through the Experience platform. Our employers often want to support social mobility and make their work places more inclusive and diverse, so will prioritise students who are higher need.

In order to access the portal and search for top opportunities for your students, you will first need to register for the portal. Click the ”sign up” button above and follow the simple application process, it takes just a couple of minutes to complete your full registration. We will then call your school or check your website to ensure you are a teacher at the school. Once verified, we will approve your account. Once registered, you are able to add multiple users. Your school can have multiple users (e.g. careers lead, head of year, form tutor etc.) who can each be allocated different students to manage (e.g. Year 10, STEM students, etc.). Once registered, we will contact you when relevant opportunities come up in your area. Please add experience@speakersforschools.org to your safe senders list to ensure you don’t miss out on these emails.

For information about safeguarding on our virtual work experience please click here for questions and answers.

Experience is powered by Speakers for Schools, a national education charity launched in 2011 that helps state secondary schools, colleges and academies access free high-profile talks from leading figures across all industries and backgrounds.

If you still have a question that hasn’t been answered or require further assistance, please contact us at experience@speakersforschools.org.

We ensure that everyone at SfS understands their roles and responsibilities in respect of safeguarding and is provided with appropriate learning opportunities to recognise, identify and respond to signs of abuse, neglect and other safeguarding concerns relating to young people. Should you have any safeguarding concerns please contact a member of our Safeguarding team on 0300 365 5888 option 6. To read our policy statement please click here

Students are encouraged to submit their questions for our speakers anonymously or through providing their first name only. If a student raises a safeguarding concern during a broadcast, our team at Speakers for Schools will follow our safeguarding procedure. Any safeguarding concerns raised will not be visible to other viewers. There will be no cameras/mics turned on for students either (webinar style). Speakers agree their content with SfS ahead of the event. Should we discuss sensitive content in the broadcast, this will be flagged on our upcoming talks page, in the blurb and in the event via an announcement. Should you have any questions, do not hesitate to email schools@speakersforschools.org. You can read the Speakers for Schools safeguarding statement here

Our Vtalks take place during school hours. A teacher must always be present in the virtual talk and the event should follow the school’s safeguarding policies. You can see the Speakers for Schools safeguarding statement. Should you have any questions, do not hesitate to email schools@speakersforschools.org.

An in person event should always have a teacher present in the room and are a managed visit to the school. You can see the Speakers for Schools safeguarding statement here Should you have any questions, do not hesitate to email schools@speakersforschools.org

For information about safeguarding on our virtual work experience please click here for questions and answers

To see our safeguarding for employers policy please click here

Our programme is entirely free thanks to the contributions of all of our partners. Every young person needs to have a copy of the Book Club book, of course.

National Teen Book Club is delivered online using Microsoft Teams.During the four weeks of the programme, every Wednesday at 3.30-4.30pm, we have our weekly live event. The event link is shared via email with educators, who will need to host and facilitate the session in a classroom or assembly hall on campus. Additional resources and information are available via our website and we provide a Handbook for each Book Club with more information.

Absolutely not. Simply click the event links to join the live sessions and then we will guide you through the rest, including how to use the chat, poll and Q&A functions and take part in breakout rooms. Microsoft Teamsis very intuitive to use and we recommend downloading the Microsoft Teams application for ease of access.

Like the National Curriculum, National Teen Book Club encourages young people to read widely for pleasure while developing knowledge, skills and confidence in responding critically, evaluatively and creatively. The programme provides a chance to read, understand and share a personal response to a different text each cycle, examining the language, form and structure used by the writer and considering the book’s themes in relation to its context.

YA fiction deals with topical, challenging and sometimes controversial themes, many of which link to the PSHE curriculum: mental health, human relationships, race, gender, sexuality, activism, the generation gap, the structure of society, climate change. All of our books will present opportunities to consider and explore themes linked to the PSHE curriculum, often from new perspectives.

In response to requests, we are pleased to welcome young people aged 11-13 alongside our core audience of 14-19, as well as to support discussion in breakout rooms. Access to live sessions for all students is through their educator. This means that educators must host sessions, and facilitate their interaction with other schools and colleges online in breakout rooms. Our Code of Conduct can be found in our Handbook and must be adhered to. Microsoft Teams is a fully audited platform and anyone misusing the chat function or behaving inappropriately during breakout rooms or Q&A during our live event will be removed from the call. The Speakers for Schools team are also DBS checked as the hosts

You will need to join us each week to gain the full benefit of the programme.If any of your students are unable to attend, they’ll be able to watch the recording back on Vimeo via our website. We know things may come up for you too: rest assured that any adult facilitator is able to cover the session. All they will need to do is ask students our Book Club questions. We also have seen it opportunities and resources to explore on our website as additional or alternative activities.We provide a series of prompts that will support them in doing this, as well as our weekly Book Club questions.

We have crafted the programme to support the achievement of Gatsby Benchmark 5 through skill- building and connection to career opportunities and employers.

National Teen Book Club links explicitly to the Skills Builder Framework for essential skills – most closely the skills of Listening, Speaking, Creativity, Aiming High, Teamwork and Staying Positive – to support participants in recognising and celebrating the skills developed through their active participation.