‘Not only is it unsustainable, but it’s not delivering results.’ We bring together Benedicte Yue’s passion for inclusion with her financial expertise for a deep dive into the world of SEND. 

What’s making the current system unsustainable? What are the barriers to a more inclusive system? What would a more equitable and effective approach look like? Who can we learn from? And what needs to change in terms of accountability for this to work? 

‘We must transition from a narrow individual focus on accountability to a collaborative system.’

Benedicte Yue is Chief Financial Officer at River Learning Trust, bringing over 30 years’ experience in audit and finance to the role. Awarded CFO of the Year at the 2023 MAT Excellence Awards, she is a sector leader and champion for change.

Liz Worthen’s career in education spans teaching, training, commissioning and programme development. Creating Value in Schools is all about working sustainably: taking care of people, planet and resources to secure better outcomes for children and communities. 

#SustainableSchools #Education #Leadership #SEND

‘One of the things that I'm really aware of at the moment is so many school leaders are in this stage of it feels like it's one crisis after another. The perma-crisis. One more domino and another then another.’ 

Paul K Ainsworth shares how reading emergency planner Lucy Easthope’s book Come What May: Life-Changing Lessons for Coping with Crisis resonated with his experience of what happens when things go wrong in schools.  

Drawing on Lucy Easthope’s lessons, Paul talks about the phases of recovery, the dangers of hopium, acknowledging that it takes time for things to get better, and the importance of seeking help. 

‘But I genuinely believe it will get better. And I think that anything that we can do that rebuilds our reservoirs of hope is so important.’

Paul K Ainsworth is a school improvement champion. He has supported hundreds of schools on their improvement journey in his system leadership roles across four multi-academy trusts. Paul is the author of No Silver Bullets: Day In, Day Out School Improvement and writes on Substack as No Silver Bullets Man. 

Liz Worthen’s career in education spans teaching, training, commissioning and programme development. Creating Value in Schools is all about sustainable working: taking care of people, planet and resources to secure better outcomes for children and communities. 

#SustainableSchools #Education #Leadership

What does it mean to work sustainably or build a more sustainable organisation? Is it all about the environment? Drawing on contributions from podcast guests, host Liz Worthen questions what we mean when we talk about sustainability. What are the ingredients for a sustainable organisation and development? What does that look like for schools and education settings? 

Liz Worthen is an educator, researcher, podcaster and writer. Her career in education spans teaching, training, commissioning and programme development, creating resources which enable leaders to flourish in their roles. Creating Value in Schools is about the exploration of sustainable working in education, to secure better outcomes for learners and communities.

Podcasts featured in this episode

#SustainableSchools #Education #Leadership

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Host Liz Worthen gets together with school business leadership champions Helen Burge and Emma Gray to find out what they’ve been up to this term. 

Questions arising include: 

Both Emma Gray and Helen Burge were executive business leaders in trusts, and now support school business professionals through coaching, training and consultancy. Emma is a DfE accredited school resource management advisor, and Helen co-chairs the UK Schools Sustainability Network Operations Group. They are fans of risk management, internal scrutiny and operational excellence. 

Liz Worthen’s career in education spans teaching, training, commissioning and programme development. Creating Value in Schools is all about sustainable working: taking care of people, planet and resources to secure better outcomes for children and communities.

#SustainableSchools

#Education

#SchoolBusinessLeadership

What enables people to keep calm and carry on in the overwhelming intensity of school life? What helps people keep going, avoid burnout, and stay focused on the things that matter? 

Host Liz Worthen draws on lessons learned by previous podcast guests. What keeps them energised? What keeps them going?

‘You need to keep pulling yourself back to those as priorities. Because otherwise, your priorities are the whack a mole school of educational leadership, coming in, responding to the first person at your door, the person that sent you those emails.’

Liz Worthen is an educator, researcher, podcaster and writer. Her career in education spans teaching, training, commissioning and programme development, creating resources which enable leaders to flourish in their roles. Creating Value in Schools is about the exploration of sustainable working in education, in order to secure better outcomes for learners and communities.

Podcasts featured in this episode

Further resources

#SustainableSchools #Education #Leadership

How do we tackle the impact of poverty and disadvantage in our schools? Is education alone enough to combat inequality? What does it mean to be furiously curious about the causes of inequality and what can we do about it? Are you ready to be a graceful disruptor?

Host Liz Worthen talks to Sean Harris, aka That Poverty Guy, about why place matters, life in the Tees Valley, what it means to be a civil architect in practice, and the importance of listening. If he had the ear of the education secretary, what would he ask for?

‘A commitment to deep social justice needs deep social listening, and that involves having to work alongside and talk to people that are facing the lived and the living reality of these issues.’

Sean Harris is Director of People, Learning and Community Engagement (PLACE) at Tees Valley Education. He’s also an author, researcher, That Poverty Guy on Substack, and furiously curious about tackling inequality.

Liz Worthen started out as an English teacher, since then working in educational programmes, professional development and publishing. Liz is passionate about enabling fellow educators to have a positive impact on the world.

#SustainableSchools #Education #Inequality #SocialJustice

‘Make sure that children are there leading on these projects. Because if they're leading, then they're more likely to want to carry it on and encourage teachers, the community and their families to get involved too.’

Host Liz Worthen talks to Edd Moore about his experience of inspiring pupils with eco-projects in schools, integrating learning into the curriculum, and engaging families and communities in the process. Questions addressed include:

Edd also shares how teaching in Bali compares to the UK, and brings a whole new meaning to curriculum deep dives!

Edd Moore is an eco-schools champion. As a teacher he led his primary school to a number of awards, including the Jane Goodall Roots and Shoots Educational Institution of the Year. Edd is the author of 100 Ideas for Primary Teachers: Greener School, and combines providing eco-support to schools with his role as Head of Education at Green Schools Project.

For more ideas, inspiration and information, visit createvalueschools.com

#SustainableSchools

‘So if school business professionals are engaged and supported to adapt, I truly believe that the role can become more impactful, more strategic, and better recognised.’

Host Liz Worthen chats with award-winning CFO Benedicte Yue about thriving in a tough funding climate. From making smarter financial decisions to empowering your team, harnessing tech, and driving real community impact, Benedicte shares practical strategies and big-picture inspiration for school leaders who want to do more than just survive.

‘All these operational functions are really enablers to achieve wider goals and we should never lose sight of the North Star.’

For more ideas, inspiration and information, visit createvalueschools.com

#SustainableSchools

What’s the problem with free school meal funding? Where does your food come from, and where does it end up?

In this extract from our longer conversation, host Liz Worthen talks to school business leaders Emma Gray and Helen Burge talk about why food is high on the school agenda, with challenges around:

Top tip: whatever you do, do not put your food waste in the general waste bin!

#SustainableSchools

#Food

'Sometimes the smallest thing can be a game changer.'

School business leadership champions Emma Gray and Helen Burge join Liz Worthen for SBLs Unbound: a candid conversation on what’s surprised, challenged and inspired in schools this year. From budget stress and staff turnover to sustainability and school meals, they share tips to help SBLs thrive, not just survive.

'If you're spending money to throw stuff away, that just seems crazy.'

#SustainableSchools