Latest blogs

Ark teacher stories: “Being a teacher keeps you young”

Wednesday 30th October 2019

Siân Maddrell recently joined Ark as the new Secondary Regional Director for South London. Siân is a successful school leader with more than 25 years’ experience. She was previously Headteacher of The Grey Coat Hospital and Chair of the Westminster Heads’ Collaborative. She talked to us about her journey in education so far.

Highlights from Ark's 2019 Teacher Summit

Monday 7th October 2019

More than 1600 teachers and educators from Ark schools came together on Friday (4 October) for an afternoon of reflection, learning and collaboration as part of the Ark 2019 Teacher Summit, held at Central Hall Westminster.

Ten ideas to help you communicate with parents of students with literacy needs

Monday 16th September 2019

Karen Wespieser, Director of Operations at Driver Youth Trust, examines the crucial role that relationships between teachers and parents play in the education of children with literacy difficulties, and shares so

How far can education research be directly applied to the classroom?

Friday 30th August 2019

Lisa Coe is a Primary Development Lead for Mathematics Mastery, one of Ark's ventures, and works with around 30 primary schools across the UK.

It’s not just the journey, it’s also the destination

Tuesday 20th August 2019

Rich Davies is Ark's Director of Insight. He is responsible for bridging the gap between the organisation's data and action. He advises senior leaders on strategic issues and works to ensure that all Ark leaders, teachers and students can make data-informed decisions.

Ark student stories: "I’m loving medical school, but I'm excited for what’s next"

Wednesday 7th August 2019

Isa Mahamud is currently studying medicine at the University of Southampton. He is an alumnus of Ark Walworth Academy, in South London. Recently he spoke at an event for Ark's Project Healthcare programme, talking about his experiences and hoping to inspire the next generation of students to pursue a career in medicine.

Changing roles and changing lives - part 2

Monday 15th July 2019

Making Early Years Matter

Tuesday 9th July 2019

As early years practitioners gather for this month’s Nursery World Conference, Lydia Cuddy-Gibbs, Head of Early Years for Ark Schools reflects on what drives her practice, and how to make a difference in early years.

Should teachers alone decide the curriculum?

Tuesday 2nd July 2019

This blog is part of a series on Ark's approach to curriculum. In this post, John Blake, Ark’s Curriculum Design Lead, discusses teacher autonomy and the importance of a coherent curriculum.

How schools can encourage girls to be leaders - from day one

Friday 28th June 2019

Laura Yandell is Deputy Head of Teaching, Learning and Curriculum at Ark Greenwich Free School. She recently completed a Masters in Education at Goldsmiths, specialising in issues around gender and leadership. In this blog post, she discusses the barriers girls face on their path to leadership roles and how schools can help overcome them.