Reading, writing, speaking and listening instruction all have valuable, mutually supportive contributions to make in developing keen readers and enthusiastic writers amongst primary school pupils, primary school teachers will hear at an online conference.

Martin Galway, Head of School Programmes at the National Literacy Trust, will explore the multiple connections between reading and writing, when he speaks at The Primary Writing Conference organised by education charity Services For Education.

Martin is one of five key-note speakers at the online conference for school leaders and primary school teachers on Thursday, April 10, 2025. The conference is designed to provide an informative and interesting range of information about writing teaching and learning.

Headline speaker at the event is Alex Quigley, a teacher and school leader of over 15 years and the author of best-selling books including those in the ‘Closing the Gap’ series, and ‘The Confident Teacher’. Alex will explore some of the key challenges facing pupils in an environment where there is a currently a national decline in writing outcomes.

Other speakers include Debra Myhill, Professor Emerita of Education at the University of Exeter, UK, and a Fellow of the British Academy whose research focuses particularly on the inter-relationship between metalinguistic understanding and writing, and Sonia Thompson, Headteacher at St Matthew’s C.E. Primary School and the Director of St Matthew’s Education Endowment Foundation Research School, in Birmingham. St Matthew’s is a Talk for Writing Training Centre and Sonia will discuss the practical elements of the implementation of a successful writing culture, regardless of which approach you take, during her session.

The conference will be hosted by Emma Mudge, School Adviser specialising in English at Services For Education. She has more than 20 years of experience working in primary education and, in more recent years, has supported school leaders and classroom teachers to develop and improve their approach to the teaching of writing. Further information on the conference is available at https://www.servicesforeducation.co.uk/online-writing-conference/

ENDS

Emma Mudge, School Adviser specialising in English at Services For Education

For further information:

Public and media relations for Services For Education:
David Clarke
E: [email protected];
M: 07808 735255

About Services For Education: An education and training charity based in Birmingham, Services For Education brings music and learning to life. Services For Education employs more than 200 staff delivering music tuition to children, and expert training and development to teaching and school support staff. It has annual income of £6.9m (Y/E August 2023). Part-funded by the Arts Council, England it also has its own fundraising and subsidised commercial operations.

• Services For Education’s School Support Service provides expert training and development to teaching and support staff in nearly 600 schools in the West Midlands and increasingly across England, to improve practice and ensure teachers are best equipped to respond to developments in curriculum and policy. As a leading provider of safeguarding education, Services For Education works with 400 schools delivering training in-person and on-line. It also delivers innovative programmes to support the physical and emotional health of children and young people through Health for Life and other community-based activity.
• Services For Education’s Music Service, one of the largest in the country, works with 98% of Birmingham schools and each year teaches music to nearly 32,000 children – as well as running 113 free ensembles. It provides 27,000 musical instruments free-of-charge so all children have access to playing and enjoying music together and its Youth Proms at Symphony Hall give 4,000 young musicians the opportunity to perform to an audience of more than 10,000. It also runs music schools, has a world music department, provides private music tuition to all ages as well as working with partners to deliver music and choral opportunities to disadvantaged and vulnerable groups. Its award-winning Online Music Educational Resource was completed and launched free to schools in 2021 to appeal to a young IT-connected audience attracted to learning online and to complement traditional tuition.
• servicesforeducation.co.uk

Issued on behalf of:

Services For Education
Unit 3 Holt Court
Holt Street
Birmingham Science Park
Aston
Birmingham B7 4AX