First Communities of Practice event for Gatsby’s Technical Education Networks

Gatsby’s Technical Education Networks hosted its first Communities of Practice Conference in London on 6 March 2026

The Technical Education Networks (TEN) programme supports technical education teachers to deliver an engaging and enriched curriculum for their students. Drawing on the expertise of specialist teachers, employers, awarding bodies and professional organisations, the programme develops free teaching resources, hosts events and commissions research to support high-quality technical education and bring industry and the classroom closer together.

The conference took place at County Hall, London and brought together TEN’s 15 Communities of Practice, which cover all T Level routes. The event enabled teachers to participate in route-specific, in-depth discussions with peers – sharing successes and challenges, as well as collaborating on curriculum resources.

Delivered in collaboration with the Association of Colleges, the conference welcomed over 300 delegates from providers across the country. The day opened with keynote speeches from Fernanda Mendez Vargas (T Level Student of the Year 2024) and Ryan Skitt (T Level Student of the Year 2025). The rest of the day was spent in breakout sessions, led by chairs and co-chairs who are T Level teachers and curriculum leaders currently delivering within each route or pathway.

Content focused on topics identified as most valuable by each Community of Practice. These sessions successfully brought together practical insights and subject-specific expertise, with valuable discussions on key issues, updates on newly developed teaching materials, and examples of curriculum sequencing models. Sessions comprised practitioner-led demonstrations, with some highlights including approaches to assessing 12-mark questions in Health, the use of artificial intelligence in Science, and a CISCO Packet Tracer demonstration in Digital.

Key T Level stakeholders were also in attendance, including the Department for Education, the T Level Ambassadors Network, the Education and Training Foundation, the Strategic Development Network and all awarding bodies delivering T Levels (Pearson, NCFE, City & Guilds, WJEC and EAL). These organisations hosted stalls in the marketplace area, giving delegates the opportunity to engage with them during lunch. La Retraite RC School and South Bank College also brought some T Level students to support discussions.

Overall, the conference provided a valuable opportunity to share insights, with a clear sense of shared purpose and practical takeaways for the year ahead. Attendees left with new ideas, resources and connections to support their delivery of T Levels, alongside a clearer view of how the Communities of Practice will continue to evolve.

The Communities of Practice will hold their final online meeting of the 2025/26 academic year in June 2026. Those interested in joining the mailing list for further details, you can join the mailing list via the sign-up form.

To access the free T Level teaching resources and wider support available, visit the Gatsby TEN website: www.technicaleducationnetworks.org.uk.

For more information about the programme, please contact Charlie Moss, Head of FE Curriculum Support, at charlie.moss@gatsby.org.uk.