News and publications

Professor Tanya Ovenden-Hope, TDF Advisor and Professor of Education/​Dean of Place and Social Purpose at Plymouth Marjon University, shares her reflections on the Teacher Development Fund’s TeachMeet 2026.

We have made grants to three organisations supporting young people through our Youth Strategic Investment Fund.

The Backbone Fund provides £2 million in core, long-term funding each year to organisations working across civil society — organisations whose work sustains the conditions for justice, democracy, and collective care.

The Teacher-Artist Exchange is a place-based programme in Letchworth Garden City bringing together seven schools with the Broadway Gallery (a part of Letchworth’s Heritage Foundation) and uses visual art to support social, emotional and mental health outcomes. Sarah Golding, Head of Arts, Culture, and Heritage at the Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation, provides insight into the strategic significance of the Teacher Development Fund for all involved.

Led by Cleveland Road Primary School in Redbridge in partnership with five local schools and Eastside Education Trust, ​‘Who Are We?’ used poetry and spoken-word to celebrate pupils’ diversity and identity and to support cross-curricular learning. In this post, Fliss Gush, Head of Programmes and Engagement for Eastside, and George Coish, Head of Year 4 and Oracy Lead, Cleveland Road Primary School, reflect on their Teacher Development Fund journey and outlines their aspirations for the future of the collaboration.

Last year, we concluded the second round of funding through the PHF Arts Fund. Looking at the organisations we have supported through this round, we see a sustained commitment to artistic freedom, to working across difference and to celebrating places and communities across the UK.

As their Teacher Development Fund programme enters its final phase, Catherine Atkinson, Head of Professional Learning at The Rivers CofE Academy Trust, describes the impact of their partnership with Severn Arts. She shares insights into their professional learning approach and outlines plans to ensure the project leaves a lasting legacy across the Trust. 

Andrew Simpkins, Producer for Drama, Eden Court, shares his experience of TDF working with very small schools in the North West Highlands, many with composite classes and mixed-year groups. Andrew reflects on the importance of fun and joy within their learning programme and describes their approach to fostering a culture of co-learning.

The Key believes every young person deserves the chance to overcome barriers to personal growth and to shape a better future for all. Through their structured yet flexible model, young people build skills, confidence, and resilience — developing the agency to make meaningful contributions in their local areas.