Why Drama? The Impact of Drama within the Primary Curriculum

Speakers

• Aisling Swift Panel Chair
  

  Aisling Swift

  Panel Chair

  Aisling is the Primary Officer for National Drama. She has been teaching Drama and Performing Arts for over 20 years. Initially qualifying as secondary drama teacher, the majority of her experience has been as a freelance drama specialist, working within primary schools; with theatre outreach programmes; arts charities and organisations; and the wider community. As a professional singer and trained dancer, Aisling’s teaching practice also incorporates dance, music, musical theatre and creative mindfulness, as well as drama. Aisling also works as a freelance director and choreographer, and as an actress and singer – currently fronting two bands. Advocating for the inclusion of drama in primary curriculum, as well as its high-quality delivery, is at the heart of Aisling’s professional ethos.

• Dan Jones Panellist
  

  Dan Jones

  Panellist

  Dan is a primary school teacher with sixteen years classroom experience both in Birmingham and Outer London. He currently works at Allens Croft Primary School in Birmingham with responsibility for Early Years and leading the arts team. As Creative Arts Lead, he has led the school through three successful rounds of Artsmark, achieving the Platinum Award through successful work with local partnership arts organisations in order to drive up the quality of arts outcomes for pupils. He also sits on the Strategic Advisory Board for Birmingham Arts School, whose mission is to build greater and more meaningful connections between schools and arts organisations in the region. He is studying for an MA in Shakespeare and Education through the Shakespeare Institute at the University of Birmingham.

• Deborah Pakkar-Hull Workshop Leader Panellist
  

  Deborah Pakkar-Hull

  Workshop Leader Panellist

  Deborah has nearly 30 years’ experience working in Educational Drama and Theatre in a variety of roles, including Actor-Teacher, Drama Teacher and Advisor. She has held three Artistic Director positions at The Play House, a Theatre in Education company from Birmingham; on the York Mystery Plays, an outdoor community theatre event; and at Theatre Company Blah Blah Blah, a company specialising in work for children and young people based in Leeds. Deborah has also led projects in primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong, Nigeria and India.

  Deborah’s recent experience includes working as a Teaching Associate on the Royal Society of the Arts’ Performing Pedagogy initiative, and facilitating a year-long, whole-staff professional development programme in partnership with a primary school in Leeds, together with Dr Geoff Readman.

  Deborah regularly teaches at universities across the UK and is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

• Dr Geoff Readman Chair National Drama
  

  Dr Geoff Readman

  Chair National Drama

  Geoff Readman has worked extensively in drama and theatre as an actor-teacher, primary and secondary drama specialist, inspector and university lecturer. In 1976, as Leader of the Wakefield Drama Team, he worked extensively with LEA primary schools leading CPD and cross curricular Drama projects. At Bishop Grosseteste University, he established an undergraduate degree for Drama in the Community.

  International experiences include teacher training projects in India, Hong Kong, China and South Korea. For several years he was Visiting Professor of Drama at Hong Kong University.

  He has also directed primary Theatre-in-Education programmes with Blah Blah Blah in Leeds, The Playhouse in Birmingham and Chengdu Theatre in China.

  He is currently a freelance Consultant in Theatre and Drama Education.

• Gill Brigg Workshop leader
  

  Gill Brigg

  Workshop leader

  Gill has over 40 years’ experience as a cross-phase Drama Teacher, Theatre-Maker, and Advisory Teacher. She has worked for the last 20 years in Specialist Schools as a TIE performer, Drama specialist, and class teacher. She has experience in working alongside SENCOs within mainstream schools, specifically to offer support with access to Drama methodology for increasingly neurodivergent cohorts of children and young people. She works nationally and internationally with teachers, actors, and academics, developing their practice with neurodivergent groups. Collaborating with Theatre-Makers to make pieces accessible to audiences with complex needs, she also serves on boards and advisory groups to represent the cultural rights of children and young people with limited access to Theatre and Drama.

• Larraine Harrison Workshop leader
  

  Larraine Harrison

  Workshop leader

  Since qualifying as a teacher in 1969, Larraine Harrison has taught all ages and abilities including some time working in a special school. She has been a leader of a Local Authority drama-in-education team, a literacy consultant, a drama consultant, an Ofsted inspector and a Local Authority school improvement adviser. She has written several books including 2 children’s novels: Red Snow and Angel’s Child and 7 practical drama books for teachers covering EYFS to Key Stage 3. Her two most recent drama books are Drama and Reading for Meaning ages 4-11 and Drama and Writing ages 5-11 (Routledge).

• Patrice Baldwin Keynote Speaker Panellist
  

  Patrice Baldwin

  Keynote Speaker Panellist

  Patrice Baldwin is Chair of the Council for Subject Associations, a Higher-level Action Learning Facilitator (ILM), and an internationally recognised ‘Drama for Learning’ specialist. Patrice has published several books, most recently, ‘Process Drama for Second Language Teaching and Learning,’ (Bloomsbury, 2022), with Alicja Galaska, and ‘40+ ‘Drama’ Strategies to Deepen Whole Class Learning’ (Routledge, 2024). She has delivered conference speeches and Drama workshops in almost 40 countries. Patrice was Chair of National Drama (2004 -2014) and President of the International Drama Theatre and Education Association (2010 -2013), having been a primary headteacher, local authority School Improvement Professional, Arts Education Adviser (Norfolk), and an Ofsted inspector. She was Sir Jim Rose’s Editorial Expert for Drama in his proposed Primary national curriculum, and Oak National Academy’s Primary Drama curriculum leader during the pandemic, (2020-2021). She has also worked as a BBC Education scriptwriter and series consultant for Drama, (radio and TV).

• Peter Kennedy Workshop Leader
  

  Peter Kennedy

  Workshop Leader

  Peter Kennedy is a Drama-in-Education specialist with more than thirty years’ experience. As Consultant Practitioner on Stockport’s Drama, Engagement, Active Learning (DEAL) programme, Peter works with children and teachers, equipping both with this powerful pedagogy to make learning irresistible. As part of the North West Drama Services team Peter directs Children’s Shakespeare Festivals in both Stockport and Oldham.

• Rebecca Bell Keynote Speaker Workshop Leader Panellist
  

  Rebecca Bell

  Keynote Speaker Workshop Leader Panellist

  As Director of Integrate Education, Rebecca works as a Consultant Practitioner in Education, specialising in creative teaching and learning, curriculum design, teacher training, leadership development and accredited coaching (ILM). Beginning her career in Education as a Secondary Drama and Theatre Studies Teacher, she has worked as a teacher, manager and leader in schools, and an Associate Lecturer in Education at Manchester Metropolitan University. Rebecca currently supports individual schools, Multi Academy Trusts, Local Authorities and Museum Services across the UK. Her work also takes her into international schools around the world, as an Artistic Director and Consultant Practitioner with ISTA (International Schools Theatre Association). Rebecca has a reputation for her commitment to action research and advancement in education. She takes delight in sharing her learning at conference events as a speaker and workshop leader, and through published articles.