The Daisy Education Reading Summit
Following on from the success of our annual International Reading Conference, we are thrilled to invite you to join us for our Daisy Education Reading Summit.
This event has now passed
Secure your place at the Daisy Education Reading Summit
Date: Wednesday 4th March 2026
Time: 8:30am – 3:30pm
Location: Now online!
Cost: £25
Can’t make it? You can still book a place to receive a recording of all the sessions.
Join us for a day of practical, evidence-informed thinking about reading and leave with ideas you can use straight away.
About the event
You may have seen the news about the Daisy Education Reading Summit, an event launched to support the National Year of Reading, which promises to share practices to improve reading outcomes for every learner.
The event was initially available only to local Birmingham schools; however, due to demand nationwide, we are thrilled to announce…
The Daisy Education Reading Summit is now online!
Schools from all over the country can now hear from the engaging lineup of speakers exchanging best practices and exploring fresh perspectives on how reading for pleasure and reading for learning intersect to shape confident, curious readers.
Each session is designed to equip participants with insights, tools, and approaches that can be applied in classrooms and across schools, helping leaders and teachers embed reading as a foundation for success and lifelong learning.
What you can expect
Topics covered throughout the day include:
- Reading for pleasure and pupil motivation.
- Effective, evidence-based reading instruction.
- Early intervention and closing the gap.
- Developing confident, independent readers.
- Leadership of reading.
- Strengthening home and community reading.
- Positive reading culture and staff wellbeing.
- Supporting high levels of need and effective differentiation.
Inspiring keynote speakers
Emma Kell
Teacher, Researcher, Coach and International Keynote Speaker
I’m passionate about the link between wellbeing, integrity and success. I’m insatiably curious about people, their unique contributions and their exciting potential.
I believe that the key to feeling fulfilled and successful as humans and professionals is to follow our moral compass, know our worth, be aware of what we model to those around us, and ultimately to take a deep breath and be brave, knowing we are valued and loved.
I take a pragmatic and optimistic approach to each of my roles, and I am constantly working to develop my expertise.
I tweet with persistent positivity and realism about wellbeing, education, parenting and cats. Follow me on Twitter – @thosethatcan.
Session: To be announced!
8:45 AM - 9:15 AM
Helen Breadmore
Professor of Literacy and Psychology in Education, University of Birmingham
Professor Helen Breadmore’s research aims to increase use of effective, evidence-informed approaches to literacy instruction. She achieves this directly through development, delivery and evaluation of evidence-informed approaches. In addition, her research includes evidence syntheses, empirical studies exploring the cognitive processes used during reading and spelling, and the causes and consequences of literacy difficulties.
Session: What works to support reading?
9:30 AM - 10:30 AM
Prof Helen Breadmore will describe some of her research about the individual and environmental influences on literacy development, and how we can use this knowledge to better understand what works to support reading development. She will particularly draw on experience delivering an evidence-informed whole class paired reading programme (PALS-UK) in large-scale randomised controlled trials, reflecting on how this helps us to understand not only whether an approach works, but how and why it leads to reading gains.
Dan Jones
Year 5/6 Teacher, St Wilfrid's Catholic Primary School, York
Session: To be announced!
10:45 AM - 11:15 AM
Daniel Sobel
Founder and Chair of the International Forums of Practitioners (IFIP) and President of the WIC
Daniel Sobel, Chair and Founder of the International Forums of Inclusion Practitioners, is a globally recognised authority on inclusive education. IFIP, a significant network spanning over 140 countries, is dedicated to the advancement and implementation of inclusive practices worldwide - empowering educators with evidence-based, practical strategies and actively influences policy development at both national and international levels.
The organisation collaborates with esteemed international bodies, including UNESCO and the European Union, on numerous global initiatives, fostering impactful partnerships and facilitating knowledge exchange. IFIP also hosts inclusion events across the globe, providing professional development and networking opportunities. Daniel founded and is President of the World Inclusion Congress, the first of which was hosted by the Kazakhstan government with 50+ education ministers,100+ education ministries, all major NGOs, UN bodies and 5K+ participants.
Session: To be announced!
11:30 AM - 12:30 PM
Sanne van der Kleij
Assistant Professor, University of Birmingham
Sanne's research focuses on language and cognitive development in middle childhood and early adolescence.
She is particularly interested in the role of reading experience in children’s language and literacy development and their ability to understand other people’s thoughts, intentions and emotions.
Session: Reading and vocabulary development across the school transition
1:15 PM - 2:15 PM
Sanne will discuss findings from a longitudinal study examining children’s reading comprehension and vocabulary across the school transition. During this session we will:
- Review evidence on the development of reading abilities and vocabulary knowledge from KS2 to KS3, and socioeconomic status-related differences in development of these skills;
- Look at the role of reading experience and motivation in development of reading comprehension and vocabulary at this stage, and
- Discuss implications for supporting pupils across the transition from primary to secondary education.
Sarah McGeown
Professor of Literacy (Psychology & Education), University of Edinburgh
Sarah is Professor of Literacy and Co-Director of the Literacy Lab at the University of Edinburgh. Her research focuses on understanding and enhancing children and young people's reading motivation and engagement, so that more children and young people enjoy and experience the wide range of benefits from books. In her research she works closely with children and young people, to ensure their voices, perspectives and experiences are reflected in her research.
Session: Supporting reading engagement: Exploring the evidence behind reading for pleasure practices
2:30 PM - 3:30 PM
Concerns about low levels of reading enjoyment and engagement in the UK has amplified interest in supporting reading for pleasure. But what reading for pleasure practices work?
This session will cover diverse practices used in primary and secondary school contexts to support reading enjoyment and engagement, the research behind these practices, and children and young people's perspectives and experiences of them.
The session will finish by sharing research-informed principles to embed into primary and secondary school contexts to inspire and sustain a love of reading.
