The UK’s vibrant and growing education technology sector took centre stage at the first Edtech UK Global summit held at London’s City Hall on 4th November 2016.
The summit included key speeches from Rajesh Agrawal, the Deputy Mayor of London for Business and Enterprise, Liam Maxwell, National Technology Adviser, HM Government, Bridie Tooher, Head of Edtech Policy & Data Strategy, Department for Education and Richard Gregory, Director of Tech North.
It provided a crucial forum for policy makers, businesses and investors, to connect start-ups with schools, colleges and universities and to forge new alliances that enable Britain to be a global Edtech hub that’s open for business and international trade.
With a $5 trillion global education market, the Edtech sector is growing at a rapid rate and set to reach $250bn by 2020. The Summit run by Edtech UK will showcase the UK’s fastest growing Edtech startup and scaleup companies which are leading the world in innovation and impact including Kano, Technology will Save Us, Showmyhomework and Futurelearn.
From startup to scale-up to large business, London is helping to lead the way in supporting a dynamic British Edtech ecosystem. Growing Edtech clusters across the UK including Manchester, Sunderland and Cardiff are also adding weight to our status as a global Edtech hub.
The Summit came as Ian Fordham, CEO of Edtech UK was appointed as a Mayor of London “London Technology Ambassador”. He joins a high profile group of tech leaders including Sherry Coutu, James Layfield and Eileen Burbidge who promote London’s vibrant technology and digital sector internationally and help attract businesses to London.
Ian Fordham, CEO of Edtech UK, said: “I’m honoured to take on the role of London Tech Ambassador and help promote the vibrant Edtech ecosystem that now exists in the City. The summit also provides an opportunity to bring the UK’s Edtech ecosystem together for the first time and celebrate work going on across Britain. In a rapidly changing world, the Edtech sector continues to grow at a rapid pace and London and the UK have the potential to become the next biggest hub of education and learning technology and drive new opportunities for growth and international trade.”