Annual Conference 2025

Deeper and meaningful

Theology, Philosophy and Religious Studies

We believe that our subject is the most meaningful subject in our schools. At the request of our members, we have dedicated this conference to exploring Ofsted’s April 2024 subject report entitled Deep and meaningful? The report has been praised by many members and other voices in the sector. We will investigate how the report can enhance our work in the independent sector and partnerships with state schools. Our conference programme will allow us to go even deeper!

Delegates will have the opportunity to reflect on how our Theology, Philosophy and Religious Studies departments play a role in preparing pupils to engage in a complex multi-religious and multi-secular world. Our decisions on the content – what we leave in and what we leave out – that we include in our curriculums, how we sequence and systematically build content, and how we go about teaching and assessing all play a role in this daunting task. Our decisions also extend beyond the academic and our classrooms play a significant role in character and personal development.

Our keynotes will come from Hazel Henson (His Majesty’s Inspector and Ofsted’s Curriculum Lead for Religious Education) and Professor James Arthur OBE (former Director of the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues, and currently a member of the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard College).

As with last year, we are delighted that exam boards will present training sessions each on their GCSE and A Levels, and there will be training sessions for those who teach Years 7 to 9 and Prep Schools.

We are delighted to announce that ISRSA members can invite two teachers from maintained schools to this conference at a subsided cost of £125 each thanks to a generous funding agreement. Those wishing to get these subsidised tickets are to write to the ISRSA office at [email protected], and a separate invoice will be sent.

Mathematical Institute
University of Oxford
Radcliffe Observatory Qtr.
Woodstock Road
Oxford OX2 5GG

Thursday 20 March 2025

Pricing:
Paid Members £195
Non-members £275
PGCE Students £100

Why Attend?

Engage with Experts:
Hear from Hazel Henson (His Majesty’s Inspector and Ofsted Curriculum Lead for Religious Education) and Professor James Arthur OBE (Harvard College), as they provide thought-provoking keynotes on curriculum development and character education.
Practical Insights:
Participate in workshops tailored to Years 7-9/Prep Schools, GCSE, and A Level teaching. Gain actionable advice from leading exam boards and specialists.
Shape the Future:
Join a panel discussion featuring experts exploring how we can make Theology, Philosophy and Religious Studies deeper and more meaningful in a multi-religious and multi-secular world.
Explore Cutting-Edge Topics:
Learn about the role of AI in education, the latest enrichment opportunities, and the importance of coaching and professional development for RS and Philosophy teachers.

Programme

Time	Session	Event
9.15-9.30	1	Welcome and Introduction Professor Barnaby Lenon CBE, Chair of the Independent Schools Council
9.30-10.15	2	Keynote 1: “Deep and meaningful? The religious education subject report” Hazel Henson HMI Ofsted published its latest subject report on Religious Studies in April 2024, looking at the strengths and weakness of how RE is taught in schools. The report is based on Ofsted’s findings from visits to 50 schools in England between September 2021 and April 2023. Sir Martyn Oliver, Ofsted’s chief inspector, said: “I hope that the examples of good RE curriculum in our report help schools develop their own practice and support the development of a strong RE curriculum for all.” Whilst many Independent Schools are not inspected by Ofsted, but by the Independent Schools Inspectorate, many members have taken a keen interest in what it had to say on its findings. Hazel’s keynote will unpack the report’s recommendations on curriculum, building substantive knowledge to prepare pupils to engage in a complex multi-religious and multi-secular world, teaching, assessment, and systems at subject and school level so that the subject is taught well.
10.15-10.45		Break: tea and coffee
10.45-11.45	3	Panel discussion on “Deeper and meaningful Religious Studies” with an opportunity for Q&A by delegates Chair: Julie Arliss. Panel members: Hazel Henson HMI, Professor Liam Gearon, Dr Louise Hickman and Laura Miller.
11.50-13.10	4-5	Training for Years 7-9, Prep Schools, GCSE & A Level
11.50-12.30	4a	GCSE: Meet your exam officers from AQA, Edexcel/Pearson, Eduqas/WJEC and OCR
11.50-12.30	4b	Years 7-9 and Prep Schools: Enriching Theology for Years 7–9 Cecilia Bidie and Izaak Tanna
12.30-13.10	5a	A Level: Meet your exam officers from AQA, Edexcel/Pearson, Eduqas/WJEC and OCR
12.30-13.10	5b	Years 7-9: Fine-tuning the curriculum in Years 7-9 for outstanding results Andrew Capone
13.10-14.00		Lunch
14.00-14.10	6	Annual General Meeting All members are welcome to join the AGM
14.10-15.10	7	Keynote 2: “To Fulfil Our Human Promise – The Aristotelian Picture of Character and Virtues” Professor James Arthur OBE, Harvard Ofsted’s subject report said: “we are aware that the way that schools approach RE can be relevant to two different judgements within our education inspection framework (EIF): the quality of education and personal development”; however, Ofsted decided for the report to be “primarily concerned with the school RE curriculum considered through the lens of the quality of education judgement” and therefore did not explore personal development. When James was Director of the Jubilee Centre, he met with senior Ofsted officials to advise on the place of character in the Ofsted framework for schools; they were persuaded and the language of character in Ofsted’s framework echoes the work of the Jubilee Centre more broadly. James’s keynote will explore what Ofsted might have said on personal development, and how Religious Studies can enable pupils to flourish in a complex multi-religious and multi-secular world with the help of Aristotelian and neo-Aristotelian thought. Delegates may be interested in reading the Jubilee Centre Framework for Character Education in Schools.
15.10-15.25		Break: tea and coffee
15.25-16.00	8	Options
	8a	Coaching and professional development of Religious Studies teachers: theory and practice Professor Liam Gearon
	8b	Teaching Philosophy A Level Oliver McAdoo
	8c	AI in 2025 – the latest developments for the classroom Zak Verry
	8d	Enrichment opportunities: Philosothons, The Ethics Cup, the International Philosophy Olympiad, essay prizes, and more! Daniel Soars
	8e	Networking opportunity

Speaker Profiles

Professor Barnaby Lenon CBE

Barnaby is Chair of the Independent Schools Council, which brings together seven associations of independent schools and represents over 1400 independent schools in the UK and overseas. He is the dean of education at the University of Buckingham. He has written six books including Much Promise about high-achieving state schools and Other People’s Children about the least academic 50% in England. He researches the characteristics of effective teachers in the UK and USA.

Hazel Henson HMI

Hazel serves as His Majesty’s Inspector at Ofsted and is Ofsted’s Curriculum Lead for Religious Education. Hazel is a qualified teacher who also holds a Master’s degree in Education by Research and the National Professional Qualification for Headship. Before working for Ofsted, she gained extensive senior management experience as the headteacher of a number of primary schools in rural and urban settings. She has also worked as a consultant for the local authority, the diocesan board of education and the Church of England. She was appointed as subject lead for RE at OFSTED in March 2023.

Professor James Arthur OBE

James is the former Director of the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues, the leading research centre in the world dedicated to the study of character, from 2012 to 2023. James was Head of the School of Education in the University of Birmingham from 2010-2015 and Deputy Pro-Vice-Chancellor from 2015-2019. He has written widely on the relationship between theory and practice in education, particularly the links between character, virtues, citizenship, religion and education. His recent publications include: The Formation of Character in Education: From Aristotle to the 21st Century (2020) and Virtues in the Public Sphere: Citizenship, Civic Friendship and Duty (2019). He is currently serving at the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard College. He was awarded an OBE by the Queen in 2018. Character.org has selected James to receive the 2024 Sanford N. McDonnell Award for Lifetime Achievement in Character Education.

Julie Arliss

Julie is the Chair of the ISRSA and MD of Academy Learning. She is known for the conferences she organises for schools, working in partnership with the Ian Ramsey centre, University of Oxford. She was awarded a Farmington Scholarship by Harris Manchester College, Oxford and has taught in both private and maintained schools, in the UK and abroad. She is currently based in the Theology Faculty, University of Oxford.

Professor Liam Gearon

Liam is Associate Professor in the Department of Education, Senior Research Fellow at Harris Manchester College, University of Oxford, Conjoint Professor at Newcastle University, Australia, and Visiting Professor at the Irish Centre for Catholic Studies, MIC, Limerick, Ireland. He is Founder-Director of the Philosophy, Religion, Education Research Group, Liam is a specialist in the interdisciplinary study of religion in education, and has led the teaching of religious education at Oxford for a decade.

Laura Miller

Laura studied Philosophy at the University of Warwick and has been teaching for twelve years across various independent schools. She is currently Head of Divinity at Eton College where she has held the position for four years. She has a Masters in Educational Innovation and is currently reading an MA in Religion alongside her teaching practice. She is also an assistant examiner for A Level Religious Studies and the Philosophy setter for Common Entrance Religious Studies for ISEB.

Dr Louise Hickman

Louise is Reader in Philosophy of Religion and programme lead for taught post-graduate Theology provision at Birmingham Newman University. She studied for her first two degrees at the University of Exeter and completed her PhD at the University of Cambridge. She has published on various aspects of the history of philosophy, the philosophy of religion, and science and religion. From 2011-2018, she was editor of Reviews in Science and Religion. Louise is a Fellow of the International Society for Science and Religion and a Senior Fellow of the UK’s Higher Education Academy. She is also a trustee of the Trussell Trust.

Cecilia Bidie

Cecilia is Deputy Head Pastoral at St. Philip’s School

Izaak Tanna

Izaak is the Head of Theology and History at St. Philip’s School.

Andrew Capone

Head of Religious Studies at St Simon Stock School.

Oliver McAdoo

Oliver is Head of Philosophy Godalming School. He is Principal Examiner for the Cambridge Pre-U and Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board. He is an author, speaker for Keynote Education, and a philosophy consultant for Cambridge University. He is in the process of creating a new Philosophy A Level to be run alongside the current RS A Level and, should this prove successful, a GCSE in ‘pure’ philosophy – the first of its kind in Britain.

Zak Verry

Queen Elizabeth Hospital School Head of Digital Strategy and Innovation, and Head of Religion and Philosophy.

Daniel Soars

Daniel teaches in the Divinity department at Eton College, having previously taught at Stonyhurst College; St. Benedict’s, Ealing; and Hills Road Sixth Form in Cambridge. He has extensive experience working for examination boards. He is currently national coordinator for UK Philosothons and in charge of the UK Philosophy Olympiad. He has written The World and God Are Not-Two: A Hindu-Christian Conversation and enjoys doing research on comparative Hindu-Christian themes.