SENDcast Spotlight – Welcome Michael Smith and Kathryn Parkinson!

Michael Smith is the Founder and Chairman of Pivot Group, the specialist SEND education provider he established in Yorkshire in 2016. He is the architect of the Pivot 2030 Charter, the organisation’s public statement of intent for the next five years, and a contributor to the national conversation on specialist SEND provision, including recent participation in the Independent Schools Association (ISA) roundtable on the SEND White Paper.

Michael is happy to talk about specialist SEND provision and partnership with mainstream settings, system reform, value for money in SEND, and the role of independent specialist schools as active participants in local SEND systems. He also welcomes co-design conversations with local authorities seeking sustainable specialist capacity, and media comment on SEND policy and provision.

Kathryn Parkinson is CEO of Pivot Group, leading the operational delivery of specialist SEND education across the group’s Yorkshire schools. She carries operational responsibility for the Places and Partnerships commitments of Pivot’s 2030 Charter: the new learning hubs opening in Wakefield and Bradford, and the working relationships with local authorities and mainstream settings that make reintegration possible.

Kathryn welcomes practitioner-level conversations on running specialist SEND provision, including school leadership, safeguarding and staff retention, as well as reintegration partnerships with mainstream schools, co-design conversations with local authorities, and speaking and training opportunities focused on the operational reality of specialist provision.

Pivot Group is celebrating its tenth anniversary year, with new learning hubs opening in Wakefield and Bradford as part of its regional Yorkshire network.