WHY CHOOSE ACEN AND OUR COLLABORATIVE, FACILITATOR-LED TRAINING?

With an average feedback score of 9.4 gathered across all staff participants, ACEN’s work is as much about the ‘how’ as the ‘what’, and we are often invited to support schools that want to move from awareness to action. Sustainable cultural change requires both understanding and practical confidence, so staff can apply learning to real-life situations across school life, ensuring change is embedded, understood, and valued across the community rather than remaining theoretical.

As such, our sessions are designed to be discussion-led and grounded in the realities of school life, which is why we recommend face-to-face delivery wherever possible. This allows facilitators to adapt to the room, respond to what emerges, and support more nuanced discussion and application.

Our training is continually updated and tailored to address the most pressing challenges in schools, guided by historical context, data, and ongoing input from educators, parents, students, and the schools we work with nationwide.

We know from feedback that staff gain the most from being able to ask questions in a supported environment and learn from facilitators who bring both professional expertise and lived experience, as well as learn from each other.

Each facilitator brings insight into the distinct challenges faced across different educational contexts, including state and independent, junior and senior, and both racially diverse and more homogenous spaces. Our team brings a breadth of perspectives across the school system, from governance and senior leadership to classroom staff.

At the heart of our practice is a commitment to centring the lived experiences of racially minoritised students, parents, and educators, ensuring our work remains grounded, relevant, and impactful.

To evidence this, a selection of testimonials from staff training sessions can be found at the bottom of this page.

STAFF TRAINING MODULES

The Rationale for Racial Inclusion

Let’s Just Talk about Race: Racial Literacy, Cultural Competency, and Bias in Education

This interactive, discussion-based workshop supports staff to build the understanding, language, and confidence needed to engage with conversations about race and racism in education. Through guided dialogue, shared reflection, and real-life scenarios, participants learn from one another while developing the practical skills required to recognise and respond to incidents across school settings. The session models confident, respectful conversation in real time, helping staff move beyond awareness into practice.

Content:

• Understanding personal and systemic bias in education
• Exploring how bias manifests in classroom practice, pastoral decisions (can include HR and admissions if relevant)
• Developing racial literacy: language, concepts, and confidence
• Cultural awareness and sensitivity as key tools for equitable practice
• Understanding and identifying microaggressions and their impact on pupils and staff
• Real-life examples drawn from staff, student, and ACEN facilitator experiences

Note: We strongly suggest that when booking this workshop, it include ‘The Rationale for Racial Inclusion’ presentation to provide contextual grounding.

Duration:

• 60-75 minutes (with ‘The Rationale for Racial Inclusion’ presentation)
• 90-120 minutes (without ‘The Rationale for Racial Inclusion’ presentation)

Format: Group workshop
Recommended ratio: 1 facilitator per 30-40 members of staff
Audience: All school staff, including governance, business, and support

Responding to Racist Incidents: Accountability, Policy, and Practice

STAFF TRAINING TESTIMONIALS

Aisha, Shola, Justice and Serena delivered highly engaging training sessions covering themes such as racial inclusion, literacy, confidence and competence. Our staff particularly appreciated their reflections on their personal experiences and the interactive workshops gave staff the opportunity to discuss a range of scenarios in a safe and supportive space. As a result of these sessions, our colleagues feel more knowledgeable, inspired and empowered in their practice, particularly regarding the teaching of sensitive issues around race. Many staff commented that it was probably one of the most important INSET’s they had attended.

Senior Assistant Head (Teaching & Learning)

ACEN attended our school for an INSET session to help inform our staff and improve the level of racial literacy within the teaching body. The workshop sessions conducted by ACEN were invaluable in our pursuit to understand the intricacies and impact of microaggressions within racial contexts. The comprehensive content covered various aspects, from identifying and addressing subtle microaggressions to understanding their profound implications on individuals and the broader community.

The training sessions exceeded our expectations. The facilitators skillfully navigated through complex concepts, creating an engaging and safe space for discussions. As a result, our team gained a deeper understanding of how seemingly innocuous behaviours or comments can have lasting effects, fostering a more inclusive environment. The expertise and depth of knowledge demonstrated by the trainers was remarkable. Their ability to connect with our teachers, encouraging open dialogue while ensuring sensitivity to diverse perspectives was truly commendable. Their approachability and adeptness in handling nuanced discussions were pivotal in making the sessions impactful. In summary, the training provided by ACEN was incredibly powerful. It equipped us with the knowledge and tools necessary to recognise and address microaggressions effectively. I wholeheartedly recommend their services to any organisation seeking to create a more inclusive and understanding environment.

Headteacher

We have thoroughly enjoyed working with ACEN this year in the capacity of staff training and with the children from Years 3 to 6. It has provided us the opportunity to think and engage in very helpful and sometimes difficult conversations while feeling heard, safe, and supported. The workshops have given our children the chance to have a voice, to listen, and to broaden their knowledge of history, politics, and social justice. The team at ACEN are approachable and supportive, ensuring that staff and children are in a safe space to talk. We have found our time with them invaluable and look forward to working with them again.

Headteacher

The ACEN training session on Racial Literacy, Confidence & Competence delivered by Aisha and Serena was brilliant! It was bespoke in it’s design and delivery to the needs of Newstead Wood with our student and staff priorities in mind. The content took into account a historical, cultural, geographical and current context when considering Race. The interactive group work was most powerful for our staff, this provided an opportunity to share thoughts, perspectives and experiences with one another in a safe space. Aisha and Serena were both challenging and understanding when answering honest questions posed by staff. They both brought much more than just training by staying around after the session to speak with staff personally. The feedback given to me by several people ‘This was the best CPD day Newstead had delivered’. Thank you! The impact from the CPD is still evident, we had a follow up voluntary workshop when we returned on ‘Bold conversations around race’ led by myself.

Assistant Headtacher

ACEN’s whole-staff session exploring the rationale for anti-racism in a school setting was illuminating and thought-provoking. Through her clear explanations and engaging delivery that combined lived experience with historical oversight, Aisha engaged a diverse audience of teaching and operational staff. Afterward, I received so many comments about it being one of the most valuable INSET sessions staff had ever been to and lots of questions about when the follow-up workshops would be. Thank you ACEN and Aisha for such an inspiring session.

Head of Upper School & EDI

Any school serious about focusing on matters of racial equity and justice could do no better than the scholarly, articulate and authentic voice of ACEN. The presenters wowed our staff with their approachability, the workshops and main presentations allowing a space for dialogue and reflection. ACEN’s guidance and training has allowed new impetus and energy in our engagement not only with Black History Month but, just as importantly, with a reappraisal of our whole curriculum. Their help has been paradigm shifting.

I know from staff’s response after the sessions that they feel more empowered to have difficult conversations, to be more articulate and informed about issues relating to race. Dr Shola Apena Rogers’ keynote speech was spectacular. Her highly impactful slide on changing Eurocentric displays to embrace greater diversity hit home for a lot of my colleagues. For us, the initial training showed us the journey we need to continue to travel with our students and staff. We couldn’t have better guides than ACEN.

Head of EDI

The INSET session was focussed upon reviewing how we have got to where we are now in society combined with practical strategies to support our commitment to being an anti-racist school. The guidance ranged from how in we can ensure every day practice is anti-racist in our terms of language and culture and moreover ensuring the structural systems within our school such as assessment, curriculum, enrichment and pastoral support are all fully inclusive.

Through the training session the team have been able to reflect on their practice with a more confident anti-racist stance. Shola was able to give clarity to our history and give guidance for our future. Shola created a safe space where difficult topics where explored and therefore built confidence within the team to have greater racial literacy, encouraging us to have the skills and knowledge to talk thoughtfully about race and racism.

Headteacher – Junior School

The workshops were brilliant and have provided us with a great deal to think about and follow up on. All of the facilitators communicated the messages with such clarity, with reflections on personal experience as well as the broader historical and societal picture, and encouraged staff to contribute, ask questions and be fully involved with and challenged by the material presented. A number of colleagues have fed back to me on how useful they found the session and the effective departmental conversations it stimulated. The workshops brought lived experience – and therefore a powerful pupil/colleague-centred approach – to their centre as a powerful frame for the anti-racism work we are continuing to build and develop.

EDI Lead

A huge thank you for the incredible training this morning – Aisha and Justice were just brilliant and the open and honest conversations that they facilitated with our staff were amazing to observe. Every member of staff commented on how much they enjoyed the session today.

Headteacher

Open, authentic and knowledgeable. Quick responses to questions from delegates and great to have the background on topics – showed credibility and gave context and understanding to how and why there are deep rooted issues we are trying to tackle….Those ECTs who have attended have been overwhelmingly positive about the training and impact.

Director of Training