research and communications

British Council exam mapping research and communications

The why: The British Council wanted to map their course to national and international examinations to help market the current edition and to support teachers in helping students prepare for these exams. 

Brief: Map the Secondary Plus course to national and international examinations.

Research to map the course content to exams in the British Council’s top markets, alongside international assessments

What we delivered:

A report summarising the findings
Exam advice added to the teaching guides for 120 modules
Two marketing decks to communicate the work

“What worked well on this project was having multiple people in the Oriel Square team working on different phases depending on their area of expertise. When I came in towards the end of the project to work on the marketing materials, I had a really clear brief and objective, and I was able to speak to others in the team to collate the information I needed and develop effective messaging for the target audiences.” – Keira Moulding, Communications Manager

Find out more

professional development

HP Cambridge Partnership for Education EdTech Fellowship for the Gulf

The why: Cambridge was looking to communicate EdTech expertise to cohorts globally by bringing together expert voices and a range of experiences from major interventions globally. Cambridge was also looking to build a genuine fellowship so that the alumni would stay in touch for the rest of their careers.

Brief: Develop the HP Cambridge Partnership for Education Fellowship teaching curriculum and then deliver it by inviting guest speakers and expert trainers to engage with the Fellows in person and online.

What we did:

Developed the teaching curriculum
Worked with global experts in EdTech to deliver the learning outcomes

What we delivered:

A 5-month EdTech Fellowship programme for senior policy leaders from the Middle East, including a 1-week residential academy in Cambridge.

“The calibre of the Fellows has meant that there has been a great desire to learn and we have a cohort who can apply their learning and the experience of others immediately in the work they’re doing. We have successfully set up an environment where people can discuss their experiences and concerns while navigating these difficult waters. We succeeded in building a fellowship where people will continue sharing ideas and experiences for years to come.” – John Deans, Director, Oriel Square

Find out more about the fellowship

business development

Life Lessons, Oak National Academy tender development

The why: Empower educators to foster a healthy school culture that equips young people to make good decisions and navigate the complexities of life.

Brief: Work with co-founders and key team members at Life Lessons to gather and develop the information required for the Oak National Academy tender bid.

What we did:

Bid development
Management of the tender process

What we delivered:

Two winning tenders enabling Life Lessons Education to partner with Oak National Academy.

Life Lessons was selected by Oak to develop a full spiral curriculum with accompanying lessons in Primary Relationships and Health Education (RHE) and Secondary Relationships Sex and Health Education (RSHE).

“Government tenders are complex and overwhelming. You actually made a difficult process enjoyable. Working with us systematically through the deliverables, we appreciated your project management skills combined with an understanding of education and curriculum. We are delighted with the result.” – Jamie O’Connell, Co-CEO, Life Lessons

“It was a privilege to work alongside the team at Life Lessons Education and help them reach many more young people with their inspiring and innovative approach to RSHE. We were delighted that the tenders were successful.” – Claire Gilbert, Project Manager, Oriel Square   

strategic planning

Corporate strategy for a major educational publisher

The why: Identify opportunities for growth by reviewing the strategic priorities of a major educational publisher in the wake of the pandemic.

Brief: Plan and deliver a hybrid workshop for the global senior team to produce strategic recommendations and a clear, practical action plan.

What we did:

Followed the strategy framework laid out by Richard Rumelt in Good Strategy/Bad Strategy
Stakeholder research (workshop)

What we delivered:

3-part strategy including a diagnosis of the publisher’s competitive position, a guiding policy statement and action plan

our strategic planning services

commissioned Research

Fischer family Foundation’s The Apex Project report

The why: Improving early literacy is key to transforming education outcomes. Intended for ministers, special advisors and key stakeholders, the aim of the report was to raise the profile of early literacy failure as an issue and The Apex Project as an effective solution, outlining the aims of The Apex Project, its key findings so far, and its plans for the future. 

Brief: Produce a research report for FFF looking at the elimination of avoidable early literacy failure. Support FFF to launch their findings and promote The Apex Project as a possible solution.

What we did:

Discovery process to understand purpose and ambitions
Guiding policy and launch campaign planning
Secondary desk research
Manuscript development, editorial and typesetting
Report design and branding 
Messaging framework

What we delivered:

A research report aimed at ministers, special advisors and key stakeholders looking at early literacy failure.

“FFT has worked with Oriel Square on several projects to support the foundation’s work. We’ve been impressed by the range of services they offer and the consistently high-quality output. … They helped our team to deliver compelling thought leadership content to raise FFT’s profile and credibility through a research report looking at early literacy failure as part of The Apex Project.” – Paul Charman, Managing Director, FFT

read the report

professional development

RM inclusion workshop

The why: The RM team is working hard to achieve its goal of making its resources inclusive for all as they seek out new ideas and best practices to develop their understanding.

Brief: Design and deliver an in-person diversity and inclusion workshop to help the RM team gain a better understanding of how to assess and adapt specific resources to make them more inclusive.

What we did:

Applied Oriel Square’s Five Aspects ‘Specs’ of Representation to design a course on intersectionality through the lens of race, gender, class, neurodiversity and disability. 

What we delivered:

An in-person diversity and inclusion workshop

Read our blog about why representation matters