Teachmate supports the latest phase of the RISE Digital Skills and AI Hub
The RISE Digital Skills and AI Hub has grown from 80 staff to 600, and Teachmate was in Exeter to help set the tone for safe and responsible AI adoption across the South West.
Teachmate was back in Exeter earlier this month for the latest phase of the RISE Digital Skills and AI Hub, joining trust and school leaders from across the South West to explore safe and responsible AI adoption in schools.
The sessions build on our ongoing work with the RISE Hub, which earlier this year highlighted the impact of Teachmate, particularly in relation to SEND and adaptive teaching, including its use in Speech and Language Therapy (SaLT) sessions.
Building AI confidence across schools
Founded in 2025 by MAT CEOs Jonathan Bishop, Moira Marder, Clare Crowle and Alex More (AI Consultant), the RISE Hub brings schools and trusts together to test AI and digital tools in real school settings, build confidence across teams and develop practical approaches that can be shared and adopted responsibly.
Phase 3, the latest scaling of the Hub saw the number of teachers and leaders rise from 80 staff to 600, a considerable scaling operation. New members represent twenty organisations encompassing over 200 schools.
Putting safe and responsible AI adoption into practice
At the second onboarding day, Faye Palmer from the Teachmate team joined Alex More and leaders from across the South West.
Faye led sessions on safe and responsible AI adoption, covering the DfE's Product Safety Standards for AI in education, GDPR compliance and the importance of completing a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) before introducing any AI tool into a school.
The aim of the session was to spotlight responsible practice and set the scene for a STEM Learning AI Sprint CPD session later this month.
Building on our work with RISE
During Phase 2, Teachmate supported more than 50 colleagues across Cornerstone Academy Trust, Ted Wragg Trust and Kernow Learning with free access to the platform and bespoke demos.
The resulting RISE Digital Skills and AI Hub Impact Report 2026 highlighted Teachmate's impact within SEND provision. In Speech and Language Therapy sessions, staff reported improved consistency, reduced planning time, clearer session structure and stronger student engagement, alongside better focus on specific language targets.
It's great to continue supporting the work Alex More and the wider RISE team are leading, bringing schools and trusts together to explore what safe and responsible AI can look like in practice.
We are looking forward to seeing what the Hub's working parties develop over the coming months.