Phil Holton

Phil Holton is a senior strategy/qualification manager at Pearson, a global learning company, where he is responsible for managing the creative subject qualifications studied within UK schools and prioritizing the best for those subjects in any future changes to education. Phil’s background in education began as a classroom practitioner, culminating at senior leadership level in the secondary sector, complemented by extensive experience working outside of schools across the creative sectors from primary years to higher/further education. He was the founder of an organization providing free, at the point of demand, professional training for design educators with an ethos of “for teachers, by teachers,” which at its height ran a UK-wide accessible network of free CPD, a free national publication, and an annual conference for design teachers. More recently, he has worked across a number of design and STEM education partners as an education consultant, including charity work and as an expert panelist.

Phil is credited with developing a vision for the future of UK design education, a large-scale sector and education-led curriculum disruption program aimed at shifting design education into a purposeful and responsible offer to all students aged 5-19. His passion for expanding the creative opportunities of young learners reflects a personal ambition to improve the lives of others through equitable and accessible design education for all.