Bett and The Education Show Will Combine to Form the World’s Largest EdTech Conference

Bett and The Education Show, two of the world’s foremost education and edtech conferences, announced on November 4 that they will be combining into one in January of 2020. The Education Show “will take place inside Bett,” according to the announcement and will run between January 22 and 25 in the new year. The joint event will occur over the span of four days at  ExCel London.

“In 2019 the Bett Show and The Education Show took place alongside each other at London’s ExCeL Centre. It is a natural next step for us to make the experience even easier and more intuitive for visitors and bring both shows together,” said Bett Event Director Eve Harper, in a statement. “Visitors will register once, check in once and find everything they need in one easy to navigate space. We think The Education Show @ Bett 2020 will help UK educators and international visitors get more out of the experience than ever before, helping decision-makers see all they need to equip their schools and institutions, achieving the best outcomes for teachers, students and senior educators.”

Bett and The Education Show Were Held Side-By-Side Last Year and Saw a Boost in Attendance

Bett, which was once called the British Educational Training and Technology Show, first launched in January 1985. It has since become the U.K.’s preeminent edtech conference and regularly draws professionals and stakeholders from across the edtech sector.

The Education Show, meanwhile, is a few years older and is geared more towards educators and administrators. Both are organized by the British Educational Suppliers Association (BESA).

Last year, the two events took place side by side, and The Education Show saw attendance by school leaders jump 27% over the previous year.

This year, organizers expect attendance to exceed 34,000 individuals, along with 800 edtech developers and 103 startups. Over the years, individuals from 145 different countries have attended the event. It seeks to deliver insights on six themes in education: empowering teaching and learning, inclusion, wellbeing, social mobility, skills, and future tech and trends.

What One Can Expect at the World’s Largest Edtech Conference

“Here at BESA, we are looking forward to seeing The Education Show held within the Bett exhibition for the first time,” said BESA General Director Caroline Wright. “The Education Show agenda this year really delivers against the needs of today’s educators and allows visitors to discover what’s new in the marketplace. Being able to make the most of their time, it should give delegates the opportunity to maximise their Bett experience all in one place and we look forward to welcoming educators from across the UK and beyond, for a few days of networking, sharing best practice, and discovering the latest educational resources.”

Like in past years, Bett 2020 will include a wide-ranging seminar and speaker schedule, a massive vendor showcase floor organized into six different zones, and a huge amount of opportunity to connect with the edtech industry and education stakeholders. The Bett Awards will also be announced during the event.

Before the announcement, Bett was already the world’s largest edtech conference. That reality has only been further cemented by the inclusion of The Education Show.

Featured Image: Danny Nicholson, Flickr.