The Reading Gems

Catherine Delaney is Literacy Lead Practitioner in the Educational Development team at One Education. Since starting this role, Catherine has worked closely alongside practitioners from many schools to support their continued professional development. Catherine has been a KS1 and KS2 moderator in different local authorities, as well as regularly leading cluster moderation sessions for groups of schools.

Having graduated with a degree in English, Catherine followed her passion for education in completing a PGCE in Primary Education. She taught in Sheffield and then Greater Manchester over a 14-year period, taking on the roles of KS1 Phase Lead and then English Lead. Catherine’s recent experience in the classroom helps her appreciate the time demands in schools and give practical advice to practitioners always considering their work-life balance. Catherine is completing an NPQ in Leading Literacy and actively keeps up to date with the latest research in teaching and learning.

Since joining One Education, Catherine has led the Reading Award and developed a new criterion for Secondary SEND and Specialist Settings. She has written and delivered whole-school staff training on reading, writing, GPaS, oracy, phonics, metacognition and adaptive teaching. Catherine has worked with many educational settings to develop their Literacy curriculum, with a focus on high-quality texts that are diverse, representative and inspiring to the children.

Alongside the Head of Educational Development, Catherine co-wrote the Transition Project resources for a local authority. She has written blogs and newsletters for One Education on various aspects of developing Literacy in schools. Catherine has also delivered workshops at the Literacy Conference and Leadership in Education Conference to headteachers and educators.

Catherine has a passion for education and for all children to have the support they need to succeed. She feels strongly that oracy skills are the foundation of all Literacy, with a focus on vocabulary and communication underpinning children’s future social and academic skills. She feels privileged to work alongside so many wonderful teachers, using her extensive teaching experience and knowledge of Literacy and pedagogy to provide the best possible opportunities for all children in their setting.