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Speaker, author, podcast host and proud Mancunian Damian Hughes has been named as StateTalking’s first ambassador. In his new role, Damian will help to promote our offer of free inspirational and relatable speakers to Greater Manchester state schools. He will also keep an ear to the ground for potential new speakers, role models and mentors. Damian […]
This September, Sutton Trust published their first Elitist Britain report since 2019, tracking the educational backgrounds of the country’s top professionals. The report found that ‘elites’ are over five times more likely to have attended a fee-paying school than the general population and 21 times more likely to have gone to Oxbridge. Professions where private […]
The StateTalking impact report 2025 has dropped! Since we began in 2022 we have delivered 274 talks at 51 state schools in Manchester, Stockport, Bury, Tameside, Trafford, Bolton Oldham, Rochdale and Burnley. We have now hit 13,800 student engagements. And none of this would have been possible without the dedication and endless enthusiasm of the […]
As co-host of the hugely popular High Performance podcast Professor Damian Hughes questions global leaders every day. Students from St Monica’s RC High in Prestwich, Greater Manchester, turned the tables on the bestselling author and change psychology expert when they interviewed him in front of an audience of their peers at a StateTalking event last month. […]
When biomedical science graduate Yaman Toumeh went to talk to key stage three students at a Stockport school, it got him thinking about the importance of early exposure to different career options. On a visit to St. Anne’s RC Voluntary Academy in Heaton Chapel, Yaman spoke to year 7 and 8 students about his own journey, his placement […]
Last month, we sent Coleen Rooney into St James’ Catholic School in Cheadle Hulme, Stockport. She made a big splash answering GCSEs students’ questions about her time in the jungle on I’m A Celebrity and also spoke openly about dealing with setbacks in her life and the importance of family. Damian Hughes, co-host of the […]
When IT industry worker and DEI champion Lina Baker paid a visit to students at a Stockport academy, she said students had two pressing questions on their minds: “Will AI take over the world?” and “How much do you earn?” The key account director for global IT consultancy Xebia answered these (“No” and “I’m not […]
Jonathan Hedwat really got the blood pumping when he paid a visit to St Marys RC Primary in Levenshulme. Head of biology at Cheadle Hulme School, Jonathan treated final year pupils at the Manchester school to a hands-on demo of how the heart works – truly capturing the hearts and minds of future scientists. Having […]
RAF veteran Sarah Harvey proved to be a great role model when it came to introducing students to the concept of squiggly careers. Starting out as a network technician at Brize Norton, Sarah was twice deployed to Afghanistan and formed part of the military security force at the 2012 London Olympics, before retraining in software engineering. She […]
When pupils at St Mary’s RC Primary School in Levenshulme met Timi Adefolu, they learned that working in the construction industry is not just about bricklaying. The recent law graduate, now an assistant consultant at construction giant Mace, talked to the Manchester students about the wide variety of careers in the industry. Timi attended a […]