A NATIONAL teachers conference will invite a former refugee to share his personal story at Royal Wootton Bassett Academy next month.

The school is running the conference with the University College of London Centre for Holocaust Education.

Spread over two days it invites teachers from around the UK to give them the confidence to teach difficult subjects such as the Holocaust and genocide.

Its aim is to spread thinking on how to make these relevant to more general themes, such as migration and human rights, to give pupils of all ages a more rounded education.

Key speakers include author Gulwali Passarlay, who was a child refugee from Afghanistan, lecturers from UCL and school leaders in Holocaust education, and columnist Owen Jones to talk about the Alt-right and growing threat of online hate speech.

Teacher Nicola Wetherall, who was awarded an MBE in 2017 for her services to Holocaust and human rights education and genocide prevention, has organised the two-day conference for the past five years.

“It’s a broader narrative then just Holocaust education,” she explained to the Adver.

“Its aim is to empower and inform our young people to learn about the past.”

“You can do difficult or sensitive issues with all learners, to contribute something to their wider school life.”

The academy has become a leading centre for Holocaust education.

Since 2009 it has played a central role in the curriculum at the academy and is taught across Key Stages 3-5.

The focus on providing a more worldly education should be a higher priority, according to Nicola, and is what most teachers enter the profession to do.

“Of course, we want the best academic results,” she added, “but it’s not good having that if you’re not engaged with the world, if you can’t understand the world you’re in.

“All of these things feed into a richer understanding of what school education is about and that’s what it’s trying to celebrate.

“If you do the holistic route then the academic side improves to.

“We are hoping for that ripple effect. We believe in this but the system is such that it’s just not the priority.

“It’s a longer burn then that, it’s a real opportunity to engage, to think and share.

“We are leading the way in some respects.”

The conference takes place on March 8 and 9.