Speakers

If you’re seeking diverse voices for your next event, perhaps following our organising an event toolkit, these individuals may be of interest to you. The BAMEed Network seeks to signpost education communities to knowledge and support.

1. Take a look at our list of speakers below.

2. Once you've found a speaker(s) whose profile(s) seems a suitable match for your event, please contact them with the details provided to check their availability, interest, and any speaker fees they may charge. If their contact details aren't listed, please contact us with details of your event as well as the speakers you're interested in and we'll connect you.

Whilst we are keen to provide this page as a way for event organisers to easily access the wealth of BAME speakers and allies available, we do not actively endorse or promote their services.  All logistical arrangements and any fees they may charge are for event organisers to discuss with the speakers.

We believe the development of educators as speakers is important and we will be offering a variety of support, coaching, and development opportunities to members of our network that are interested in speaking at education events. If you're already listed on this page and you're approached to speak at an event, please let us know.

We invite Black, Asian and minority ethnic educators and speakers with education backgrounds to submit profiles using this form to be featured on this page. New profiles are continually added to the database. 


Karen Brooke 

Black British Curriculum Development Consultant 

Karen's core background is in education, designing and delivering bespoke accredited courses and well known across the prison service for delivering a unique Black Self Development Programme to Black prisoners.

Her consultancy, Oshun Education, was set up because Black men in prison indicated that the curriculum did not make them feel part of British society.

Since 2019 she has been working with schools in London and across the country offering training in exploring curriculum decolonisation, Black British history and working with individual schools to revise their curriculum with the inclusion of researched local black history.  She is also working with universities PGCE courses.

The first school she supported won first prize in the 2020 Accord Inclusivity Award.  Her support serves as a model to any school wishing to offer a rounded education.

Email Karen | Website | Twitter

Melanie Sharma-Barrow 

Founder, Ludo Consulting

Consultant | Commentator | Writer | Lawyer


Melanie is an inclusion specialist who has spent nearly ten years practising DE&I in Aotearoa, New Zealand. A former international finance lawyer living in Japan and Italy, she began her inclusion journey working for a flagship community focussed voluntary organisation training on unconscious bias racism around migration. She went on to set up Ludo Consulting to assist more individuals with DE&I nationally and internationally.

Despite the range of sectors in which she has been interviewed my the Kiwi media on DE&I issues, education and wellbeing is a key part of her work whether it be as a key note speaker in New Zealand schools, advising on DE&I issues amongst staff and children and advocating for families. In addition to racism in schools, she has particular experience in exclusion in Performing Arts and Sports where BAME youth are concerned and its links to mental health outcomes for BAME, and exclusion of BAME in educational recruitment.

Recently returning to Wales where she was born, Melanie is keen to share her perspectives on the similarities between inequity and racism in her areas of expertise in Aotearoa New Zealand and in Wales, and to share strategies to alleviate issues. 

Melanie is also celebrated for her work on intersectionality and renowned for giving radio interviews and writing thought pieces encouraging learning on facilitating representation of women of colour in senior roles in the education, wellbeing and in the inclusion sectors across the world.


Melanie has an engaging and personable style in her seminars and key note speeches, and works to bring everyone along in the room in the conversation.

Email Melanie | LinkedIn