A decade from CPD toworkforce platform.
National Education Group is The National College: a world-leading global EdTech SaaS platform that supports the daily work of schools.
Every acquisition,one platform.
About our story
National Education Group is a global EdTech company specialising in SaaS software that supports daily workflows in schools. The Group has built, acquired and integrated complementary businesses under one customer-facing brand, The National College, bringing their capabilities together in a single platform. Its ambition is to expand that platform across more workflows and become the essential operating system every member of the education workforce uses to manage their day-to-day responsibilities.
Built and acquired
CPD library, Essential CPD & NOS
Policies for Schools
The School Bus
BlueSky Education
Governors’ Virtual Office
The National College
CPD library, Essential CPD & NOS
Policies for Schools
The School Bus
BlueSky Education
Governors’ Virtual Office
Not a portfolio of brands.One platform.
A decade from CPD to workforce platform.
We’re not just buying brands. Every company we acquire and every product we build becomes a workflow module in one platform: The National College.
A strategic foundation for growth
National Education Group was established by founders with deep roots in the classroom.
Building on their experience, our company was created to address the real-world regulatory and leadership pressures facing education leaders and teams.
Consolidating the training market
The National College launches as the UK’s most comprehensive library of expert-led professional development. Two earlier training providers, Essential CPD and NOS, are absorbed into it as schools’ single reference point for training and accreditation.
Investment and first acquisition
Synova invests in National Education Group, and the group acquires Policies for Schools, bringing policy, governance and compliance into the platform for the first time.
The one-platform vision, and international launch
Training, compliance and leadership management come together under one platform with the acquisition of The School Bus, and The National College for International Schools launches to meet demand for UK-standard training overseas.
Expanding into people development
BlueSky Education is acquired, extending the platform into appraisal, performance management and the wider people-development workflow.
Launch of Teacher & Leader AI
Governed AI is built into the daily work of teaching and leadership, grounded in The National College’s own content and certified to ISO 42001.
Expanding into governance
Governors’ Virtual Office is acquired, adding the board-level workflow. Strengthening the proposition for trusts and groups.
Membership packages launch
The five modules become membership tiers, one enablement platform that grows with a school or trust rather than a set of workflows bought and adopted one at a time.
One platform, multiple workflows
Every acquisition since 2017 has been brought under a single platform and a single brand: National Education Group, home to The National College. Schools now hold one relationship rather than a portfolio of point solutions.
Which settings use the platform?
The National College supports every type of education setting, from individual schools to multi-academy trusts and school groups. We operate globally, with users in more than 100 countries.
Which countries do you operate in?
We support schools across the UK and internationally in more than 100 countries, with over 12,000 educational institutions on the platform.
How do modules become membership tiers?
Each module is a product schools would buy on its own. Schools choose the modules they need within one membership of The National College and add more as their needs grow.
How are acquisitions integrated?
Every company we acquire and every product we build becomes a workflow module in one platform: The National College. CPD library, Policies for Schools, The School Bus, BlueSky Education and Governors’ Virtual Office all now sit inside its modules.
How is AI governed?
AI in the platform runs inside a governed environment certified to ISO 42001 for AI management. No school data is shared externally to train AI models, and every feature is built to trust and local authority procurement standards.
