ETIH Innovation Hub: Best Solution for UK Institutions shortlist reflects real-world classroom demands

Solutions built for UK schools, trusts, and colleges show how platforms are aligning with national priorities and delivering measurable outcomes.

As part of our ETIH Innovation Awards 2026 category spotlight series, we are taking a closer look at the categories shaping this year’s inaugural awards. With over 140 entries submitted, the breadth and quality of innovation across the EdTech sector has been clear.

This category highlights solutions designed for the UK education system, with winners set to be announced on May 11.

Where UK-specific design meets measurable outcomes

Best Solution for UK Institutions focuses on platforms developed to support schools, trusts, colleges, and universities operating within the UK system. This includes tools for curriculum delivery, assessment, student engagement, safeguarding, and operational management.

Judges are looking for solutions that respond to defined challenges in UK education, whether that is workload pressure, attainment gaps, compliance requirements, or digital strategy. Evidence of adoption across UK institutions is critical, alongside clear data showing improvements in outcomes, efficiency, or access. The category reflects a shift away from generic platforms toward tools designed with policy context, curriculum alignment, and real classroom use in mind.

Finalists

Chalkie.ai

Chalkie.ai is an AI platform that helps teachers create curriculum-aligned lessons resources in minutes instead of hours. Chalkie works worldwide and can align lessons to curriculums for America, Australia, UK, Ireland, Spain, Argentina and many more. In the first 12 months since launching, Chalkie has had over 500,000 teacher sign-ups, 40,000+ paying subscribers, 5 million+ lessons resources generated, getting $3.5M ARR in record time.

Chalkie is addressing one of education’s biggest challenges: teacher burnout, while helping schools improve consistency, efficiency, and access to better teaching materials at scale. Teachers describe Chalkie as 'Magic' and 'life changing' because the of the quality of lesson resources it can produce.

Computeam (Compass)

Computeam Compass is an education first platform that supports UK schools and trusts to evaluate and strengthen their digital strategy in line with the Department for Education’s Digital and Technology Standards. Created by a team of former school leaders, Compass provides a clear, structured view of digital capabilities, accessibility, infrastructure, and staff confidence. Its intuitive dashboards and benchmarked data help leaders prioritize actions, monitor progress, and make informed decisions that enhance teaching, learning, and inclusion.

By translating national standards into an actionable roadmap, Compass empowers institutions to build safer, more resilient, and more equitable digital environments for pupils and staff.

EdenFiftyOne (EFO AI)

Tom Reynolds, a post-BA-diagnosed dyslexic and ‘Great British Entrepreneur of the Year’ finalist, is a passionate advocate for equitable and inclusive education. With over 20 years’ teaching and school leadership experience, Tom founded EdenFiftyOne - an award-winning technology platform deconstructing literacy into 51 universal skills.

As a UK Education Advisor and university teacher-training lecturer, Tom bridges the gap between classroom practice and digital innovation. Central to the EdenFiftyOne platform and to Tom’s mission is ‘EFO’: a pedagogical AI assistant designed to democratize literacy skills education, providing teachers, leaders, learners, and parents with a technology-driven solution to level the literacy playing field.

IXL

IXL equips school trusts with everything they need to personalize instruction and deepen pupils’ understanding of maths, English and science. Its components—thousands of curriculum and instructional resources, actionable analytics and a first-of-its-kind assessment suite—work together seamlessly to help differentiate, motivate and assess learning.

As pupils practise, IXL adapts in real time, delivering the right level of challenge and support. It even translates material into more than 120 languages to help teachers further personalize instruction. With mobile apps for all major platforms, students can access IXL from anywhere. Whether educators use one feature or many, IXL helps everyone in their school thrive.

Medly AI

Medly is an AI-powered exam preparation platform built specifically for UK secondary education. Founded by two doctors from lower socioeconomic backgrounds who have been passionate about educational equality since their own school days, it covers GCSEs and A-Levels across AQA, Edexcel, OCR, and WJEC with teacher-reviewed, specification-aligned content.

With 300,000 signups, 74.1% of 2025 GCSE students improved by at least one grade. UK schools provide full year group access. A Teacher Dashboard gives educators AI-powered mastery heatmaps and class analytics. DBS-checked safeguarding leads oversee all AI interactions.

Explore the full shortlist

You can explore the full ETIH Innovation Awards 2026 shortlist to see the companies and platforms shaping this year’s awards. Winners will be announced on May 11.