Milestone for UK EdTech platform Assessable as it officially launches and bags first paying school

EdTech startup Assessable has commercially launched, secured its first paying school, and issued its first invoice. Its platform, which supports primary teachers and school leaders with the assessment, tracking and moderation of English writing, went live earlier this month following more than two years of development and testing at schools across the north of England.

Launch activity will initially focus on the Tees Valley before expanding more across the North East.

Assessable Co-founder Lisa Gosnay, a former teacher and school leader, says: “We wanted to start in the Tees Valley because this is our home. These are the schools, teachers and children we care deeply about and many of the people who have helped us shape Assessable are based here.”

“The Tees Valley has brilliant education and technology communities. It matters that innovation isn’t only created elsewhere and brought into our schools. We can build it here, with people who understand our region, and make sure teachers are involved from the beginning.”

Hartlepool-based Extol Academy Trust is a strategic development partner.

Its CEO, Craig Nicholson, says: “Our collaboration with Assessable represents the sort of forward-thinking our sector needs. By combining real classroom experience with cutting-edge technology, we can start tackling some of the biggest challenges facing schools today.”

Luke Harper and Rebecca Brown, Year 6 teachers at Belmont Primary School in Guisborough, comment: “We see Assessable as a way to revolutionise the way we assess, mark and provide tailored feedback, allowing us more time to focus on high quality teaching and maintain a work-life balance.”

Assessable was co-founded by Gosnay and Sam Shenton, with Peter Calvert of Embeddable onboard as fractional Chief Technology Officer.

2026 RTIH Innovation Awards

Startups will be a key focus area at our sister title RTIH’s 2026 Innovation Awards.

The awards are now open for entries and celebrate global retail technology innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our winners will be revealed at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards Ceremony, taking place at The HAC in Central London on Wednesday, 4th November.

Check out the 2025 winners here.

RTIH’s 2025 hall of fame entrants were revealed during a sold out event which took place at The HAC on 16th October and consisted of a drinks reception, three course meal, and awards ceremony presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Tiff Stevenson.

In his welcome speech, Scott Thompson, Founder and Editor, RTIH, said: “This is the awards’ fifth year as a physical event. We started off with just 30 people at the South Place Hotel not far from here, then moved to London Bridge Hotel, then The Barbican, and last year RIBA’s HQ in the West End.”

“But I’m conscious of the fact that, to quote the legend that is Taylor Swift, You’re only as hot as your last hit, baby. So, this year we’ve moved to our biggest venue yet, and also pulled in our largest number of entries to date and broken attendance records.”

He added: “This year’s submissions have without doubt been our best yet. To quote one of the judges: The examples of innovative developments across both traditional and digital retail spaces were truly remarkable.”