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In this episode, host Philippa Wraithmell is joined by Hugh Viney, Founder and CEO of Minerva Virtual Academy, to explore how one online school is redefining what learning can look like.

What started during lockdown as a response to students thriving outside traditional classrooms has become one of the UK’s fastest-growing accredited online schools. Hugh shares the journey from concept to community, a story shaped by mentorship, wellbeing, and flexibility. Together, Philippa and Hugh discuss how Minerva supports students who struggled in mainstream education, why connection and belonging are central to its success, and how the model is now expanding to reach families across the Middle East.

They also unpack what it means to balance innovation with academic rigour, the realities of teaching and learning online, and how culture and kindness have helped Minerva buck the national trend on teacher retention.

This is an honest and inspiring conversation about choice, creativity, and the future of education, one that proves being “virtual” can still feel completely real.

#292 Virtual, But Real: Rethinking School with Minerva Virtual Academy