Educating Yorkshire Teachers relive show’s moments with candid reactions in Channel 4 and the Department for Education’s tie up

Channel 4 Sales announces it has partnered with the Department for Education (DfE) for the fourth time this year on a new branded entertainment series, and a TVC contextual TVC campaign to support DfE’s ‘Get into Teaching’ movement and align with the successful return of Educating Yorkshire on Channel 4 which to date has seen nearly one million views on YouTube for the first episode.

There has been a rise in attention around how pupils navigate the 21st century, but in the branded entertainment series, Teachers on Tape, audiences get to learn more about what it is like being an educator in this ever-evolving world. Headteacher Mr Burton, alongside the other teachers who starred in the latest series of Educating Yorkshire, will be shown some of the most heartwarming, funny, and viral moments from the show, evoking genuine reactions and reflections. How did they feel in the moment watching a pupil’s confidence grow? What did they take away from a behavioural issue?

Produced by Twofour, Teachers on Tape is set to premiere on Channel 4’s YouTube channel from October 6th, with highlights also dropping this month across Channel 4’s social platforms.

The partnership with DfE is further powered by two impactful contextual ads that spotlight real-life moments from the series. They showcase the unexpected and rewarding moments that help teachers grow both personally and professionally. Produced by Channel 4 in association with Sassy Plus, these ads will run across linear and streaming.

WPP Media’s Wavemaker team led the strategy and planning and OmniGOV at MG OMD led the implementational planning and buying, and partnership activation.

(Marketing/ad trades only) Emma Hopkins, Creative Solutions Leader, Channel 4 said: “It has been fantastic to work with DfE once more, and with Educating Yorkshire revealing the unvarnished highs and lows of life in a 21st Century secondary school, it just made sense to create creative ads and social content that allows audiences even more insight into the world of teaching.”

(TV Trades only) Hanz MacDonald, Digital Commissioning Executive, Channel 4 said: “Working with Twofour and DfE has allowed us to build on Educating Yorkshire in ways that delight and offer audiences a new perspective on stories they thought they knew with a brilliantly social-first content series.”

Nicola Espindola, Head of Recruitment Marketing at the Department for Education, said: “Wavemaker and OmniGOV have brought creativity, insight, and strategic thinking to this project which is helping the campaign to support the Government’s commitment to recruiting an additional 6,500 expert teachers across our schools and colleges as part of the Plan for Change. Wavemaker’s strategy behind partnering with the Educating series has been both clever and impactful, ensuring our message lands in the right place, at the right time. This collaboration has given us a powerful platform to showcase teaching as a career that truly changes lives.”

Grace Reynolds, Executive Producer at TwoFour said: “It has been a pleasure partnering with Channel 4 and the Dept. for Education. The heart-warming and powerful stories in Educating Yorkshire have resonated with so many people. It’s great to be able to go beyond the series and offer more insight, as Mr Burton and some of our favourite teachers reflect on the challenging but rewarding work they do in school”. 

Lucy Cook, Planning Lead at Wavemaker UK, said: “It’s incredibly rewarding working with the Department for Education on their Get into Teaching campaign. Education shapes the future, and as soon as we heard the series would be returning, we made sure Get Into Teaching was part of the conversation. Having partnered with them for a number of years, we knew the strong contextual relevance of the show, and associated positivity, would help us advocate for a bigger, more expansive approach.  Partnering with such a memorable series allows us to truly connect with the audience we want to reach in a highly meaningful way. Just hearing about the success of one of the show’s key characters - Mr Burton - progressing to headteacher is a shining example that highlights the potential that a career in teaching offers.”

Polly Mason, Account Director, Partnerships at OmniGOV, adds: “Partnering with Get Into Teaching and Channel 4’s Educating Yorkshire is a fantastic opportunity to fuse authentic storytelling from the show and highlight Get Into Teaching’s key messaging. By crafting social-branded content with teachers from Educating Yorkshire and contextual TVC placements we are able to bring real classroom moments to life, and to show how impactful teaching can be as a profession. This collaboration shows how creative partnerships can be, especially when using a show's IP.”