Our story
The BBC micro:bit was originally created as part of the BBC’s Make It Digital initiative, launched in 2014. 29 expert partners came on board, each contributing resources and expertise.
From early 2016, up to 1 million micro:bits were distributed to Year 7 students (or equivalent, aged 11-12), non-formal education settings and libraries across the UK in a project led by BBC Education.
The Micro:bit Educational Foundation was established in October 2016 with the aim of bringing micro:bit’s inspiration to students worldwide. Today there are an estimated 11 million micro:bits in the world, which have supported the education of around 63 million young people globally.
Board
Stephen Pattison
Stephen has been the Foundation's Chair since 2017, but has been involved in the micro:bit project since its early days as VP Public Affairs at Arm. Stephen's varied career has included him working as a British diplomat in the UK and overseas, Head of International Business Development for Dyson, and CEO of the International Chamber of Commerce (UK).
Dr Ambily Banerjee
Ambily is a Senior Director, Clinical Research Equity, at Johnson and Johnson Innovative Medicine. She joined the Foundation board in 2021. Following her PhD in Molecular Biology, Ambily worked in academia before moving to the pharmaceutical industry in 2007. She is an active advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion, and is also a board member for Slough Council for Voluntary Services.
Cerys Griffiths
Cerys jointly led the original BBC micro:bit project and has been a board member since 2018. A former journalist and editor, Cerys currently works as Head of Content Production for BBC Education. She also has overall editorial responsibility for Tiny Happy People, the BBC’s early years language and communication initiative.
Michelle Richmond
Michelle is the Director of IET's Membership & Professional Development Directorate and has been a Foundation board member since 2016. Having previously worked as Chartered Engineer, Michelle was "Young Woman Engineer of the Year" in 1990 and awarded an MBE for services to engineering in 2019.
Gareth Stockdale
Gareth has been a board director since 2016 and was appointed CEO at the Micro:bit Educational Foundation in January 2018. As Head of Operations for BBC Education, Gareth was the joint project lead for the micro:bit project and led the process which culminated in the formation of the Micro:bit Educational Foundation. Prior to this, Gareth worked for Twofour, using digital media to enhance education and training.
Lisa Opie
Lisa Opie is Managing Director of Ubisoft Reflections and Ubisoft Leamington. Part of the wider Ubisoft group, with 20,000 team members working across more than 30 countries worldwide, the studios are bound by a common mission to enrich players’ lives with original and memorable gaming experiences. New to games, Lisa was previously Managing Director Production, BBC Studios. She helped lead the division into the commercial market and oversaw a raft of titles including Planet Earth 2, Doctor Who, Trying, Strictly Come Dancing, and Good Omens, among many more.
Gary Campbell
Gary is Executive Vice President of Arm’s Central Engineering team, which encompasses most of Arm’s engineering functions. He joined Arm in 1998 as a CPU designer and holds a BEng degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering. His passion for excellence enables Arm to deliver a continued increase in its cadence of products, on schedule with industry-leading quality and performance. Under his leadership, Arm’s engineering teams have doubled the number of products delivered in line with the growth of Arm and its expansion into new markets.
Foundation team
Management team
CEO
CTPO
Operations Director
Global Partnerships Director
Education team
Educational Content Manager
Head of Professional Development
Senior Producer
Education Producer
Education Production Assistant
Assistant Producer
Global partnerships team
Head of Fundraising
Head of Asia
Head of Partnerships EMEA
Community Lead – Japan
Head of Partnerships, North America
Latin America (Brazil)
Technology team
Software Engineer
Front-end Web Developer
Device Software Lead
Web Technology Lead
Chair, Hardware Advisory Committee
Web Developer
Operations team
Finance Manager
Senior Project Manager
Global Programme Manager
HR & Administrative Coordinator
Programme Manager - Accessibility
Translations and Donations Manager
Data Insights and Strategy Support Consultant
Support Desk Manager
Project Coordinator
Marketing team
Social Media Consultant
Head of Marketing
Product team
Head of Product
Product Manager
Commercial team
Head of Global Channels
Work for us
We are a small but ambitious team who are passionate about education and the part technology can play in children's learning.
We're also a global team, many of us work remotely and we collaborate online with colleagues located across many time zones. The Foundation is an incredibly busy but rewarding place to work.