Brilliant Festival 2025: A Look Back at an Inspiring Day for Education & Sustainable IT

We had a brilliant day at the Brilliant Festival 2025 held on the 11th of November at the Exhibition Centre Liverpool, where over 1,500 educators, industry professionals and technology innovators gathered to explore how schools can stay ahead in technology, sustainability and skills development.

Why We Attended

As a company committed to supporting the education sector with sustainable and affordable IT solutions, we at Rapid IT saw the festival as the perfect opportunity to:

• Connect with senior leaders and IT managers from primary and secondary schools, Multi-Academy Trusts and colleges;

• Showcase how our refurbished laptops, secure recycling services and IT donation programmes help schools stretch budgets and meet environmental goals;

• Gather insights into the latest education technology trends, especially how schools are responding to pressure around digital equity and sustainability.

What We Showcased

At our stand we highlighted three key services:

• Refurbished IT Hardware: Demonstrating high-quality, warrantied devices at a fraction of the cost of buying brand new, saving schools up to 60%.

• Secure IT Recycling: Explaining our zero-to-landfill pledge, fully audited disposal and recycling process for end-of-life equipment, especially for unsupported tech incompatible with Windows 11.

• Our Impact: We showcased how we've donated redundant tech to schools and communities, helping bridge the digital divide.

From the conversations we had at our stand, we heard powerful feedback: educators are increasingly focused on how to deliver reliable tech for their classrooms, all while keeping to strict budgets and keeping a sustainable mindset in mind.

Key Themes from the Festival

The BRILLIANT Festival’s programme reinforced several trends we’re already seeing in schools:

• Digital Inclusion & Access: With clear pressure to ensure every learner has access to appropriate devices, refurbished hardware is becoming a strategic choice. Brilliant Festival

• Sustainability in Education Technology: Schools are embedding green criteria into IT decisions, not just for cost savings but to deliver environmental and CSR impact.

• Transforming Spaces through Technology: From remote learning, AI integration and hybrid models, schools are now prioritising resilient, flexible IT programmes and management systems.

• Partnerships Matter: Bridging industry and education is more important than ever; the festival emphasised collaboration, innovation and practical solutions.

What We Took Away

Our main takeaway from Brilliant is that there is growing demand from schools for cost-effective, high-performing IT without compromise.

Refurbished devices are not just a short-term fix: they represent a long-term strategy to support school budgets, tech refresh cycles and environmental targets.

Secure recycling and reuse programmes are still under-represented in many institutions, but interest is rising as schools face disposal regulations and audit scrutiny.

Our message about “tech that works harder for you and the planet” resonated strongly, especially with our social value and compliance credentials.

A Brilliant Day

To all the speakers, exhibitor partners and especially the educators who visited us: thank you! It was a privilege to get chatting to you as we help transform how schools approach technology, sustainability and impact.

If you attended Brilliant Festival and would like to talk further about how Rapid IT can support your school or trust, please get in touch today.

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