Contact & NNPCF Conference 2025-26

Contact & NNPCF Joint Conference 3rd February 2026

Booking information LIVE for the 2025-26 Contact & NNPCF Joint Conference and evening social event.

Date: Tuesday 3^rd February 2026 
(Timings are anticipated to be 10.00am arrival, 10:30am start and finishing at 4:00pm with refreshments provided for social networking directly afterwards, until approximately 5:00pm. We hope you can include these timings in your travel plans — we’d really love to have you join us for the full event   Event timings are subject to change depending on speaker timings and will be confirmed in the final agenda.)

Evening Social Event

Join us for a relaxed social evening at the conference venue.  The evening is expected to run from 7:00pm to 11:00pm (timings to be confirmed closer to the date.)  We are still finalising the details, but you can expect a fun and friendly atmosphere, with food provided and drinks available to purchase at a bar!  It’s a great opportunity to meet Contact, the NNPCF and Other Parent Carer Forums and catch up with fellow attendees and unwind after a busy day.

If you’d like to join us, just tick the box on your Formsite application (link at the end of the FAQ page.)

The evening social event is exclusively for Parent Carer Forum attendees together with conference hosts, Contact and NNPCF. Unfortunately, stallholders, wider stakeholders, and other guests won’t be able to attend this part of the event. We really appreciate your understanding.

Location: Mercure Sheffield St. Paul’s Hotel & Spa, 119 Norfolk Street, Sheffield, S1 2JE. 

Thank you to all of those who put forward venue suggestions which were gratefully appreciated and investigated.  As ever cost is always a factor and plays a key role in the choice of venue, sadly many venues were over our limited budget.

Please see the Frequent Asked Questions (FAQ) page which provide the link to the booking form and more information on:

• Booking link for the conference and Evening Social Event (single form)
• Number of places at the conference for Parent Carer Forum
• Alternative accommodation
• Catering information
• Directions and Car Parking
• Accessibility needs

A full agenda will be published prior to the conference, confirming speakers and exact timings.

Due to budgetary constraints the event will not be live streamed.

We are really looking forward to seeing as many of you as possible there, as ever if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to get in touch by email at [email protected].

2024-25 Conference 

The Contact & NNPCF Joint Conference took place on Tuesday 4^th February 2025 at the Mercure Northampton. This event was really well attended. See the Highlights film from the day and the following presentations from the Conference. 

• View the presentation from the ‘NNPCF and Contact update’ with NNPCF Co-Chairs & Olivia Newbolt of Contact.  

• View the presentation from the ‘What Works in SEND: Holding onto hope’ presented by Amanda Allard, Director, Council for Disabled Children. 

• View the presentation from the SEND System reform: How can we build consensus and trust? presented by Ben Bryant, Director, ISOS Partnership.  

• View the presentation from the ‘National developments, what’s next? Current developments in SEND thinking and policy – session’ led by Dame Christine Lenehan, Strategic Advisor on SEND, Tom Rees, Chair of Expert Advisory Group (EAG) for Inclusion & Professor Karen Guldberg, Chair of the Neurodivergence Task and Finish Group.  

• View the presentation from the ‘LDA and SEND update’ presented by Phil Brayshaw, Head of Children and Young People National Learning Disability and Autism Programme, NHS England.  

November 2024 Contact & NNPCF Joint Virtual Conference Recordings. 

The Contact and NNPCF Joint Virtual Conference took place on Wednesday 20^th November 2024.

The Virtual Conference was made up of 4 sessions and those sessions that were recorded can be viewed on YouTube via the following links. 

• NNPCF AGM & NNPCF & Contact Planning for the year ahead.  View the recording and download the presentation from the session. 

• Change Programme Partnership.  View the recording and download the presentation from the session. 

• Dingley’s Promise support SEND Children with Catherine McLeod MBE, Chief Executive .  View the recording and download the presentation from the session.