Strategic panel discussions and expert keynotes with Q&A sessions

Recruitment, Education & Training – Main stage

11:00 am – 11:30 am

Training Passports and Shared Credentials:

Why We Need Standardisation

Building a stronger nursing pipeline means making it easier for staff to move, grow and stay. This session explores how a national ‘training passport’ could streamline role transitions, reduce onboarding delays, and support career progression. With real examples from trusts trialling local solutions, we’ll look at how shared credentials can boost recruitment, training efficiency and retention.

Intro panel

Choose the round table with the topic closer to your heart for an interactive session with your peers, guided by an expert moderator.

Transformation - Ideas exchange

11:00 – 11:10 am

Focussing on transforming nursing practice and workforce to improve patient care and safety.

Recruitment, Education & Training – Main stage

Panel Discussion

Future Nurses: Reframing Nursing for the Next Generation

11:30 am – 12:20 am

With student nurse applications falling year on year, educators and nurse leaders must urgently confront nursing’s “negativity problem.” This panel will explore how to reshape the public image of nursing into one that is proud, visible, and deeply compelling.

How do we rebrand nursing as aspirational and impactful? And how do we spark curiosity and a sense of purpose in the next generation?

Round tables discussions

Transformation Ideas exchange

11:10 – 11:50 am

Blended Teams in Practice

What does successful cross-sector, cross-discipline collaboration look like

From hospital to home, nurses are working alongside social workers, paramedics, mental health specialists and more, but how do we make these blended teams work well in practice? This session dives into real challenges and lessons learned from cross-sector collaboration. Come ready to share what’s helping (and hindering) integration, and explore what nurses need to lead and thrive in truly joined-up care

The Northumbria Model

A Localised Approach to Education and Retention

Explore how a rural trust transformed an underused facility into a thriving simulation and training centre, supporting local apprenticeships, flexible training, and high retention, a replicable, resilient solution for workforce development.

Ideas exchange - feedback discussion panel

11:50 – 12:20

• What common challenges have been highlighted in the discussions?
• What advice would you offer to overcome these challenges?
• What actions or pledges would you like delegates to take away from this session?

Strategic panel discussions and expert keynotes with Q&A sessions

Leadership, Culture & Retention - Main stage

Tackling Toxic Norms: Breaking the Cycle of Bullying and Silence

13:20 pm – 13:50 pm

Toxic cultures don’t just happen, they’re enabled by systems that fail to listen. The Letby case has become a stark warning of what’s at stake when clinical concerns are dismissed, and when the gap between HR and frontline insight grows too wide.

This session focuses on how we move from silence to safety. How do we build cultures where speaking up is expected, and acted on? Where HR and clinical leaders work together to protect people, not reputations?

Culture Is the New Strategy - Compassionate leadership

13:50 pm – 14:40 pm

This panel will explore how leadership practices shape culture and impact retention. From trauma-informed leadership to visible, values-led governance, panellists will discuss how to move from ‘top-down’ to ‘walk-alongside’ approaches that empower staff, boost morale, and address the silent exit of experienced nurses.

Round tables discussions

Rethinking Entry Routes

13:30 pm – 14:10 pm

Apprenticeships vs. University Pathways: What works and for whom

With the need to expand and diversify the nursing workforce, this session explores the strengths and challenges of different entry routes into the profession. Join peers to debate what’s working, who benefits most from each pathway, and how we can ensure every route leads to confident, capable nurses ready to thrive.

Training on the Floor

How to deliver continuous, bite-sized education at the point of care.

Traditional training models don’t always fit the realities of stretched teams. This session explores how we can embed short, practical learning into everyday practice, from micro-teaching on shift to digital prompts and peer support. Join colleagues to share what's working, what gets in the way, and how we can build a culture where learning happens in real time, not just in classrooms.

Ideas exchange feedback discussion panel

14:10 pm – 14:40 pm

• What common challenges have been highlighted in the discussions?
• What advice would you offer to overcome these challenges?
• What actions or pledges would you like delegates to take away from this session?