Programme

Developed in collaboration with influential nurse leaders and partners from across health and social care, Nursing Leaders 2026 focuses on the major system-wide shifts shaping the future of care, and the leadership role nurses play in making them a reality.


What’s on the programme?

A strategic space for senior nursing leaders shaping the future of health and care, focused on national policy, system leadership, and the long-term direction of services, translating strategy into delivery.

Practical insight into how digital tools support safe, effective care, including co-design and clinical engagement, digital safety and assurance, AI in everyday practice, operational efficiency, and implementation at scale.

Exploring how systems, workforce, and care models are evolving, with sessions on prevention-led and integrated care, hospital to community transformation, population health and equity, and workforce strategy.

View

08:30

Registration

The Leadership Forum

09:10

Opening remarks

Steve Ford , Editor, Nursing Times

09:20

Keynote Address – The Three Shifts Shaping the Future of Health and Care

Health and care systems across the UK are undergoing profound change. While policy frameworks differ between the four nations, there is shared direction of travel, including a stronger focus on prevention, care closer to home, and the growing role of digital and data-enabled approaches.

This keynote sets the tone for the day by exploring three system-level shifts shaping the future of health and care, and the role nursing leadership plays in translating national ambition into practical, locally relevant delivery across different UK health and care settings

Baroness Mary Watkins of Tavistock , Crossbench Peer

09:50

Panel Discussion 1: Aligning Nursing Leadership Across the UK

Health and care policy is devolved across the UK, resulting in different structures, levers and priorities across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. At the same time, nurse leaders across all four nations are grappling with shared challenges, including workforce sustainability, budget constraints, quality and safety, system integration and rising demand.

This panel brings together Chief Nursing Officers from across the UK to explore how nursing leadership responds within different national contexts, where priorities align and diverge, and how leadership can work collectively to close the gap between policy and practice.

Chair: Steve Ford , Editor, Nursing Times

Panellists:

Sue Tranka , Chief Nursing Officer, Wales

A representative of Chief Nursing Officer for England , NHS England

10:40

Networking break

11:10 - 12:45

Panel discussion 2: Strengthening Cross-Sector Leadership for a Prevention-Led Health and Care System

11:10 - 11:55

Preventing ill health and reducing avoidable harm are shared priorities across the UK health and care system. Delivering this in practice requires leadership that works across organisational, professional and sector boundaries, often in complex and resource-constrained environments. This session brings together leaders with experience of driving system change to explore how nursing leadership enables prevention-led approaches through integrated systems, neighbourhood teams and partnerships, with practical insights on what works in supporting earlier intervention, care closer to home and improved outcomes.

Chair: Steve Ford , Editor, Nursing Times

Panellists:

Amanda Hinkley, Head of Occupational Health, Safeguarding Lead, Associate Caldicott Guardian, UK Health Security Agency 


Panel Discussion 3: Leading for Retention: Culture, Civility and Compassion

12:00 - 12:45

Sustaining safe, high-quality care depends on the cultures in which nurses work, and the everyday behaviours that shape whether people feel valued, supported and able to stay. For nurse leaders, creating the conditions for retention is a leadership responsibility.

This panel explores how nursing leadership influences culture, civility and compassion across acute, community and social care settings in the UK. Panellists will reflect on building inclusive and respectful workplaces, addressing behaviours that undermine safety and wellbeing, and leading cultures that support retention, resilience and long-term sustainability of the nursing workforce across acute, community and wider system contexts.

Chair: Steve Ford, Editor, Nursing Times

Panellist:

Alison McCourt CBE , Chief Clinical and Quality Officer, Nuffield Health

Beverley Murphy, Chief Nurse and Interim Deputy CEO, Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust

The Digital Innovation Hub’s Opening Remarks

11:10 - 11:15

A representative of Radar Healthcare


Panel discussion Embedding Co-Design and Clinical Engagement for Successful Digital Implementation

11:15 - 12:00

When nurses and clinicians are involved from the outset, digital solutions are far more likely to support safe, effective, patient-centred care. Strong clinical engagement helps ensure that technology reflects the realities of practice and adds genuine value at the point of care.

Drawing on real-world examples, panellists will focus on practical lessons, what has enabled success in practice, and how co-design and clinical engagement can be embedded throughout the lifecycle of digital implementation across acute, community and wider system settings.


Case study: Operational Wins Through Digitisation

12:05 – 12:35

With health and care services facing rising demand and increasing complexity across the UK, well-designed digitisation can improve day-to-day efficiency while supporting safer, more reliable care.

This case study session shares real examples of how digitisation has improved day-to-day operations in practice. The session will highlight measurable improvements in care delivery, staff time, data quality, and organisational flow, and reflect on what has made these changes effective and sustainable in busy clinical settings.

The System and Workforce Innovation Stage Opening Remarks

11:10 - 11:15



Case Studies: Delivering Joined-Up, Person-Centred Care Across Services

11:15 - 12:10

Patients and families often experience care across multiple services and settings, and too often that care feels fragmented. Closer working across the health and care system, including social care, community services and wider system partners, is central to delivering more joined-up, person-centred support.

This case study cluster shares real examples of how teams across health, social care, community and wider system settings are working together in practice to improve coordination and continuity of care. Speakers will highlight approaches that reduce fragmentation, support smoother transitions between services, and create more consistent experiences for patients, families and carers across different UK contexts.

Oliver Soriano, Chief Nurse, Lancashire and South Cumbria Foundation Trust


Panel discussion: Advancing Clinical Safety and Assurance Through Non-Digital Innovation

12:05- 12:50

Many of the most effective improvements in clinical safety come from changes in practice, behaviours and systems, rather than technology alone. Preventing harm in day-to-day care relies on strong fundamentals, clear assurance and leadership that prioritises safety across all care settings.

This panel explores practical, non-digital innovations that improve clinical safety and reduce harm across acute, community and social care settings in the UK. Discussion will focus on approaches to preventing falls, pressure ulcers and violence, alongside how teams strengthen safety culture, assurance and quality improvement through consistent practice and leadership. Panellists will share real-world examples of how safer care is delivered and sustained across different settings.

Panelist:

Colin Quick , Chief Quality Officer (Chief Nurse and Director of Infection Prevention and Control), Priory Group


12:45 - 13:45

Networking lunch

13:45

Panel Discussion 4: Care Model Transformation: From Hospital to Community

13:45 – 14:30

Long-term health and care plans across the UK make clear that improving outcomes and sustainability will require a shift away from hospital-centred care towards care delivered closer to home and within communities. This means rethinking where care happens, how teams work together, and how quality and safety are maintained across settings.

This panel explores how care delivery is being reshaped to support care closer to home, with a stronger emphasis on community-based and integrated models. Panellists will share experience of leading transformation across acute, community and wider system settings, focusing on workforce implications, leadership challenges and the practical realities of delivering new models of care that improve continuity, quality and experience.

Steph Lawrence , Chief Executive, Queen's Institute of Community Nursing


Panel discussion 5:Impactful Leadership in Practice: Influence, Presence and Sustainability

14:35 - 15:20

Leadership in health and care is increasingly complex and demanding. How leaders show up, influence others and sustain themselves over time directly shapes system redesign, safe care delivery and the ability to lead change in constrained environments.

This session explores how leaders make difficult decisions, exercise judgement under pressure and lead change in constrained systems. Panellists will reflect on the ethical realities of leadership, the impact of difficult trade-offs on staff and leaders, and how to remain credible, accountable and focused on safe, high-quality patient care in challenging conditions.

Chair: Steve Ford, Editor, Nursing Times

Panellists:

Em Wilkinson-Brice, Non-Executive Director , Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

Jan Stevens CBE, Chief Nurse , Wellington Hospital


Fire side chat: TBC

15:25 – 16:05


Break

16:05

Case study: Safety improvement through technology

13:45 - 14:30

Patient safety remains a core priority across the UK health and care system, with digital tools increasingly supporting risk reduction, learning and improvement in a range of care environments.

This case study will showcase how digital solutions, clinical decision support tools and improved data flows are being used to support safer care in everyday settings.


Case Studies: From Potential to Practice: AI in Health and Care

14:35 - 15:20

Artificial intelligence is already being used across acute, community and social care settings to support clinical and operational activity. The focus is now less on future potential and more on how these tools perform in real-world practice.

Those case studies take a practical look at how AI is being applied today across health and care, including automation, predictive analytics, and decision-support tools. Speakers will share real examples of how these approaches are supporting more efficient workflows, improving patient safety, and strengthening care delivery, with an emphasis on what has worked, what has been learned, and how clinical judgement remains central to their use.


Closed

15:20


Closing Panel Discussion: Health and Care 2050: Shaping a Human-Centred Future for Health and Care.

16:10 – 16:55

Looking 20 to 30 years ahead, advances in AI, robotics, and digital technologies have the potential to fundamentally reshape how acute, community and social care services are delivered, and how the workforce is organised and supported across the UK. This session creates space to think beyond immediate pressures and consider what care could become in the decades ahead.

The panel will explore how emerging technologies may transform workforce models, planning, and clinical decision-making, and what this could mean for patients’ experiences of care across different settings. Panellists will reflect on the leadership needed to guide long-term change, ensuring that technological progress strengthens, rather than undermines, the human core of health and care and nursing.

Professor Dr. Marion Lynch , Global Health Consultant, Quality Education and Research Ltd.

Professor Gemma Stacey, Associate Dean for Practice in the School of Social Sciences, Nottingham Trent University.

Case study: Redesigning Clinical Pathways for Better Care

13:45 - 14:30

As demand grows and services adapt across the UK, teams are rethinking how clinical pathways are designed, delivered and coordinated across organisational and sector boundaries. Well-designed pathways can improve outcomes, support safer care and create smoother experiences for patients, families and staff.

This session highlights practical examples of clinical pathway redesign across health and care settings. Speakers will share what has changed in practice, how improvements have been sustained, and what others can learn about designing pathways that work better for patients, clinicians and services across different system contexts.


Case Studies: Advancing Population Health Through Prevention and Equity

14:35 - 15:20

Improving population health requires approaches that address inequality, support early intervention and respond to the needs of diverse communities across the UK. Practical innovation plays a key role in translating these ambitions into measurable outcomes.

This case study cluster showcases real-world approaches to population health innovation, focusing on prevention, early intervention and equitable access to care across acute, community and social care settings. Speakers will share how this work has improved outcomes for diverse populations, what has enabled success in practice, and what others can learn about designing population health initiatives that are inclusive, effective and sustainable.


Panel Discussion: Embedding Inclusion, Equity and Belonging in Recruitment and Retention

15:25 – 16:10

Inclusion, equity and workforce cohesion play a critical role in recruitment and retention across the health and care workforce. Experiences vary significantly across settings and roles, including for internationally educated and global majority nurses.

This session explores practical actions leaders can take to embed inclusive and equitable approaches across recruitment, induction and workforce development. Panellists will focus on bridging hierarchical and generational divides, strengthening understanding across diverse teams and creating cultures of belonging. The discussion will highlight how intentional inclusion supports retention, strengthens teams and enables people from all backgrounds to thrive across health and care settings.


Break

16:05

16:55 - 17:00

Closing remarks

17:00

Event closed

Additional, interactive sessions

The Collaboration Lab

Behavioural, interpersonal, leadership-development and problem-solving topics

The Collaboration Lab is a dedicated space for deeper discussion and shared learning on the behavioural, interpersonal and leadership skills that underpin effective practice across the health and care system. Designed to be interactive and participatory, it provides an opportunity to move beyond panel discussion and into more open, practical conversations.

Sessions in this space may take the form of facilitated round tables or workshops, encouraging active participation, peer exchange and honest reflection. Topics will focus on real-world challenges related to leadership behaviour, communication, team dynamics, problem-solving and culture, drawing on the experience of participants from across acute, community, social care, education and wider system settings.

This is a space for exploration, sense-making and practical learning, enabling participants to test ideas, share experiences and take away insights that can be applied directly within their own teams and organisations.



Scheduled sessions include:

Building Confident, Leader-Ready Professionals from Day One: What Nursing Can Learn from Other Professions

As health systems shift and nurses are increasingly expected to influence digital, workforce and service redesign, leadership confidence cannot start at Band 7.

Drawing on insights from physiotherapy education and Jess’s background in nursing leadership, this session explores how professional identity, agency and leadership behaviours can be strengthened from the start of a career.

Introducing the 4 S’s framework – Support, Safety, Sponsorship and Sharing, the discussion considers how professions can create the conditions that enable early-career clinicians to develop voice, confidence and influence earlier.

Discussion themes

  • Professional identity and early leadership development
  • Creating the conditions for early-career voice and influence
  • Preparing nurses to shape system change — not just deliver it

Jessica Sainsbury, CSP Student Support Officer, Chartered Society of Physiotherapy



Nurturing Your Nervous System

In the fast-paced and emotionally demanding world of nursing, the ability to regulate and support your nervous system is essential for both personal wellbeing and professional sustainability. This session explores the relationship between the brain, the nervous system and the realities of modern nursing practice. Through a compassionate and practical approach, it will introduce evidence-based techniques to help nurses better understand their responses to stress and build resilience in everyday situations. Participants will learn simple, accessible tools that can be applied in daily life to support regulation, improve focus and enhance overall wellbeing, both in and outside of work.

Discussion themes:

  • Understanding the connection between the brain, nervous system and stress responses
  • Recognising how the nursing environment impacts regulation and wellbeing
  • Practical, evidence-based techniques to support nervous system regulation in daily life

Carol Camfield, Wellbeing Manager, Cavell

Bryony Ashcroft, Wellbeing Manager, Cavell