Interim project findings presented at Children’s Services Commissioners’ Conference

The project team joined experts and practitioners from across the children’s services sector to present and discuss initial project findings.

The annual Children’s Services Commissioners’ Conference took place on 26-27 June 2025, organised by the Commissioners' Conference team and held at the Hayes Conference Centre, Derbyshire. Themed Commissioning Together: Improving Outcomes through Collaboration & Innovation, experts and practitioners from across the children’s services sector came together over two days to engage in discussions related to national and local commissioning challenges and best practices. 

Keynote addresses were delivered from key sector leaders, including Jane Moore (Director, Children and Family Services, Leicestershire County Council), Lucy Butler (Director South East Regional Care Co-Operative), Steven Russell (Expert by Experience and Founder of Elements SEMH Support), Mark Rogers (Chief Executive, Leadership Centre, and Interim Chief Executive, Hull and East Yorkshire Combined Authority), Richard Selwyn (Service Director, Somerset County Council and Vice Chair, ADCS Resources and Strategy Policy Committee), Andrew Nichols Clarke (Head of Health and Justice Children Programme, NHS England) and Yvette Stanley (Director, Regulation and Social Care, Ofsted). The keynotes stimulated discussion around current innovations, opportunities and challenges, which fed into a number of interactive workshops. The workshops covered a range of topics and issues related to children’s care and support, with an emphasis on innovation and improving best practice. 

The project team were pleased to join the conversation alongside colleagues from the Centre for Care research centre, including Dr Anna Leyland, who presented findings from a research study exploring the disproportionate criminal justice outcomes for children in the care system and the implications for social work and justice system practitioners. Project team members Harriet Churchill and Jonathan Herbert hosted their own workshop, titled Early Help & Family Support: Developing the role of digital resources & support for parents & parenting. An overview of the project was presented alongside initial findings from the systematic research review and qualitative research elements completed so far, including data providing insights from parents' voices and experiences. Attendees represented local authority services and commissioning teams from across the country, alongside education and children’s support services. An engaging discussion centred around the insights and recommendations emerging from the project, challenges and opportunities related to the development and commissioning of digital support services, and the importance of incorporating parents’ voices and experiences into service development.

The conference provided a valuable opportunity to engage with a range of stakeholders from across the children’s services sector, allowing the project team to discuss and explore different avenues of impact from the research, and gain a better understanding of how the project’s outputs will have value across different contexts.