Culture Shift's Annual Conference 2026

'Preventing harm and building speak up cultures before it’s too late'

📅 Wednesday 11 March 2026 | 📍 Pendulum Hotel, Manchester

Why should you attend?

Across every sector - from corporate to NHS to higher education - organisations face the same challenge:
How do you prevent harm, meet changing legal or regulatory expectations, and respond confidently when concerns are raised?

This conference brings together national experts, legal specialists, practitioners, and real-world case experience to help leaders:

• Build safer, more accountable workplace cultures
  
• Strengthen reporting pathways and early intervention
  
• Reduce risk exposure and reputational damage
  
• Understand the fast-changing legal and compliance landscape
  
• Benchmark current practice against national data
• Leave with practical models, templates, questions to ask internally, and changes you can implement the next day

Speakers:

Estelle Zinsstag - Associate Professor of Criminology, Edinburgh Napier
Anna Spragg - Head of People Experience and Inclusion Institute of Development Studies
Jenny Gradwell - Advice & Response, University of Manchester
Alison Dunn - CEO, Citizens Advice
Sarah Dean - People Policy and Engagement Partner, National Theatre
Dr Chloë Gough - Chartered Work Psychologist
Ameera Jamil - ReCultured
Harriet Smailes - Sexual Violence and Domestic Abuse Researcher
Leah Burch - Senior Lecturer, Liverpool Hope University
Dr Chelcie Jewitt - Surviving in Scrubs
Deeba Syed - Head of Policy, Research and Advocacy, Fawcett Society 
Hina Belitz - Partner, Excello Law
Anne Wambua - Lead Trainer and Assessor, SafeLives
James Murray - Partner, Doyle Clayton Solicitors
Karen Bowlby - Inclusion Manager, University of Essex
Dr Gurnam Singh - Professor of Sociology, University of Warwick

...and more legal, safeguarding, HR and compliance experts to be announced.

Ticket options:

🎟 In-person: £295 + booking fee
🎟 Virtual: £95 + booking fee
(Culture Shift Partners: use your unique code for free or discounted tickets)

Why the investment is worth it:
You leave with expert-led frameworks, practical tools, benchmarking insights, and a cross-sector network of people tackling the same challenges.

Agenda *subject to change

09:30 - 10:00: Arrivals and networking refreshments [In-person only]

Tea, coffee and breakfast pastries will be served on arrival. It’s a great opportunity to catch up with the Culture Shift team and get to know each other before the event starts.

10:00 - 10:15: Welcome [Hybrid]

Our Co-Founder and CEO Gemma McCall will welcome you all to this annual event. Giving highlights on the year past and the challenges that lay ahead.

10:15 - 11:05: Opening Plenary - You’ve received a report of bullying or harassment... what happens next? [Hybrid]

This panel discussion will interrogate the ways organisations are responding to reports of bullying, harassment and discrimination. Given the increasing and changing legal and regulatory landscape, it's more important than ever for organisations to have a robust and considered approach to responding to reports. The panel consists of experts working in both Higher Education and workplace settings, who will discuss various stages of the process of dealing with reports including triage, case management, support, investigation and resolution. Panelists include: Anna Spragg, Head of People Experience and Inclusion at the Institute of Development Studies, Jenny Gradwell, Advice & Response UoM, Alison Dunn CEO of The Society Matters Group, and Sarah Dean, People Policy and Engagement Partner at the National Theatre.

11:05 - 11:20: Time to move between rooms and grab a coffee

11:20 - 12:15: Breakout Session 1

• Supporting employees who are experiencing Domestic Abuse [Hybrid] - Anne Wambua, Training Lead at Safe Lives
  
• Can we protect free speech and protect students from harm? [In-person only] - Dr Gurnam Singh, Uni of Warwick, James Murray
  Lawyer & academic, and Karen Bowlby, Inclusion Manager at Uni of Essex
  

12:15 – 13:00: Lunch [Provided in-person only]
A two-course hot buffet lunch will be provided

13:00 – 13:55: Breakout Session 2

• Lightning talks of Gender Based Violence (strangulation & 'honour'-based abuse, FGM and Forced Marriage [Hybrid] - Ameera Jamil - ReCultured, and Harriet Smailes - Sexual Violence and Domestic Abuse Researcher
• Ready, Set, Success! How establishing contextual readiness can enhance organisational approaches to tackling bullying at work [In-person] - Dr Chloë Gough Work Psychologist (BHD Intervention Specialist)

14:05 – 14:20: Keynote - Culture Shift’s national picture of bullying and harassment

14:30 - 15:25: Breakout Session 3

• How to deal with situations where the rights of employees or students come into conflict? [Hybrid] - Hina Belitz, Partner at Excello Law, and Mary Asante, Co-founder, HR Independents
• Understanding and addressing disablist harassment and hate crimes[In-person only] - Leah Burch, Senior Lecturer at Liverpool Hope University
• Discussing the research around the benefits and challenges of restorative justice in cases of gendered violence [In-person only] - Estelle Zinsstag - Associate Professor of Criminology - Edinburgh Napier

15:25 - 15:45: Comfort/prayer break

15:45 - 16:40: Closing plenary: Exploring the impact of power in bullying, harassment and sexual misconduct cases.

16:40 - 17:00: Final Q&A and Closing Remarks

17:00 - 18:15: Break, Networking or Iftar fast breaking

• Checking into your hotel room if you are staying overnight to join us for the Community of Practice day the following day

• Join us in the bar for networking drinks

• Or use our prayer room for Iftar (dates, water and light refreshments provided)

Community of Practice

Gold, Advanced and Expert Partners are invited to stay in Manchester for a second day of networking at our Community of Practice Event. Spaces are limited and will be on a first come first served basis so make sure you have booked your overnight stay and join us for a second day of extended discussions and skills development workshops. You can expect Action Learning Sets, skills workshops and lots of opportunity to discuss and reflect on the presentations given during the Annual Conference. Book your free places on the CoP event page.

Accommodation

Manchester has plenty of great accommodation across the city to suit different budgets. 

Cancellation

We are restricted in the amount of people who can attend the conference and places are sought after. Therefore, if you become aware that you can no longer make it, please let us know as soon as possible so we can allocate your spot to someone else. This includes all free and paid in-person and virtual tickets. You will have up to 7 days before the event to receive a full refund on paid tickets. For free in-person ticket cancellations please try and tell us 14 days in advance so we can offer the space to someone else or if you have a colleague who can go instead let us know the change in details so we can ensure they are correct on the day. Thank you for your co-operation.