The SHE Show South
Tuesday 15th September 2026, DoubleTree by Hilton, MK Dons Stadium
Evening Dinner
Sponsor
Catering Area
Sponsor
Event
Partners
National
Supporters
Evening Dinner Sponsor
Catering Area Sponsor
Event Partners
National Supporters
Conference Programme
Evening Prior to The SHE Show (Monday 14th September 2026)
6:30 PM – 7:15 PM
Networking Evening Drinks Reception
A great way to kick start the evening prior to the show by networking with like minded individuals in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere.
7:30 PM – 10:00 PM
Networking Evening Dinner
Enjoy a scrumptious 3 course meal with light hearted after dinner entertainment.
Dream to Achieve
Mel Clarke, Paralympian & Archery World Champion
Hear how Mel went from fighting for her life to World Champion in just two years!
Mel Clarke’s journey tells how she went from being an athletic child and school track runner to becoming disabled at 11 and finding a different path in life. Archery filled a gap, but little did she know how far it would take her. In time she became the first disabled athlete in Europe to compete on an able-bodied team, but it was at a tournament she was left with a brain infection and fighting for her life. Mel was told she would never be able to compete again, however fought back to become not only a World Champion, but double Paralympic Medallist.
Mel will share her personal challenges, experiences and journey not only to becoming an elite athlete, but the ups and downs of disability. A true story of how resilience, perseverance and a ‘never give up’ attitude can help you to achieve your wildest dreams.
Key Takeaways Include:
– An insight into the training and dedication needed to perform as an elite athlete.
– Hear how Mel worked through extreme physical and mental challenges to learn how to cope with a disability and become a World Champion.
– How the power of a robust and supportive team can make a huge impact to an individual.
On the Day of The SHE Show (Tuesday 15th September 2026)
7:30 AM – 8:30 AM
Registration, Breakfast Reception and Exhibition Viewing
Welcome and Opening Remarks
Duncan Aspin, Delivering with Certainty Director, VolkerStevin
Duncan has worked in construction for over 30 years both operationally on site and as a health and safety professional. He has extensive experience in designing and implementing successful behaviour change within organisations and champions embracing a positive, inclusive and solution focused culture.
Mental Health and Wellbeing
The kid I was, the mess I made, the Dad I became
Sam Warner, Public Speaker, Coach, NEI’s Mental Health Podcast
Mental health struggles often creep in quietly. I started life with potential, but childhood pain—feeling unseen, unsafe, and unlovable—led me into chaos: alcohol, drugs, violence, and pushing people away. I didn’t know how to love or be loved, even though I wanted it. My story is about hitting rock bottom, facing those wounds, and learning that connection, kindness, and family are the real keys to recovery.
Alongside my own journey, I work across the Northeast with NE1’s Mental Health CIC, helping schools, colleges, workplaces, and communities change the culture around mental well-being. Together, we show people it’s okay to speak up, seek support, and build environments where everyone can thrive. I’ll share how I broke the cycle personally, and how we can all start reclaiming our lives—one small step at a time.
Key Takeaways Include:
– Spot the Mask Before It Becomes Chaos
“We all put on shields as kids to survive. Notice what you’re hiding, because what starts small can spiral into bigger trouble if you ignore it.”
– Reach Out, Even When It Feels Scary
“Opening up is tough, especially if you’ve been hurt. But one honest conversation—really being seen—can start breaking isolation and fear.”
– Lean Into Love and Connection, Even Slowly
“It’s hard to trust love when you’ve been wounded, but leaning into family, kindness, and relationships is how you start healing. Your choices today can rewrite your story tomorrow.”
Overcoming Adversity and Resilience
Re-defining Resilience: How to Embrace the Unexpected
Alex Staniforth, Record- Breaking Adventurer, Performance Coach & Founder of Mind over Mountains
Adversity and change are inevitable; being defeated is optional. It’s time to re-define resilience in our rapidly changing world. Resilience is no longer about bouncing back or enduring to breaking point: it’s how we recharge, prepare and move forward – even when we can’t see the top of the mountain.
Drawing lessons from ultra-endurance and challenges much closer to home; Alex will share the tools in his ‘Resilience Rucksack’ that anyone can apply to not only manage pressure and navigate uncertainty – but thrive and sustain performance when the whole team depends on it.
Key Takeaways Include:
– Build your toolkit and mindset to thrive through setbacks, uncertainty and
pressure.
– Learn how to embrace adversity and turn failure into growth opportunities
– Why true resilience comes from recharging, not pushing harder.
10:20 AM – 10:25 AM
Summary
Duncan Aspin, Delivering with Certainty Director, VolkerStevin
10:25 AM – 11:25 AM
Refreshments and Exhibition Viewing
Climate Change and Sustainability
From Ocean Crisis to Human Health: Designing Resilient Futures
Jo Royle, British Environmental Leader, Trans-Ocean Skipper, and Founder of Common Seas
Jo Royle is a modern-day explorer, but not in search of new lands. Her journeys across some of the planet’s most extraordinary and fragile environments have revealed what’s really happening to our oceans – and why it matters to every one of us. From skippering a catamaran made of plastic bottles across the Pacific, to sailing to Pitcairn Island where HMS Bounty was wrecked, to voyaging through the disappearing mangroves of the Sundarbans, Jo has witnessed both the beauty of the seas and the scale of their decline.
Drawing on two decades of leadership – from working with 22 governments to tackle plastic pollution, to co-leading international campaigns that secured protection for over 4.4 million km² of ocean – Jo connects the dots between ocean health, human health, and the resilience of our economies. Her pioneering work has influenced how the world thinks about plastic, uncovered the first evidence of microplastics in human blood, and helped shift entire national policies.
In this keynote, Jo sounds the alarm on the state of our seas, explores the business drivers behind the crisis, and shares a hopeful vision of the solutions already scaling. The audience will leave informed, inspired, and energised to take bold steps in their own organisations to build healthier, more resilient futures.
Key Takeaways Include:
– Understand the risks: How ocean decline directly impacts human health, business, and economic stability.
– Identify the drivers: The systemic and commercial forces fuelling climate change, overfishing and plastic pollution.
– Visualise the solutions: Practical, scalable examples of how governments, businesses and citizens are already turning the tide – and how your organisation can lead.
Inspirational Leadership
Leading Effectively in High Pressure Environments
Kevin Taylor, Hostage Negotiator
As Leaders we have all faced times when we knew we needed to have a difficult conversation, whether with a client, a stakeholder or colleague and dreaded the thought of it. Maybe you put it off, delayed it or simply avoided it, but what if every conversation was a difficult one, and delaying or avoiding it was not an option because someone’s life depended on it. As the former head of the hostage negotiation unit for Greater Manchester Police Kevin Taylor is used to leading when the pressure is immense, and the consequences of failure were very real. from kidnap negotiations to suicide interventions. In an interactive session, Kevin will share his experience of operating as a leader in hostage situations and provide you with techniques and skills to manage even the most difficult of conversations, a must for any leader.
Key Takeaways Include:
– Think differently about communication
It doesn’t matter how brilliant you are at the technical aspects of your job, if you cannot communicate your ideas, your plans or the direction you want your team to go in, in a way that lands with each individual you are not effect. Your ability to communicate effectively as a leader is a critical skill to develop. In the world of hostage negotiation communication is anything other than a soft skill.
– Understand the different modes with which we listen
We listen is six different modes and dependant on which mode we are in will depend on what we hear the other person saying. Our brain will tune certain things in and tune other things out and as listening is a two way street the other person is doing exactly the same to messages you are delivering. Getting someone back in the room with you to ensure they hear the key messages you want to deliver is a crucial skill, that can be worked on and developed.
– Unlocking the true meaning of Active Listening
Active listening is a term many people have heard and is often talked about as being a positive skill for leaders to develop, but very few people truly understand what active listening actually is. Active listening actually has nothing to do with listening. Active listening is a suite of skills that allows a person to keep a person talking without the need to ask a question. When you keep them talking without asking questions they will stay on their topic and in doing so will reveal their values, beliefs, motivations, and fears. That is how you get a deeper understanding of what drives people.
12:55 PM – 1:00 PM
Summary
Duncan Aspin, Delivering with Certainty Director, VolkerStevin
1:00 PM – 2:10 PM
Networking Lunch and Exhibition Viewing
Legal Advice and Updates
Safety Incident Response – The Gap between Theory and Practice
Emma Bowens, Partner, Gunnercooke LLP
The way you respond to a serious Health & Safety incident carries legal, financial and reputational risks. It is a stressful and emotive time when decisions are made at speed, sometimes with unintended consequences. There is often a gap between the way the organisation plans to respond, and what happens in practice.
In this session, specialist Health & Safety lawyer, Emma Bowens, looks at an incident scenario where the decisions made were not as helpful as intended. She takes us through the key stages of incident response, highlighting where problems can occur, and providing valuable insight to avoid common mistakes.
This talk is a must for organisations that want to be prepared for such challenging situations.
Key Takeaways Include:
– A leader’s role during incident response
– Immediate steps to control the crisis
– Common pitfalls during the investigation and how to avoid them
Behaviour and Culture Change
If Behaviour & Culture Change was easy, you’d have done it already
Guy Bloom, Director, Living Brave Leadership
Guy Bloom will challenge the comfortable myths about culture change and take you inside the leadership behaviours that create lasting impact. Expect a direct, practical exploration of why strap lines matter, how to build a narrative people actually believe, and why staying the course is harder, and more important, than launching the next initiative.
Culture and behaviour change is not about a poster on a wall or a slogan in a newsletter. It is about what leaders say, do, and tolerate every day. Yet in most organisations, change fails not because people do not care, but because the approach ignores the realities of human behaviour, narrative, and accountability.
This is not theory. It is a forward-facing, reality-based conversation for leaders who want to drive change that survives beyond the first wave of enthusiasm and actually shapes the way people think, feel, and act at work.
Key Takeaways Include:
– Trust is Earned Daily
Culture change fails when leaders expect belief without consistent proof in their actions.
– Accountability is Not a Poster
Behaviour changes when people are held to their word, not just inspired in a workshop.
– Bravery and Connection Drive Change
You cannot shift culture without tough conversations, visible courage, and genuine human connection.