As colleges face unprecedented challenges in staffing and recruitment, this workshop explores approaches to staff retention in an increasingly competitive environment.

This workshop will help you consider how to:

• get the right governors in place with sufficient understanding of your provision to know what good quality looks like
• provide governors with the right information/data to help them make judgements
• empower and, where necessary, upskill governors so they are able to ask challenging questions.

How can a college and a local authority work together to ensure that both organisations have certainty about the number of high needs places being allocated to the college and the budget required for those students? This workshop highlights how one college and LA have developed a positive relationship and are able to plan strategically for the future.

Sarah Goff from the Ann Craft Trust will be sharing a summary of the latest research on safeguarding young people with autism and learning disabilities. She will consider:

• why they face additional risks of harm, particularly as they prepare for and enter adulthood
• what makes effective practice in safeguarding and promoting their social and emotional wellbeing and developing their understanding of safety in relationships
• how young people can be heard.

Participants will explore together what the findings mean for safeguarding practice in specialist colleges.

Ambitious College and Hedleys College share their different experiences of working with students to develop and deliver training for colleagues in the general FE sector. Both colleges took part in the ETF-sponsored GFE/specialist college partnership project in which they explored the benefits and challenges of bringing both types of college together to achieve improved outcomes for students with SEND. The workshop will help you recognise your students as a valuable training resource and give you some ideas on how to work with them to make the most of their expertise.

This session is aimed at leaders who want to capitalise on the opportunities and independence technology gives to learners within college and beyond.

Neil and Fil evidence how a designated person leading on Assistive Technology increases the impact, awareness and usage of technology tools. They will also introduce the TechAbility Champions programme which supports staff members to develop their skills and experience in Assistive Technology.

In 2020, the SE19 post-16 Preparing for Adulthood Group set up a task and finish group to explore how to achieve successful transitions from education to social care and future life support. Representatives from LAs and specialist and general FE colleges from across the South East came together to see if they could develop a systems map of an 'ideal process' with associated timeline and supporting mechanisms. Group facilitator, Paul Morrison, shares the work of the group, including both achievements and challenges.

Delegates wishing to engage in more informal discussion rather than attend a workshop can stay in the main conference room. Here they will have a chance to debate a range of hot topics with colleagues. The topics are generated by delegates, depending on the issues that will be of most concern in June 2022, but could include ongoing matters such as finance, commissioning, reporting data, change management or crisis management, working with parents, setting up new provision, fundraising, marketing, partnership working and more.

As colleges face unprecedented challenges in staffing and recruitment, this workshop explores approaches to staff retention in an increasingly competitive environment.

This workshop will help you consider how to:

• get the right governors in place with sufficient understanding of your provision to know what good quality looks like
• provide governors with the right information/data to help them make judgements
• empower and, where necessary, upskill governors so they are able to ask challenging questions.

How can a college and a local authority work together to ensure that both organisations have certainty about the number of high needs places being allocated to the college and the budget required for those students? This workshop highlights how one college and LA have developed a positive relationship and are able to plan strategically for the future.

Sarah Goff from the Ann Craft Trust will be sharing a summary of the latest research on safeguarding young people with autism and learning disabilities. She will consider:

• why they face additional risks of harm, particularly as they prepare for and enter adulthood
• what makes effective practice in safeguarding and promoting their social and emotional wellbeing and developing their understanding of safety in relationships
• how young people can be heard.

Participants will explore together what the findings mean for safeguarding practice in specialist colleges.

Ambitious College and Hedleys College share their different experiences of working with students to develop and deliver training for colleagues in the general FE sector. Both colleges took part in the ETF-sponsored GFE/specialist college partnership project in which they explored the benefits and challenges of bringing both types of college together to achieve improved outcomes for students with SEND. The workshop will help you recognise your students as a valuable training resource and give you some ideas on how to work with them to make the most of their expertise.

This session is aimed at leaders who want to capitalise on the opportunities and independence technology gives to learners within college and beyond.

Neil and Fil evidence how a designated person leading on Assistive Technology increases the impact, awareness and usage of technology tools. They will also introduce the TechAbility Champions programme which supports staff members to develop their skills and experience in Assistive Technology.

In 2020, the SE19 post-16 Preparing for Adulthood Group set up a task and finish group to explore how to achieve successful transitions from education to social care and future life support. Representatives from LAs and specialist and general FE colleges from across the South East came together to see if they could develop a systems map of an 'ideal process' with associated timeline and supporting mechanisms. Group facilitator, Paul Morrison, shares the work of the group, including both achievements and challenges.

Delegates wishing to engage in more informal discussion rather than attend a workshop can stay in the main conference room. Here they will have a chance to debate a range of hot topics with colleagues. The topics are generated by delegates, depending on the issues that will be of most concern in June 2022, but could include ongoing matters such as finance, commissioning, reporting data, change management or crisis management, working with parents, setting up new provision, fundraising, marketing, partnership working and more.

Using the learner journey as a route map, senior staff from a number of successful specialist colleges explore what ‘quality’ means at each of its different stages.

This workshop considers some of the barriers facing students with vision impairment, the skills they will need for their lives after college and the support available for positive transitions.

Career progression opportunities for existing and potential staff are key to effective staff retention and recruitment. In an increasingly competitive job market, this workshop highlights Treloar College's work on succession and workforce planning. It considers what colleges can do to expand opportunities within existing roles to enable staff to take on more senior positions when they become available. Tools for supporting staff and managing their expectations will be explored as well as how such approaches serve to attract new people into working in the sector.

How can we ensure that students who use other means than words to communicate have a motivating, individual curriculum, full of rich experiences so that they are well prepared for adult lives as confident members of their own communities.

This workshop will help practitioners tackle the forward planning and risk management needed to take students with complex medical and support needs safely out of the classroom or workshop, onto the wider college site, out into the community and beyond.

As colleges enrol increasing numbers of students who present with behaviours of concern, the need for a whole organisational approach has never been more important. This workshop will help college staff and leaders reflect on their current approach and consider how to improve consistency and coherence.

Whether they develop their own CIAG or buy it in from an external provider, colleges need to have a clear idea of what constitutes a high-quality offer, including how to make CIAG meaningful for their particular students. Delegates will consider how to:

• use the Gatsby Benchmarks to review and improve on their current approach
• use accessible resources to engage students
• build outcomes of CIAG into annual reviews and EHC Plans.

An exploration of the impact of effective leadership on your own performance, the people around you, your organisation and the wider the sector. Simon Whitehouse, course leader on Natspec’s SEND leadership course, is joined by graduates from the programme who will be sharing their own personal stories.

Delegates wishing to engage in more informal discussion rather than attend a workshop can stay in the main conference room. Here they will have a chance to debate a range of hot topics with colleagues. The topics are generated by delegates, depending on the issues that will be of most concern in June 2022, but could include ongoing matters such as finance, commissioning, reporting data, change management or crisis management, working with parents, setting up new provision, fundraising, marketing, partnership working and more.

Using the learner journey as a route map, senior staff from a number of successful specialist colleges explore what ‘quality’ means at each of its different stages.

This workshop considers some of the barriers facing students with vision impairment, the skills they will need for their lives after college and the support available for positive transitions.

Career progression opportunities for existing and potential staff are key to effective staff retention and recruitment. In an increasingly competitive job market, this workshop highlights Treloar College's work on succession and workforce planning. It considers what colleges can do to expand opportunities within existing roles to enable staff to take on more senior positions when they become available. Tools for supporting staff and managing their expectations will be explored as well as how such approaches serve to attract new people into working in the sector.

How can we ensure that students who use other means than words to communicate have a motivating, individual curriculum, full of rich experiences so that they are well prepared for adult lives as confident members of their own communities.

This workshop will help practitioners tackle the forward planning and risk management needed to take students with complex medical and support needs safely out of the classroom or workshop, onto the wider college site, out into the community and beyond.

As colleges enrol increasing numbers of students who present with behaviours of concern, the need for a whole organisational approach has never been more important. This workshop will help college staff and leaders reflect on their current approach and consider how to improve consistency and coherence.

Whether they develop their own CIAG or buy it in from an external provider, colleges need to have a clear idea of what constitutes a high-quality offer, including how to make CIAG meaningful for their particular students. Delegates will consider how to:

• use the Gatsby Benchmarks to review and improve on their current approach
• use accessible resources to engage students
• build outcomes of CIAG into annual reviews and EHC Plans.

An exploration of the impact of effective leadership on your own performance, the people around you, your organisation and the wider the sector. Simon Whitehouse, course leader on Natspec’s SEND leadership course, is joined by graduates from the programme who will be sharing their own personal stories.