Programme
- Day 1:
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Wednesday 30 September 2026
- 8.45
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Registration & coffee
- 9.00
-
Introduction and OH hot topics
Dr John Ballard, Occupational Health [at Work]
OH PRACTICE
- 9.15
-
Work-specific psychological assessment
Alan Dovey, Working Minds UK
- Burnout – intervention before catastrophe
- The COP-ES screening tool
- In practice: results from industry, fire and healthcare
- 10.00
-
Bullying, harassment and workers’ health
Dr Sam Farley, Sheffield University Management School
- Assessing and addressing widespread problems at work (and the impact on employee health)
- Managing OH consultations when a worker attributes their ill health to bullying or harassment
- Making appropriate recommendations
- 10.45
-
Coffee and exhibition
- 11.20
-
Colt Foundation lecture: the place of OH in a Generative World Order
Dr Paul Litchfield, ITV and Compass Group
- Geopolitical and technological changes reshaping the nature of work
- Making the case for organisational investment in health
- OH skills that matter for the future
- Inspiring the next generation
- 12.10
-
Functional capacity evaluation
Mandy Kelly, Crest Health Group Ltd- Assessment process
- Planning the return-to-work process
- Advice to employers and employees
- Case examples
- 12.55
-
Lunch and exhibition
OH LAW – PART ONE
- 13.50
-
The Nick Hanning Lecture: Knowledge, consent and confidentiality
Prof Diana Kloss, barrister
- ‘Knowledge’ of disability – actual and constructive
- Do we always need consent?
- Liability of the OH practitioner – in-house and commercial providers
- FOM ethics guidance for OH practice
- 14.35
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OH law Q&A
Prof Diana Kloss, barrister
OH PRACTICE
- 14.50
-
Fluctuating health conditions
Dr Anthony Bell, Health Partners
- OH assessment
- Planning adjustments
- Case studies
- 15.35
-
Tea and exhibition
- 16.00
-
Improving work quality
Prof Chris Warhurst, University of Warwick
- What is work quality and why is it important?
- How do we measure it?
- Creating healthy jobs
- Impact of AI on work and work quality
- 16.40
-
What matters to you in OH practice?
Five-minute professional briefing sessions
- Your chance to highlight some work that has helped improve health in your workplace, or share a great new idea – but you’ve only got FIVE minutes and 20 slides to do it!
- Click here for more information on how to take part. Get chosen to present a five minute briefing session, and you can attend day one FREE!
- 17.30
-
End of day one
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- Day 2:
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Thursday 1 October 2026
- 8.00
-
Breakfast briefing: chronic pain management in practice
Adam Siu, Down2U
- Impact of chronic pain on work
- Red flags
- Strategies and practical techniques to keep employees in work
- Q&A
- 8.45
-
Coffee
- 9.00
-
Welcome
OH PRACTICE SESSIONS
- 9.05
-
Making wellbeing work
Dr Richard Peters, Jaguar Land Rover
- Supporting people with health conditions to remain healthy in work
- Young workers
- Business-wide strategy
- JLR’s contribution to Keep Britain Working
- 9.50
-
Supporting night workers
Ella Reynolds, The Liminal Space
- ‘Night Club’ – a healthier working experience
- Behavioural change
- Employer and employee engagement
- 10.30
-
Coffee and exhibition
- 10.55
-
Neurodiversity and reasonable adjustments at the BBC
Sean Gilroy, BBC
- Adaptations to put in place for different conditions
- Tailoring the process
- Application to other settings
OH LAW – part 2
- 11.35
-
Legal hot topics for OH professionals
Andrew Whiteaker, Boyes Turner
- Flexible working – workers in general, and worker with disabilities
- Medical evidence – role of OH in employers’ decision making
- Long-term absence and injury – reasonable adjustments, capability dismissals, fair process
- 12.25
-
Lunch and exhibition
- 13.15
-
Welcome to the afternoon sessions
OH PRACTICE SESSIONS
- 13.25
-
Health inequality – an underdeveloped issue for OH
Dr Aaliya Goyal, occupational health physician
- Impact of inequality on health outcomes
- What has it got to do with work?
- OH response
- Case examples
OH CAREERS
- 14.10
-
Mentoring OH colleagues
Janet O’Neill, National School of Occupational health
- Importance of mentoring in OH
- How to get involved
- Resources: Occupational Health Mentoring platform
- 14.40
-
Supporting OH professionals facing complaints about their professional practice
Dr John Ballard, Occupational Health [at Work] and Dr Clare Fernandes, Haleon
- Final results of our exclusive survey
- Psychological impact
- Identifying practitioners at risk
- Providing appropriate support
- Recommendations
- 15.25
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Final questions
- 15.30
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Close of day two
Benefits of attending
This two day seminar offers a fantastic opportunity to update your OH expertise, plus plenty of opportunities to network – including at our exhibition and at our conference dinner.
How will attending this event benefit you?
You will gain:
- An insight into mental health, neurodiversity and well-being at work, with sessions on burnout, and best practice case studies from the BBC and Jaguar Land Rover
- An understanding of the importance of the role of OH in a fast changing world in our Colt Foundation Keynote Lecture
- Expert insight into topics such as supporting night workers, occupational illness, chronic pain, functional
capacity, work quality, and health inequalities - An exploration of professional issues from mentoring to managing complaints
- An up-to-the-minute understanding of the latest developments in OH law, including a closer look at disability discrimination law
- An update on the latest developments in OH
This seminar is designed for:
- OH professionals from the UK, Ireland and overseas
- HR managers
- Allied health professionals
Present a five-minute briefing session and attend day one FREE!
Would you like to present a new idea that has helped improve health in your workplace? Present a 5 minute presentation and attend day one for FREE! Showcase an OH intervention, discuss a dilemma in OH practice or present the key findings of some research.
Challenge or celebrate what you’ve been doing in OH in 5 minutes & 20 slides! For more information on how you can take part, click here: https://www.atworkpartnership.co.uk/workplace-health-5-minute-presentations
Attendance in person or online
Delegates are encouraged to attend in person at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, where they will be able to benefit from the learning and networking opportunities of a live event, but for those that cannot join in person, we offer an online alternative
In-person attendance
The conference will be held at the Crowne Plaza Birmingham City Centre, Holliday Street Birmingham United Kingdom B1 1HH. Tel: 0121 224 5000 or 0800 890 410. The Crowne Plaza Birmingham City Centre hotel boasts a prime location in central Birmingham, just five minutes’ walk from Birmingham New Street train station. The hotel is a 10 minute train journey from Birmingham Airport (BHX) and 45 minutes by car from East Midlands Airport (EMA).
Delegates attending in person have the opportunity to network with other delegates, speakers and exhibitors and can ask live or written questions at the event. They will be provided with printed conference documentation on arrival. The fee includes printed documentation, refreshments and lunch.
Delegates attending in person can also opt to come to our conference dinner and entertainment, to network and chat with fellow delegates and speakers in a relaxed atmosphere. This takes place at 7.30pm on Wed 30 Sept 2026 and can be booked with your conference place.
Online attendance
Online delegates will be able to register to watch the conference live on Zoom. Online delegates will not be able to ask questions live, as microphones will be unavailable for virtual attendance. However, they will be able to put written questions in the chat function in Zoom. The fee includes printed conference documentation which will be sent in advance.
There are limited spaces available, book now to avoid disappointment!
