BOOK YOUR PLACE HERE!
BUILDING BEST PRACTICE IN CHILDREN’S CARE
9:30 am – 4:30 pm | Thursday 12th November 2026 | ICC, Birmingham
Overview
Delivering high-quality care for children and young people requires more than meeting standards—it requires strong leadership, effective safeguarding, a skilled workforce and a culture of continuous improvement. As children’s services continue to face increasing demand, workforce pressures and evolving regulatory expectations, organisations must find practical ways to translate policy, inspection frameworks and guidance into meaningful outcomes.
Building Best Practice in Children’s Care brings together leaders, practitioners, regulators and sector experts to explore what excellence looks like across children’s services today. Through keynote presentations, case studies, panel discussions and practical sessions, attendees will gain insights into the approaches, cultures and systems that support safe, stable and child-centred care.
The conference will provide an opportunity to learn from best practice across the sector, explore emerging priorities from Ofsted and other key stakeholders, and share ideas with peers committed to improving quality and outcomes for children and young people.
Throughout the day, delegates will examine the role of inspection and quality assurance, safeguarding excellence, workforce development, meaningful participation, partnership working and service improvement. Sessions are designed to move beyond theory and compliance, focusing on practical approaches that can strengthen culture, improve outcomes and support continuous improvement across children’s services.
Key Themes
Defining Excellence in Children’s Care
Understanding what best practice looks like and how organisations can consistently deliver high-quality support.
Ofsted, Quality Assurance and Continuous Improvement
Using inspection findings, standards and quality frameworks to drive meaningful service development.
Safeguarding Excellence
Embedding strong safeguarding cultures, effective risk management and professional curiosity.
Workforce Stability and Development
Building resilient, skilled and confident teams through effective recruitment, retention and support.
Participation and Lived Experience
Ensuring children, young people and families have a meaningful role in shaping services and decisions.
Partnership Working and Early Intervention
Strengthening collaboration across education, health, social care and community services to improve outcomes.
Supporting Children Through Change
Improving transitions, promoting stability and preparing children and young people for the future.
Turning Policy into Practice
Translating standards, guidance and strategic priorities into tangible improvements for children and families.
Who Should Attend?
This conference is designed for professionals responsible for delivering, leading and improving children’s services, including:
- Registered Managers and Service Leaders
- Heads of Residential Children’s Care
- Fostering and Supported Accommodation Leaders
- Safeguarding Leads and Quality Assurance Professionals
- Children’s Services Directors and Senior Managers
- Workforce Development and Training Leads
- Social Workers, Team Managers and Practice Leads
- Participation and Lived Experience Leads
- Commissioners and Commissioning Managers
- Multi-Agency Partners from Education, Health and Community Services
- Providers across regulated and emerging provision
- Organisations providing training, technology, consultancy and practice improvement support
Conference Programme
9:00 – 9:30
Registration & Networking
Arrival coffee and informal networking with peers and partners.
9:30 – 9:45
Chair’s Welcome & Setting the Scene
Why best practice matters now more than ever—and how it translates into better outcomes for children and young people.
9:45 – 10:30
Opening Keynote: What “Good” Really Looks Like in Children’s Services
From Intent to Impact
This keynote will explore what “good” truly means for children and young people in 2026 and beyond. Drawing on national evidence, children’s voices and the Commissioner’s unique oversight role, it will examine how rights, accountability and culture must align to create services that are safe, stable and centred on children’s needs.
The session will set out a vision for how leadership, commissioning and practice can move from aspiration to meaningful impact in the lives of children and families.
10:30 – 11:05
Session 1: Ofsted’s View of Excellence in Children’s Care
What the Strongest Services Have in Common
Inspection outcomes continue to influence commissioning, reputation and improvement across the sector. This session will explore emerging themes from inspections, what inspectors are looking for in practice, leadership and culture, and how services can move beyond compliance to continuous improvement.
Attendees will gain practical insights into demonstrating impact, embedding quality assurance and creating environments where children can thrive.
11:05 – 11:20
Refreshment Break
11:20 – 12:00
Session 2: Safeguarding Done Well
Embedding Consistency Across Regulated and Emerging Provision
This session focuses on how strong safeguarding cultures are built and maintained. It will explore practical approaches to risk identification, information-sharing and professional curiosity, highlighting how good practice protects children even in complex or fragmented systems.
12:00 – 12:40
Panel Discussion: From Frameworks to Frontline
Turning Standards, Guidance and Inspection into Meaningful Practice
A cross-sector panel discussion exploring how regulation, inspection and commissioning can actively support improvement rather than compliance alone. The session will focus on learning, partnership and proportionate oversight.
12:40 – 1:30
Networking Lunch
1:30 – 2:05
Session 3: Workforce Excellence in Children’s Care
Recruitment, Retention and Reflective Practice
This session will examine what best practice looks like in building confident, stable and skilled teams. Topics include supervision, continuous learning, supporting emotional resilience and creating environments where staff—and children—can thrive.
2:05 – 2:40
Fireside Conversation: Listening, Learning and Leading with Experience
A reflective discussion on how lived experience strengthens services, shapes better decisions and improves trust. This session focuses on meaningful involvement—not tokenism—and what organisations can learn when they truly listen.
2:40 – 2:55
Comfort Break
2:55 – 3:30
Session 4: Preventing Harm Through Early, Joined-Up Practice
What Effective Partnership Working Looks Like
This session explores best practice in multi-agency working, early intervention and prevention. It will look at how services can identify risk sooner, respond more effectively and avoid escalation through collaboration with families, schools, health and community partners.
3:30 – 4:05
Session 5: Supporting Children Through Change and Transition
Stability, Preparation and Continuity of Care
Focusing on moments of transition—placement moves, education change and preparing for adulthood—this session highlights practical approaches that reduce disruption and promote long-term wellbeing and independence.
4:05 – 4:30
Closing Session: Best Practice for the Future
What Must We Protect, Improve and Do Differently?
A forward-looking session drawing together the day’s learning, focusing on what must change—and what must be safeguarded—in order to deliver consistently high-quality care for children and young people in the years ahead.
Final reflections, audience takeaways and closing remarks.
This version reads more like a professional conference brochure, with a clear narrative flow from Overview → Themes → Audience → Programme, rather than feeling like separate sections stitched together.
