Data protection requirements for all organisations in the UK and Scotland are governed by law setting out what needs to be complied with and how.  However, the new Data (Use and Access) Bill is moving swiftly through Parliament and will conclude during 2025.  This Bill contains a range of changes with implications for all data practitioners and data protection officers, impacting on when, how and why compliance is needed.  Do you know what data practitioners and organisations need to understand about what will be in the new Act, what changes and responses will be required and what the impact will be of the other wider drivers of change in the data environment?

This conference takes place online.

Good governance has always been critical, but in 2025, it has become indispensable. Public sector bodies face unprecedented challenges: constrained budgets, damaged services, evolving public expectations and increasing demands for transparency and accountability. The need to ensure strong governance frameworks that support innovation, resilience efficiency and collaboration has never been greater.

This conference will take place online.

Scotland is at a pivotal moment in the reform of its mental health and capacity laws. The Scottish Government is responding to calls for change, driven by the findings of the Scottish Mental Health Law Review (SMHLR). This includes an urgent need to address the complexities of Adults with Incapacity (AWI) legislation, ensure mental health practices are aligned with human rights, and improve accountability and support mechanisms across the care and treatment landscape.

This conference will take place online.

Most working people and organisations use Microsoft 365 in one shape or another every day, but are you using applications like Outlook, Excel, Word and Teams effectively? Research shows that most people are only using 20% of the functionality in Microsoft 365. However, developing a better understanding of how to use these applications more productively is relatively easy and can deliver huge rewards in time savings, quality of work and organisational development.

This conference will take place online. 

Scottish transport is critical to our ability to sustain economic success and thriving, stable communities. However, the strength and development of our transport systems is under challenge. We have fragile public finances. We need to attract private investment and confidence. There are now reshaped travel patterns following COVID. Transport is expected to simultaneously help deliver economic growth and meet net zero targets while remaining affordable and reliable. What therefore should be our strategic objectives and targets for transport? How can we innovate to fund and deliver both projects and services? Who should transport policy and delivery be seeking to serve?

This conference will take place online.

Scotland’s public services are critical. Those services and the bodies that deliver them depend upon financial stability which is key to long-term sustainability. However, acute fiscal pressures and lack of pace in delivering reform have created a sense of crisis. This conference explores how we got here and what the scope of the challenge is, what can be done to deliver change, and which are the practical steps possible to move forward.

This conference will take place online. 

The Scottish Government, Scottish Parliament, Ministers and MSPs control legislation, policy and spending decisions affecting the activities of all organisations and people in Scotland. Informed, good decision making is important in good times, but absolutely critical in bad times. These remain difficult times. War in Ukraine, a weak economy, a new UK Government facing tough public finances and the unpredictable and imminent consequences of a second Trump Presidency - these all require the best judgement. So, in the midst of wave after wave of uncertainty buffeting Scotland's public services, private sector and third sector, it is essential to understand how to effectively influence, inform and connect with the key decision makers as they respond to the challenges ahead.

This conference will take place online.

Conference supported by Together (Scottish Alliance for Children's Rights)

This conference will take place online. 

Scotland's population is ageing, with 25% of all Scots now sixty or older, and that trend is only set to continue. However, care services for our older people face acute resource constraints at the same time as demand is rising sharply. Is it still possible to have quality, quantity and stability in our care services?

This conference will take place online. 

Scotland formally has a national housing crisis as every sector of the housing market faces demand that dramatically outstrips supply. The Scottish Government and local authorities have officially declared housing emergencies. Developers are struggling with costs and wider supply side constraints. The affordable housing budget for 2024/25 was cut by £196 million. People who want to buy and who want to rent face unaffordable costs in both sectors. How do we break this downward cycle? What policy action needs to be taken and how do we increase the supply of housing as quickly and sustainably as possible?

This conference will take place online.