Our Panels

We have three morning panels to inspire, challenge and engage.  Here's a snapshot.

Working in Harmony: Innovating for Dignity, Difference and Designing with Nature 

  • Stephen O’Malley, CEO of CIVIC 
  • Eve Holt, Head of Policy & Implementation at Greater Manchester Combined Authority 
  • Steve Connor, CEO of Creative Concern
  • Phil Hepworth, Director of AEW Architects
  • Moderated by Robyn Hewson, Deputy Editor, Insider Media North West

This explores innovation not as technology alone, but as a fundamental shift in how we design, deliver and care for places — with dignity, difference and nature as critical measures of success.  Rather than treating inclusion or sustainability as separate agendas, this session positions them as outcomes of better, more thoughtful innovation, that is embedded, often invisible, and long-term.

Fireside Conversation

Small Changes, Big Impact: Innovating Through Lived Experience and Co-Design 

  • Susan Leadbetter, Associate, WSP in the UK
  • Laurence Neal, Design Manager, Earls Court Development Company

Framed as a fireside conversation, this session focuses on how innovation often happens through small, thoughtful interventions, shaped by lived experience and meaningful engagement.  Innovation is often associated with scale, technology or major transformation. This session challenges that narrative.  Through an open conversation, it explores how modest, well-targeted interventions — informed by lived experience and co-design — can deliver meaningful, lasting impact. 

Future Voices: Rethinking Innovation Through the Next Generation 

  • Rachel Newton, Manchester School of Architecture
  • Jo Harrop, PLACED
  • Matt Weir, PLACED 
  • Student panelists Lilia Hakem, Anu Ibinayo and Rui Jang

This panel brings a critical and forward-looking perspective from those at the earliest stages of their careers.   It focuses on how the next generation understands innovation — what they expect from it, what concerns them, and how prepared they feel to contribute to it. The session provides an important counterpoint to more established perspectives, ensuring the conversation reflects future needs, not just current practice.