Keynote
Darren Edwards
Record-breaking Disabled Adventurer, Inspirational Speaker, and Author
Darren Edwards is the World’s Leading Adaptive Adventurer and an Award-Winning Keynote Speaker.
Darren has faced life’s greatest uncertainties head-on, drawing from his experience leading record-breaking expeditions and overcoming a life-changing injury. Speaking with unmatched authority and authenticity, he shares how to conquer fear and thrive in the face of challenges. With a natural gift for storytelling, Darren captivates audiences by blending inspiration with practical insights, offering real-world solutions to even the most daunting obstacles – all grounded in his extraordinary personal journey.
Darren Edwards is the World’s Leading Adaptive Adventurer and an Award-Winning Keynote Speaker.
Darren has faced life’s greatest uncertainties head-on, drawing from his experience leading record-breaking expeditions and overcoming a life-changing injury. Speaking with unmatched authority and authenticity, he shares how to conquer fear and thrive in the face of challenges. With a natural gift for storytelling, Darren captivates audiences by blending inspiration with practical insights, offering real-world solutions to even the most daunting obstacles – all grounded in his extraordinary personal journey.
After a time in the armed forces, and pursuing his mountaineering passion, Darren trained as a teacher. Shortly after qualifying, he was climbing in North Wales when the ledge he stood on fell away, and he plunged over 100 feet. Lucky to survive, he broke his back in two places, severing his spinal cord. Darren was paralysed from the chest down. As well as dealing with the trauma of his new circumstances, he faced a gruelling rehabilitation regime and an uncertain future.
Within days of leaving hospital, Darren found purpose. Determined to return to his outdoor adventures, he bought a kayak and took to the water for the first time. It was the start of a series of adventures that saw him kayak the length of Britain with fellow ex-servicemen, row across the English Channel, and become the first wheelchair user to complete the 777 challenge – seven marathons on seven continents over seven days. In December 2025, Darren led a small team on a daring and pioneering expedition to Antarctica’s brutal polar plateau in a World-Record attempt to sit-ski to the South Pole.
Conference Chairs
Nadra Ahmed
Executive Co-Chairman, National Care Association
- Nadra has been involved in the field of Social Care for over 40 years. Her background is in training and education, which has been the passion that drives her towards quality services, underpinned and provided by a skilled and valued workforce.
- She has been the Chairman of NCA since 2001 and is a trustee of Royal British Legion Industries and Governor at Canterbury Christchurch University. She is also the Co-Convenor of the Cavendish Coalition, formed to work with the NHS and Unison to support workforce issues in Health and Social Care pre-Brexit. She is currently the Chair of the Care Provider Alliance which brings together 11 national representative bodies in the sector.
- Additionally, Nadra holds various positions within voluntary organisations delivering services to vulnerable people in the community. These include Vice President of HiKent a charity supporting people with hearing loss, Patron of Rockdale Housing supporting older citizens through a pathway of care and support, Vice Patron of Kent Autistic Society and a trustee of Spadeworks which is a charity to support younger adults with learning disabilities to learn skills and run a garden centre.
- She has been a member of a number of Government advisory committees in the DHSC including at Ministerial level and Government Taskforces. Through the Covid pandemic Nadra was the respected voice of care providers consistently both privately with DHSC and publicly.
- Nadra is a regular contributor to journals and conferences and is frequently called upon by major media networks to represent the views of Social Care providers both nationally and internationally.
- In 2006 she was awarded the OBE for her services to Social Care and the following year was appointed Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Kent and a Kent Ambassador.
- Nadra has been the recipient of many awards within the care sector from ‘Care Personality’ to ‘Outstanding Contribution to the Business Community’.
- In 2023 Nadra was awarded the CBE for her continued services to Social Care.
David Wilson-Wynne
Director, Innovare Dementia Consultancy
Dave Wilson-Wynne is a dementia care specialist, consultant and thought leader. With extensive experience across health and social care, Dave is recognised for challenging outdated models of dementia care and championing a more inclusive, person-led approach.
Jon Chapman
Head of Care, Pinders
Jon is a Director of Pinders, the leading specialist business appraisers and valuers, having been involved in the valuation of care businesses of all sizes for more than thirty years. Jon is a regular advisor to operators, lenders and developers and organised the Healthcare Design Awards for twenty-five years.
Care Innovation Summit Speakers
Amanda Morgan Bennett
General Manager, Iverley View, Barchester
Amanda is General Manager of Barchester’s Iverley View care home in Stourbridge. She has worked in the health care sector for more than 30 years, helping to optimise wellbeing for older people, and those living with sensory impairment and dementia. Amanda passionately believes that wellbeing can be enhanced through thoughtful environmental design. In her previous role as Programme Director for the Dementia Services Development Centre at the University of Stirling and in her current position at Iverley View care home, she has used her awareness of design to enable older people to retain their sense of personhood and ability despite the challenges of older age and its associated conditions. At Iverley View, she has been instrumental in creating a warm and inclusive environment where people enjoy working, living and visiting.
Amrit Dhaliwal
CEO, Walfinch
Aneurin Brown is the Managing Director of Hallmark Care Homes which is an established, family-run care provider that has three CQC rated ‘Outstanding’ homes. It provides residential, nursing and dementia care to 1,250 residents across 22 locations in England and Wales and has won 100 awards over the last 25 years including; ‘Residential Care Provider’ at the 2021 Health Investor, National Care and Leaders in Care Awards ceremonies. During his career with Hallmark Aneurin has been recognised both internally and externally winning the NASHICS (National Association of Health and Safety in Care) Best Practice Award, Wales Care Awards Newcomer Award and Hallmark Care Awards Rising Star Award and Jim Sanders Award. Aneurin is a Chartered Health and Safety professional with particular areas of focus and specialisms in regulation, risk management, environmental health and policy. Aneurin is fluent Welsh speaker and his spare time is Chair of the National Eisteddfod of Wales Technical Committee.
Anna Dixon MP
Chair, All Party Parliamentary Group on Carers
Anna has worked at a national level on the NHS and social care over the past 20 years, influenced national plans and secured changes to policy on housing, employment support and industrial strategy. She chaired an independent commission on reimagining care set up by the Archbishops of Canterbury and York, and has held senior roles at Helpforce, The King’s Fund, the Department of Health, and Centre for Ageing Better.
Angela Boxall
Chief Executive, Majesticare
Angela is widely recognised as an influential and forward-thinking leader in social care, known for combining professionalism with warmth and positivity. As Chair of Care England, Angela plays a pivotal role in shaping national conversations and policy, championing providers and the workforce at the heart of the sector. Majesticare is a luxury care home group celebrated for its people-first culture, inspiring environments, and innovative use of technology. She is also a Director of Championing Social Care, where she jointly leads the Care Sector’s Got Talent committee and heads up the initiative’s ambassador programme, using creativity and collaboration to challenge perceptions, raise pride, and inspire the next generation to choose social care as a career.
Avnish Goyal CBE
Chairman, Hallmark Care Homes
Avnish Goyal, Chair, Hallmark Care Homes Avnish is the Founding Trustee of the Hemraj Goyal Foundation. He set the foundation up in memory of his late father in 2010 and has since donated £1million to worthy causes, making a real difference to the quality of people’s lives. Avnish is the Managing Director of award-winning care provider, Hallmark Care Homes. He has been involved in the care sector since 1997 and was initially attracted to the industry by his desire to make a difference. Twenty years on, there are now 16 Hallmark Care Homes across England and Wales, with more in the pipeline and the company is recognised as a leading, financially stable provider.
Avnish started his career as a Chartered Accountant where he completed his accountancy training at Coopers & Lybrand (now PwC) having gained his BA degree from Newcastle University. He is proud to be the Chair of Care England and the founding trustee of the Care Workers’ Charity. Avnish is also the Co-founder of Ultimate You where he designs educational seminars for business, leadership, life and relationships, with his wife – Anita Goyal. He is determined to make a difference and believes in doing everything with passion and purpose.
Camille Oung
Fellow, Nuffield Trust
Bio Coming Soon…
Claire Peart
Barchester
Claire qualified as an RMN in 1995 and started her career as a nurse in the Social Care sector.
She has dedicated her whole professional career to supporting people living with cognitive impairment & Dementia in social care settings. Over the last 30 years she has held numerous roles in care homes including Clinical nurse, Head of Community/Unit Lead and Home Manager. She has worked at Barchester Healthcare for the past 20 years supporting residents living in the Memory Lane communities. She joined Barchester’s Dementia Care team over 10 years ago as a Dementia Care Specialist and she is currently the National Lead Dementia Nurse Specialist & support the development of all aspects of dementia Care, policy & strategy development. She lead a team of 6 Dementia Nurse Specialist who work throughout the organisation supporting with all aspects of Dementia Care.
Clare Cameron
Director, Harris Irwin
Clare is an architect and director at Harris Irwin, one of the UK’s leading architectural practices specialising in care. Clare is an expert in design for older people, dementia and those with physical, cognitive or learning disabilities. In her 27 years of working in this sector Clare has led the design team for a series of award-winning projects, authored several design guides and undertaken multiple portfolio reviews of specialist housing and care stock for clients. Clare has a real passion to share her knowledge and to bring innovation and delight to ‘age-friendly’ architecture.
Dr Ella Moonan-Howard
Senior Innovator, Alzheimer’s Society
Ella is Programme Manager at KQ Labs. The Francis Crick Institute’s flagship accelerator for data-driven health and life science start-ups. Before joining the Crick, Ella designed and led the Launchpad incubator at Alzheimer’s Society. Ella holds a PhD in Gerontology and co-organises the London Hub of One Health Tech.
Dr Isabelle Latham
Researcher-in-Residence, Hallmark Care Homes
Dr Isabelle Latham is Researcher-in-Residence for Hallmark Care Homes and honorary Senior Research Fellow at the Association for Dementia Studies at the University of Worcester. She is the UK’s first researcher-in-residence within a care home organisation and supports Hallmark’s care homes to undertake dementia care research of importance to them in ways that include all members of their communities, and works to ensure research evidence is translated into practice change that positively impacts people’s day to day lives. Isabelle has 25 years’ experience in social care including as a direct care worker. She later focussed on research and education specialising in creating positive organisational cultures and effective learning for frontline staff. She is co-author of the book “Education and Training in Dementia Care: a person-centred approach published by Open University Press in March 2023.
Dr Sue Jones
Clinical Nurse Specialist Independent Prescriber, Norfolk & Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust
Dr Sue Jones is a Clinical nurse Specialist with extensive experience supporting people living with dementia — including rare dementias — and their carers across diverse health and social care settings. Her work spans direct clinical care, complex needs and risk assessment, therapeutic group facilitation, prescribing practice, and the delivery of dementia education in professional and higher-education environments.
Sue’s PhD, was funded through the NIHR Research Capacity in Dementia Care Programme (RCDCP), where her research focused on the psychosocial needs of carers of people with dementia. Her doctoral thesis, “Surviving or thriving: Resilience in dementia care,” explores how family carers adapt, cope, and build resilience while navigating the dementia care pathway. She is passionate about involving people with dementia and their carers in research, and the development of best practice guidance that shapes innovative, evidence-based models of care, with particular interests in quality improvement, service development, and enhancing support pathways across the dementia trajectory.
Fran Mada
Consultant Admiral Nurse – Young Onset Dementia, Dementia UK
Bio Coming Soon…
Frances Lawrence
CEO, Dementia Carers Count
Frances is Chief Executive of Dementia Carers Count, the national charity that supports, advocates and campaigns for dementia carers. A respected sector leader and former dementia carer, Frances combines lived experience with strategic leadership to advocate for more responsive, carer-inclusive health and social care systems. She is passionate about innovation that improves outcomes for carers, working to ensure their voices shape policy, service design and practice. With her unwavering dedication and vision, Frances continues to drive meaningful change, ensuring that every dementia carer feels seen, supported and heard.
Jacqui Smith
Director, Home smiths and Former Chair, Haywards heath Dementia Friendly Community
Jacqui Smith is an experienced healthcare designer, specialising in dementia design and how the built
environment can support people living with sensory and cognitive impairments. In November 2012 Jacqui
permanently lost the sight in her left eye and has since combined her profession with her personal
experience of impaired vision both in her own work and in promoting best practice to others in the design
and construction community. Jacqui is an accredited member of SBID and HomeSmiths’ projects have
made finalist in a number of awards for Healthcare and Wellness design. Jacqui stood as Chair of
Haywards Heath Dementia Friendly Community from 2018-2021.
James Cobb
Chief Executive, Enterprising Retirement Living
James is one of the UK’s most experienced and well-informed voices on later-life living,
with more than 20 years’ experience designing, developing and operating retirement
communities in the UK and internationally. He is CEO of Enterprise Retirement Living and is
currently leading the organisation on a journey of change, focused on improving transparency,
trust and resident experience across the sector.
While integrated retirement communities are well established overseas, in the UK they remain
misunderstood and often unfairly stigmatised. With the over-65 population projected to rise from around
11 million to almost 18 million by 2040, James highlights the urgent need for better later-life housing.
Many older adults live in standard housing or alone, leading to social isolation and health issues,
particularly among those over 80. He is passionate about retirement communities because they provide
a flexible middle ground between mainstream housing and care homes – supporting independence,
wellbeing and social connection. Evidence shows residents experience better health, fewer hospital
admissions, quicker discharges, reduced A&E visits and delayed transfers into nursing care. For James,
these outcomes aren’t abstract: they demonstrate how later-life communities can improve quality of life,
reduce pressure on the NHS, and free up family homes for younger generations. James brings rare, end-
to-end insight across development, operations and resident experience, shaped by decades working
directly with customers, operators and policymakers. He is a regular commentator on why downsizing has
failed in the UK, the lack of consistent regulation and terminology, and the importance of transparency
and optionality in building consumer trust, particularly around service
charges and fees.
A former Army Major and civil engineer, James combines strategic rigour with hands-on delivery. He
brings both professional authority and lived perspective to conversations about ageing, housing,
retirement and the future of later-life living in the UK.
Jenny Pattinson
Chief Executive, Nightingale Hammerson
Jenny is Chief Executive of Nightingale Hammerson, a Charity that provides outstanding Residential,
Nursing, Dementia and end of life care to around 250 older people across their Nursing Homes in
London. With 15 years’ leadership experience in Adult Social Care, 11 of which were at a senior level with
the Care Quality Commission, Jenny is passionate about ensuring every person living in Care Homes
experience the best quality of life possible. In her personal life Jenny dedicates her time and energy to
ensuring the voices of vulnerable people are heard at a local level. She is an elected councillor;
responsible for the Housing and Well-being Portfolio. She chairs the steering group for Dementia Friendly
Watford, Ageing Well Watford and the Health and Well-Being Forum, and has been instrumental in seeing
Watford recognised as an Ageing Well community by the World Health organisation.
Jeremy Walford
Executive Chair, Middleton Hall
Gordon joined Healthcare Homes in October 2016 as Commercial Director and was appointed to CEO in April 2017. Gordon has overall responsibility for the group, including Finance, Business Development, HR, Quality, Clinical Governance and Operations. Gordon, who is a chartered accountant by profession, initially started in the health and social care sector in 2001 as Financial Director for a national care operator, having previously worked with Ernst & Young. He has a proven track record in delivering sustained growth and is focused on supporting Healthcare Homes’ founders in integrating both organic and acquisition-based development opportunities into the existing portfolio.
Joe Robertson MP
Vice-Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Dementia
Joe Robertson the Member of Parliament for Isle of Wight East, first elected in July 2024. He began his career as a family law solicitor, before joining the charity Dementia UK as an in-house advisor where he worked with the NHS, local authorities and other health and care providers to support and increase the number of Admiral Nursing services across the UK. In 2021 he was elected to the Isle of Wight Council where he served on the Policy and Scrutiny Committee for Adult Social Care and Public Health.
Since his election to Parliament, Joe has been elected to the House of Commons Health and Social Care Committee, where he works collaboratively across party lines. He has directly questioned the Secretary of State over support for GPs, community pharmacy and hospices. In the floor of the House of Commons he asked the Secretary of State to ensure dementia diagnosis targets are put back in NHS England’s 2025/26 Priorities and Operational Planning Guidance. Additionally, Joe serves as Vice Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Dementia, where he continues to champion the cause for improved care for people living with dementia and their families.
Katie Thorn
Director of Innovation, Digital Care Hub
Bio Coming Soon…
Kieren Cole
Partner, Knight Frank
Since 1998, Kieren has been providing valuation and consultancy services to operators, developers and
lenders in the healthcare sectors. Kieren is responsible for commercial valuations across the healthcare
sector, including care homes, independent hospitals, close care/extra care developments and other
healthcare properties. Kieren is part of a highly successful team which annually advises on approximately
£12 billion of healthcare property. The Healthcare team’s market visibility and dominance facilitates them
to produce outstanding and market leading research Kieren provides both trading and investment
valuations for secured lending and portfolio valuations for major high street banks, private equity houses
and corporate, charitable and private operators. Other key areas include strategic advice to care home
operators from private, public and charitable sectors. Kieren also has experience of preparing reports
under Civil Procedure Rules and being instructed in the capacity of Single Joint Expert, including
reporting to Court for matrimonial settlement purposes. He also has RICS accredited Mediation status
and is a trained RICS APC Assessor. Kieren is on both the Knight Frank UK Commercial Banking
Committee and the International Valuation Committee.
Lewis Stewart
Programme Manager – Health & Social Care, techUK
Lewis has worked across health policy, stakeholder engagement, digital innovation, and elite sport. He is a Programme Manager for Health and Social Care at techUK, where he leads the organisation’s social care work, focusing on the role of technology in policy and frontline delivery. He is a current Commonwealth Games champion and a former professional track cyclist for Great Britain. Before joining techUK, Lewis worked in the House of Commons supporting a Member of Parliament. He has also worked with the Youth Sport Trust on youth wellbeing policy, collaborating with government, education, and grassroots organisations. Alongside his policy work, Lewis has held roles in health tech and mobility startups, supporting the development and delivery of digital products. He holds a degree in Biochemistry and Pharmacology.
Penny Johns
Dementia Practitioner, Jewish Care UK
Penny is a dementia practitioner working at Jewish Care. With a PG Cert Person-Centred Dementia Studies, Worcester University Association for Dementia Studies, she completed the Expert Practice programme, delivering a cycle of FITS into Practice (Focused Intervention Training and Support) as a Dementia Practice Development Coach. Leading the implementation of the DementiAbility approach within Jewish Care and first DementiAbility accreditations in the UK, she also trained in-house team of DementiAbility Champions to embed and sustain practice in the homes. She was formerly Director of Learning at Montessori Centre International with an interest in Montessori for dementia. Lived experience of dementia as a carer for my mother.
Professor Martin Green OBE
CEO, Care England
Martin Green has had an extensive career in NGO development, both in the UK and internationally, and is the Chief Executive of Care England, the largest representative body for independent social care services in the UK. Vice President of The Care Workers Charity, Commissioner of the Royal Hospital Chelsea and Chair of the TEC Services Association (TSA). In 2013, he was appointed Visiting Professor of Social Care at Buckinghamshire New University. In 2012, in his role as Department of Health and Social Care Independent Sector Dementia Champion, he led the development of the Dementia Care and Support Compact for the Prime Minister’s Challenge on Dementia. He is a former named Care Personality of the Year and was awarded an OBE for Services to Social Care in the 2012 Queen’s Birthday Honours List. He received the Health Investor Outstanding Contribution Award. Martin writes and broadcasts extensively on social care issues and is on the Editorial Board of Community Care Market News and Care Talk magazine. He is also DHSC: Independent Sector Dementia Champion; Commissioner: Royal Hospital Chelsea and Chair: TSA Technology
Rachael Crook
CEO & Co-Founder, Lifted
Rachael is the CEO and Co-founder of Lifted Talent and SponsorSwitch. Lifted Talent is a technology platform to make it easy and affordable to hire sponsored staff. SponsorSwitch is a new platform which connects exploited sponsored care workers in the UK with ethical care providers. Inspired by her experience caring for her mother, Rachael Co-Founded Lifted Talent after successfully starting Lifted Care, a tech enabled home care provider. In just 4 years Lifted has grown to employ 100+ people, raised £9 Million in investment and Government funding and be crowned the best home care provider in the country at the LaingBuisson Awards. Previously, Rachael was a Senior Advisor in the Prime Minister’s Implementation Unit and consultant with McKinsey & Company where she advised Governments and businesses on strategy and business operations. In 2021 Rachael was named an Obama Leader, one of 36 Leaders in Europe contributing to social change selected by the Obama Foundation. She holds a first class degree from the University of Warwick and an MPhIl for the University of Oxford.
Raina Summerson
Group CEO, Agincare
Raina is the Group Chief Executive of Agincare, which delivers a range of care and support services in over 170 locations across the country, spanning care homes, supported living, extra care schemes, home care, live-in care, a not-for-profit children’s service and a housing charity, and employing some 5,500 team members. Since joining Agincare in 2004, Raina has overseen substantial, sustainable growth, leading the family-owned company to become a leading independent care provider, which continues to expand nationwide. Raina has worked in social care for over 35 years, including direct care work in various settings through social work roles and several years as a regulator prior to joining Agincare.
She has long been involved with national bodies in respect of lobbying for social care and its workforce to gain better recognition and reform of the sector, including representation to government and health select committees. Along with other members of the Agincare senior management, Raina uses her skills and experience to support the local economy and community. She is Chair of the Portland Economic Vision Board, a Dorset Ambassador, Chair of Portland’s internationally renowned b-side festival and a Trustee on Eden Portland project.
Richard Martin
Relationship Director, Cynergy Bank
Across a banking career spanning more than 30 years, Richard has supported leading operators,
developers & investors across the care & retirement living sectors. Named amongst the leading debt
providers in the 2025 HealthInvestor Power List and a familiar face to many across the real estate-linked
healthcare sectors, he has also been a panel speaker at sector conferences and a judge for the Senior
Housing Awards.
Rupert Lecomber
Director of Strategic Asset Management, Housing21
Laurence is a Director at Tate+Co, where he brings a design-led approach that is grounded in a deep understanding of development, ensuring that ambitious concepts are transformed into tangible, sustainable realities. With a strong background in regenerative design, Laurence has been instrumental in leading significant projects, including the Eden Canopy Walkway and the revitalization of the Brunel Museum, which involved reopening Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s first-ever structure as a dynamic performance space. His involvement in Esholt Positive Living, a pioneering project focused on creating sustainable, net-positive living environments, further underscores his commitment to environmental responsibility. His career spans a number of prestigious London-based practices, including Hopkins Architects, where he contributed to a residential project for Rice University in Texas. A leading voice in regenerative design, Laurence actively contributes to discussions on the subject in architecture, writing articles and delivering talks on the subject. Laurence was one of the founding members of the Society for Regenerative Design. In 2015, Laurence’s dedication to innovative design was recognized with the AKT II Architecture Prize at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition for his Urban Floral Propagation field box.
Ruth Brown
Managing Director, Home Instead
Ruth has worked in franchising throughout her career and joined Home Instead in 2010. She was
appointed as the UK company’s Chief Operating Officer in 2022 and became Managing Director in 2026.
Like many at National Office and across Home Instead’s network of over 265 offices, Ruth has first hand
experience of juggling family and business life with care responsibilities. She brings this insight to her
work and understands the needs to be able to offer support to family members when they reach their
‘stuck moment’ – the time in their care journey when they don’t know where to turn. At the time she joined
Home Instead, Ruth was the primary carer for her grandma. Fast forward to today and she is caring for
her parents – primarily her Mum who is in the late stages of vascular dementia. She truly understands
and knows the pressures of having her own family, a career and looking after parents. Ruth often says
that her early experience of the social care system with her grandma was not good at all.
Sam Monaghan
CEO, Methodist Homes MHA
Liz assumed the role of Head of the Real Estate Department in June 2023, bringing with her over two decades of specialist legal expertise in the Real Estate sector. Since qualifying in 2001, Liz has acted for a wide-ranging client base, including landlords and tenants, lenders and borrowers, developers, property companies and funds, as well as developers. A core focus of Liz’s career has been the care home sector, where she has developed a deep understanding of its unique regulatory, commercial, and operational landscape which has aided the growth of the care home sectors. Her ability to navigate complex care home transactions, has earned her a strong reputation in the field. Beyond the care home market, Liz’s expertise spans development finance, energy, storage, and a range of mainstream commercial property matters. Known for her pragmatic approach and strong commercial insight, Liz combines technical excellence with a commitment to completing transactions efficiently and effectively. Her clients value her responsiveness, decisiveness, and ability to work collaboratively under pressure—qualities that are especially crucial in the fast-moving care home sector. As a leader and trusted advisor, Liz continues to deliver outstanding service and results, helping clients navigate the evolving Real Estate landscape with confidence.
Samantha Crawley
CEO, EQ Care
Samantha is an award-winning UK social-care leader and CEO of EQ Care Group, recognised for building heart-centred, emotionally intelligent and digitally enabled care organisations. Named in the Social Care Top 30 and Health Investor Power Lists, Samantha blends quality-led practice, commercial acumen and innovation to deliver exceptional outcomes for people who live and work in her services.
Over the past three years, she has designed, commissioned, and opened multiple new care homes, achieving rapid ethical occupancy growth and outstanding regulatory outcomes. Most recently, EQ Care Group has secured two first CQC inspections rated Overall Outstanding, alongside a third first inspection rated Overall Good with Outstanding in Well-led – a reflection of the organisation’s strong culture, governance, and leadership ethos.
Samantha has extensive experience as Nominated Individual, successfully supporting homes from Requires Improvement to Good and beyond. She is deeply passionate about developing emotionally intelligent leaders, creating psychologically safe cultures, and embedding digital systems that enable teams to spend more meaningful time with people who live in the homes.
Alongside her CEO role, Samantha is Director of The Outstanding Society and a respected sector voice, regularly speaking at national conferences and collaborating with sector leaders to shape the future of social care.
Suzanne Mumford
Director of Clinical and Dementia, KYN
Suzanne Mumford MSc is an Advanced Nurse Practitioner specialising in dementia care. Her career spans over 40 years working in hospitals, care homes and domiciliary care. Suzanne specialised in neurology and neurosurgery before developing her career as a nurse educator.
Tracy Elphick
Director, Three Nine Designs
Tracey is the visionary behind Three Nine Designs, bringing over a decade of experience in care home
design to the company. With a BA (Hons) in Interior Architecture and Design and a specialized
background in creating thoughtful, functional spaces for care environments, Tracey has a deep passion
for enhancing the lives of older adults through empathetic and innovative design. Having spent over 10
years focused on care home design, Tracey is well-versed in the unique challenges and opportunities that
come with designing for elderly residents. Her approach is rooted in creating environments that balance
aesthetics, functionality, and safety, ensuring that every project promotes both comfort and independence
for residents and efficiency for care providers. Tracey has also completed the prestigious Dementia and
Design course at the University of Stirling, an internationally recognized program that has profoundly
influenced her approach to care home interiors. This advanced training has equipped her with specialized
knowledge in designing dementia-friendly spaces that are not only calming and secure but also
cognitively supportive, helping to reduce confusion and anxiety for residents with dementia.
Tom Falconer
COO, Civitas
Coming Soon…
Vanessa Champion
Founder and Editor, Journal of Biophilic Design
Ness is the Founder and Editor of the Journal of Biophilic Design, an international publication focused on
the evidence, research and practical application of nature-led design to improve health and wellbeing
outcomes. Originally an academic at University College London, she holds a PhD in Greek and Latin and
has a research background exploring how physical environments influence human behaviour, cognition
and societal wellbeing. Her career spans media, publishing and consultancy, working with organisations
including the NHS, BBC and ITV. Her focus on healthcare environments was shaped by personal
experience supporting her elderly parents through hospital and care settings, where she observed the
measurable positive impact that access to nature — including natural views, daylight and calming sensory
environments — had on mood, agitation levels and recovery. This led her to establish the Journal of
Biophilic Design, which brings together interdisciplinary research and case studies demonstrating how
biophilic interventions can support patient outcomes, staff wellbeing and operational performance. Her
work focuses on practical, safe and compliant biophilic interventions that support person-centred care and
align with CQC wellbeing frameworks, helping care providers create calmer, more supportive
environments for both residents and staff. Alongside publishing and consultancy, Vanessa develops
evidence-informed Virtual Nature installations for healthcare and later-life environments, designed to
provide safe and accessible nature connection where direct access is limited. She is also Founder of
PhotoAid Global Foundation, a philanthropic media agency supporting NGOs and community storytelling
training internationally. www.journalofbiophilicdesign.com www.virtualnaturewalls.com
Wendy Burton
Unpaid Carer
Wendy is an unpaid carer for her husband Ian, who was diagnosed with behavioural variant
frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD) in 2014 at the age of 50. Together they have three
daughters—Emma, 26 years old, Rachel, 23 years old and Sophie, 14 years old at the time of
receiving the diagnosis. Drawing deeply on her own experiences of young onset dementia, Wendy
has become a passionate advocate for families affected by dementia under the age of 65.
After caring for Ian at home until he transitioned to permanent care in 2016, Wendy returned to work
and took on a role with Making Space, supporting the Dementia Support Services in Derby. She
became particularly committed to addressing the significant gaps in provision for those with young
onset and rare dementias. Wendy went on to establish a weekly peer support group for people still
working or living with these forms of dementia. What began with just four participants has grown into a
thriving community of more than twenty regular attendees.
Wendy has also developed innovative community-based support initiatives. She leads meaningful
activities for people with dementia within the walled garden at Derby’s principal city garden, offering
connection, purpose and wellbeing. Recognising the ongoing needs of unpaid carers even after care
transitions or bereavement, she founded the Next Chapter of Care group—a space where former
carers meet for lunch, share experiences, and support one another as they rebuild their lives.
Although the Making Space contract ended in 2024, Wendy continues to play a significant role in
shaping dementia services across Derby and Derbyshire. She is cochair of the Derbyshire Together
CoProduction Group and cochair of a Young Onset/Rare Dementia Working Group. Wendy
contributes to medical student interviews at the Royal Derby Hospital, sits on Carers Engagement and
Dementia Implementation Meetings, and is part of a Dementia UK research group exploring
Advanced Care Planning for people with young onset dementia.
Wendy says, “My main role is to care for my husband, who is now in the advanced stages of
dementia. I am his advocate as he is nonverbal, non-mobile and requires support with every aspect of
living. While I do that, I am an advocate for everyone, young and old, impacted by young onset
dementia.”
Zoe Fry OBE
Executive Director, Outstanding Society
Zoe Fry, OBE, RN, BSc is Director of Nursing for the Outstanding Society CIC (OS) which shares and celebrates best practice across social care while supporting providers to improve. A registered nurse, Zoe began working in care homes at just 13, where her passion for supporting older people was formed. Her career spans senior clinical and leadership roles in the NHS, including surgical ward sister, matron for general medicine and NHS general manager. In 2008, Zoe purchased and transformed a nursing home with her team, achieving Outstanding CQC ratings in 2014 and 2017. In 2023, she was awarded an OBE for Services to Social Care and Nursing.