Sheffield Colleagues attend SSCR Annual Conference 2026
Collaboration, connection and community in Bristol!
BRISTOL, 16 - 17 September 2026 — A 16-strong delegation from the University of Sheffield NIHR School for Social Care Research (SSCR) recently attended the Annual Conference, held at the We The Curious science centre in Bristol on 16–17 September 2026.
Framed around the theme “Collaboration, connection and community,” the two-day flagship event brought together leading researchers, social care practitioners, policymakers, and experts by experience from across England to showcase cutting-edge evidence and address key priorities in adult social care.
It was fantastic to see the social care research community at Sheffield so well represented at the conference, including researchers at every career stage. The project presentations were varied in terms of topic and methods, but all reflected our shared commitment to inclusive research carried out in co-production with communities. Thank you to everyone who attended.”
Professor Katherine Runswick-Cole
Sheffield SSCR Director
Driving Innovation from Sheffield SSCR
We were delighted to see the work of SSCR Sheffield colleagues represented in the programme as they showcased a wide variety of SSCR-funded studies.
Among the key highlights presented by the Sheffield delegation were insights into:
Technology & Inclusion: Dr Alice Dunning (School of Medicine and Population Health) presented the latest findings from the TEC-LD project (Enhancing Transparency, Explainability, and Consent in Technology for Adults with a Learning Disability), exploring how digital tools and Assistive Technology can be implemented safely and ethically to promote independence.
It was a pleasure to present our latest TEC-LD findings at the SSCR conference and to hear from other presenters, with some really interesting discussions about the ethics, benefits and risks of technology use. It was a valuable opportunity to hear about people’s real-world experiences of using technology with and for people with a learning disability, as well as to connect with researchers across social care. I particularly enjoyed learning about the creative and inclusive methods being used in social care research, and came away with lots of ideas and insights to take forward."
Dr Alice Dunning
School of Medicine and Population Health
Complex Care Transitions: Dr Danica Darley and Dr Victoria Barratt (School of Sociological Studies, Politics and International Relations) presented their work on support systems for individuals navigating neurodisability through prison gates into community social care.
The SSCR conference was a real highlight. The Pathfinders and Co-Pro Futures keynotes were the kind of sessions where I found myself nodding along to everything. I met social care data specialists who know how to access joined-up criminal justice and social care data, which is exactly what our work needs. I also had valuable conversations with policy colleagues about why criminalised individuals must be considered in social care planning. It was a joy to spend time with my Sheffield SSCR colleagues too."
Dr Danica Darley
School of Sociological Studies, Politics and International Relations
Exploring lived-experience through art: An exhibition of beautiful and evocative illustrations by artist Becky Whinnerah was displayed in the convention hall. Becky’s images were produced as part of two Sheffield SSCR projects and explore the mental health experiences of family carers supporting adults with learning disabilities, the relationships between these family members, and how they navigate major life transitions together. One of the projects was Dr Tom Ryan’s, No one wants to talk about it: Exploring transitions in family care for people with learning disabilities.
It was brilliant to display Becky’s artwork at the conference. Becky does such a wonderful job of capturing the feelings of participants in our projects. The art aligned with conferences’ wider themes, and offered an accessible, creative approach to presenting research findings that was widely engaged with by attendees. It was also great to meet Becky in person and learn more about the process of creating the artwork!"
Dr Tom Ryan
School of Education
Love, learning disabilities and social care: Dr Lucy Series from the University of Bristol presented a lightning talk on behalf of the new Love, learning disabilities and social care project team, which includes Dr Suzanne Duffin, Dr Martina Smith and Professor Katherine Runswick-Cole from Sheffield.
Lucy shared the project with such eloquence and conveyed its aims and scope brilliantly in such a speedy session! It was wonderful to be part of such an enthusiastic audience of researchers, public partners and social care practitioners who responded so brilliantly to the project and who have given us really helpful questions and provocations to think about as we begin the research.”
Dr Martina Smith
School of Education
Celebrating Emerging Researchers: Four Sheffield SSCR colleagues were invited to present posters, both of our Research Trainees (Elsie Ledger and Mari-Liis Tamm), and our PhD Students (Craig Andrews and Ben Vass). This was the first SSCR conference experience for all four, and it was invaluable for gaining presentation experience and making new connections.
Attending the conference alongside brilliant colleagues from Sheffield, catching up with the SSCR awardee cohort and meeting so many inspiring researchers over the two days was a real pleasure. A particular highlight was having so many thought-provoking discussions about the role of religion in experiences of dementia, and it was really exciting to win the Judges' Choice Award for my poster presentation.”
Elsie Ledger
NIHR School for Social Care Research (SSCR) Research Trainee
It was great to meet and catch up with the wonderful cohort of SSCR researchers and awardees. I was excited to present a poster in a conference for the first time, and receive lovely feedback for my project on setting research priorities with unaccompanied asylum seeking children. I was also able to meet several social care practitioners who are pursuing practitioner-researcher pathways - something that I am really interested in myself and believe needs to be further promoted and developed within social care.”
Mari-Liis Tamm
NIHR School for Social Care Research (SSCR) Research Trainee
I had a fantastic time across the two days of the SSCR Conference, meeting professionals and fellow awardees from across the school. The talks throughout the day showcased a lot of the important and inspirational work being carried out in the SSCR, and I particularly enjoyed the talks about the experiences of unpaid carers. I also was very pleased to present the results of my scoping review on “NHS and Social Care Services that Support for Unpaid Carers of Acquired Brain Injury Survivors in the UK”, as part of the event’s poster display, which gained a lot of interest and some insightful feedback. Finally, it was really nice becoming reacquainted with SSCR awardees and meeting new ones, hearing about their progress and milestones they had reached."
Craig Andrews
PhD Researcher
It was great to see the wider SSCR awardee cohort and hear all about their important research! I particularly enjoyed presenting a poster on my own work and interacting with the audience, getting some amazing engagement, suggestions, feedback and seeing how my own work relates to the other research being done around technology and data in Adult Social Care."
Ben Vass
PhD Researcher
Power of Lived Experience and Co-Production
In harmony with the core ethos of the conference, it was brilliant to see the Sheffield delegation place public engagement, co-production, and the voices of people with lived experience at the very heart of their presentations and poster sessions.
As the NIHR SSCR continues its vital mission to strengthen the evidence base for adult social care in England, the University of Sheffield team returned to South Yorkshire energized to translate conference discussions into actionable, real-world improvements for individuals, families, and care providers.
Attending the conference with so many colleagues was a great opportunity for our research trainees to present their work, for early career researchers to build their networks and meet other academics and practitioners, and for those new to research to get a taste of the social care research community. For others, it was a chance to catch up on the latest applied social care research, strengthen existing relationships and build new ones."
Professor Liz Croot
Capacity Building lead for Sheffield SSCR