Basingstoke show
“Attend to learn about theories and strategies that work, to network, to have time to think about Mental Health”
AMHIE members – Free
Non-members – £129 + VAT
31st March 2025
Holiday Inn Basingstoke, Grove Road, Basingstoke, Hampshire, RG21 3EE
Our show will support your development; giving you ideas, knowledge and understanding to take forward to your role. Have balanced, organic conversations with our attendees and speakers to grow your network, and extend your connections in the local community.
Our speakers for the day cover all phases and aspects of mental health provision throughout education and educational settings. Seminars provide insight with a Q & A section, the workshops are interactive with breakaway groups and thought provoking exercises.
Cost.
All of this for less than 5% of your annual CPD budget, we keep the cost low for you to support your ongoing development.
AMHIE members – Complimentary ticket
Non-members – £129 + VAT
Our speakers include Richard Daniel Curtis (Author and expert), Claire Cannon (SEND expert), Nudge Education (mental health practitioners) and Danielle Chandler (psychology researcher and trainer).
The bits you need to know:
- When: 9.30am – 3pm – Your conference, Your Way, you come to the talks which interest you just follow our schedule for timings.
- What to expect: A day of Mental Health in Education CPD with Seminars, Workshops and Networking for local teams.
- Refreshments: To reduce the cost to you we have included hot drinks but not food, so we suggest bringing a packed lunch.
- Parking and Travel: The hotel car park is complimentary, it’s managed by an external company – ParkingEye. Just register your car at one of the machines located within the hotel. It’s a half hour walk from the train station or a 6 minute taxi ride.
Seminars
Workshops
9:30am: Richard Daniel Curtis - National Trends in Mental Health Strategy
Here we discuss trends over the last two years covering Ethos and Environment, Leadership and Management, Student Voice, Parents, Carers and Families, Staff Development, Identifying Needs and Monitoring Impact, Targeted Support and Curriculum, Teaching and Learning. An insight to help benchmark your setting against the rest of the country. National data based on the free online audit tool (https://audit.mentalhealthlead.com)
10.30am: Carly Seymour - The impact of providing young people with online counselling and tools
This seminar will discuss the data and evidence of the impact of providing online tools to support mental health. Kooth has been delivering NHS support since 2001 and has worked with over a million young people. This has given us a unique insight into the wellbeing concerns of young people and how we can support them.
11:30am: Kathy Jones - Leadership coaching in practice: The Leading Lights brief coaching intervention for school leaders and aspiring leaders. What is it and what difference can coaching make for leadership?
In this session Dr Kathy Jones, experienced Educational and Coaching Psychologist and Director at Goodlife Psychology Ltd. will talk about the Leading Lights coaching intervention she has designed and piloted. Leading Lights is an extremely powerful online, evidence-based and cost-effective, four-session coaching intervention designed specifically for school leaders and aspiring leaders.
School leaders are one of education’s most precious resources. It is their dedication, hard work and vision that drives school improvement, effective learning, and sets the tone and ethos around mental health and wellbeing for their whole setting.
Research is clear that to do this demanding work, leaders need high quality opportunities to explore how they navigate the complexities of school leadership in a way that works, not only for their setting, but for them. Coaching interventions like Leading Lights provide a validating, positive, accessible and highly effective opportunity for leaders to reconnect with what really matters to them about their work and come away with practical and effective leadership tools and skills.
You will leave this workshop knowing how Leading Lights works in practice and hear about the profound, and in some cases “life-changing”, impact it can have on school leaders in their own words. Most importantly, you will have the opportunity to try a powerful practical tool from the intervention for yourselves, leaving you ready to use this in your own school and with colleagues.
1:00pm: Maxine Smith - Horses and Heads: Unlocking Wellbeing for School Leaders
Rediscover Balance, Build Resilience, and Lead with Confidence
School leadership is a demanding role that often leaves little room for self-care. This unique talk explores how working with horses can support the wellbeing of school leaders—heads and deputies—by offering a space for reflection, emotional growth, and practical insights into communication and boundaries.
Horses, with their heightened emotional intelligence and ability to mirror human behavior, help leaders:
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Reconnect with their values and resilience under pressure.
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Develop clear communication strategies that foster trust and respect.
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Gain tools to manage stress and enhance decision-making.
Participants will learn how equine-facilitated approaches foster a greater sense of self-awareness, improve work-life balance, and create a ripple effect of positive change for themselves, their staff, and their students. Leave with a fresh perspective, equipped to lead with clarity, compassion, and confidence.
Potential Impact:
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Reduced stress and burnout among school leaders.
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Improved communication and leadership styles.
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Greater ability to manage complex challenges with poise.
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Enhanced wellbeing and a renewed passion for their roles.
2:00pm: Panel discussion with our speakers
A discussion around mental health in education with our panel of speakers from the day
10:40am: Ian Jefferis - Coaching and Core Life Skills – Performance’s missing link?
What is Mindset Coaching? How does it differ from other forms of coaching, from therapy, from teaching? How can we coach to enhance core life skills development, not only to strengthen today’s young and their mental health, but also for our own support as we strive to cope in this ever-changing world? This workshop will provide you with tools and encouragement to elevate and enthuse yourself, your students and others towards their performance goals – and higher…. no matter what the neuro-status…..
11:40am: Sian Stevens - 6 Cornerstones of Positive Wellbeing & Mental Health in Education
A proactive workshop developing strategies to improve wellbeing for young people. At Nudge, our interventions centre on 6 cornerstones, which supports young people in a transition back to education or the world of work, #ForALifeWorthLiving.
1.10pm: Danielle Chandler - Understanding Lies: Promoting Honesty and Wellbeing in Children
This workshop will explore the psychology of lying in children, examining why children lie and the impact it has on their wellbeing. You will learn the importance of promoting honesty in young people to improve mental health and emotional development, and learn effective, age-appropriate strategies for encouraging truthfulness. Additionally, you will gain deception detection tips to use in everyday situations.
2.10pm: Claire Cannon - Self and Co-regulation: Mind before matter
If we push ourselves too hard for too long, it can lead to stress, anxiety, depression, and burnout. “Mind before Matter” is a workshop full of practical ideas based on neuroscience to support and protect your mental health, tried and tested by educators around the country.