CNENet 2026 Conference

Facilitator: Olivia Corrie, CEO & Founder of Frontline Communication Training Ltd

With over 25 years’ experience in healthcare education, Olivia has designing and delivering communication training from introductory foundations to advanced level programmes, tailored to diverse clinical contexts.

Her work focuses on creating powerful thinking environments, She is especially interested in how curiosity transforms education into a space of genuine play

Workshop Outline: Innovation in education does not always come from new content or technology—it often comes from the conditions we create.

This interactive workshop explores the art of play in healthcare education: what happens when we loosen our attachment to outcomes, trust the learning process, and create environments where curiosity, connection, and purpose are prioritised.

Through live reflection and practical micro-experiments, we will explore the tension between agenda and purpose, ask who is really doing the thinking in our teaching, and examine how the components of a Thinking Environment support us to create spaces where play, presence, and new thinking can emerge.

Participants will leave re-energised in their purpose as educators and the conditions that make innovative learning possible.

Facilitator: Margaret Struthers
Margaret Struthers is a registered social worker and senior lecturer in social work at Manchester Metropolitan University. She is lead practitioner for simulation-based education within the social work department. Margaret has worked in children and family social work, adult and youth criminal justice, and specialist domestic violence and abuse services. She has practised, taught, and researched in the field of domestic violence and abuse for the last 15 years.

Workshop Outline:

Margaret has developed a bespoke domestic abuse and coercive control simulation for social work students. The simulation is grounded in frontline practice experience and shaped by feedback from victims and survivors about their interactions with professionals. Although created for social work education, the issues addressed are cross-cutting and relevant to all professionals across health and social care.

In this workshop you will explore the simulation design and its underpinning principles. These will be brought to life through the opportunity to experience and practise selected elements yourself. The session will conclude with structured reflection to enable you to apply learning to your own role and professional context.

Through the simulation you will explore deficit-based and strengths-based approaches to communication. You will observe in real time how each shapes outcomes within an authentic practice scenario. By connecting the thinking behind the design with your lived experience of participating, Margaret will demonstrate how the simulation strengthens participants’ ability to:

• Recognise signs of domestic abuse and coercive control
• Communicate thoughtfully and effectively with victim–survivors
• Respond appropriately and safely to perpetrators
• Reflect on the impact of their professional approach

The workshop will combine clarity about simulation design with practical experience, ensuring that learning is both immediately relevant and transferable to practice.

Facilitator: Dr. Oscar Lyons
Oscar is the theme lead for Leadership Development at BMJ Leader, a Senior Associate Tutor and Leadership Module Lead for Oxford University. In 2025 he and his team published research synthesising data from 86 reviews and more than 1600 primary studies. His sessions are interactive, entertaining, and rigorous.

Workshop Outline:

This highly practical workshop will give you two advantages. First, you will experience leadership development in action — not just as theory, but as lived practice. Second, you will gain the insight and confidence to commission leadership development that genuinely works.

This session will help you make sharper, more confident decisions whether you are responsible for commissioning programmes, designing them, delivering them, or participating in them.

Grounded in definitive published research, the workshop will translate best practice into clear, usable guidance. At the end of the workshop you will be able to:

• Clarify what effective leadership development looks like
• Articulate what you and your organisation need leadership development to deliver
• Distinguish high-impact approaches from costly distractions

You will leave with practical tools and clearer judgement — able to assess leadership development opportunities with confidence whether you are buying, building or participating.