As delegates make their way home after another memorable ADCS Conference, we have been reflecting on three days filled with thought-provoking discussion, honest debate and inspiring contributions from colleagues and speakers from across the children’s services sector. We are incredibly grateful to everyone who travelled to Manchester and once again helped make the conference such a valuable and energising experience.

Central to that experience is our commitment to ensuring that every member feels able to participate, contribute and be heard, and continuing to rise to the challenge from our members to continue to make the programme and contributions diverse and inclusive, to hear different voices and experiences. While there is always more to do, we remain committed to listening, learning and championing equality, diversity and inclusion throughout our membership and in our work.

Creating space for a wider range of voices and perspectives helped shape the conversations that followed across the three days. As in previous years, the 24 hours of the conference provided a dedicated space for directors of children’s services (DCS) to come together and discuss some of the most significant challenges facing the sector, including leading through change, adolescents and elective home education.

The main conference opened on Thursday morning with an address from ADCS President Ann Graham, who reflected on the challenges and opportunities facing children’s services and set out a compelling vision for the year ahead. Her speech underscored the importance of collective leadership, partnership working and maintaining a relentless focus on improving outcomes for children and young people. 

It also marked the launch ADCSs third iteration of its policy paper What is Care For? an important contribution to the national conversation about the purpose and future of care, particularly for adolescents.

One particularly powerful moment of conference came from a group of children and young people in Haringey, who shared reflections on their educational journeys. Their contributions were a poignant reminder that every interaction, every decision and every opportunity can have a lasting impact on a child's life. Their voices brought authenticity, challenge and inspiration to the room, grounding many of the wider policy discussions in lived experience. A huge thank you to everyone who joined us from Haringey, both in person and virtually.

The remaining sessions included a focus on learning and improvement, inclusive education, securing the best start in life and children’s social care reforms.

On Friday morning, early insights from the review of care leaver deaths provided a sobering but important opportunity to reflect on how we can better support care-experienced young people and learn from their experiences. The session reinforced the importance of keeping lived experiences at the heart of policy and practice. Next, an Ofsted panel, headed up by HM Chief Inspector, and a focus on safeguarding adolescents in place concluded the programme of events. 

As delegates departed Manchester, we hope they did so with fresh ideas, renewed determination and a strengthened sense of shared purpose. This year’s conference was a powerful reminder that while the challenges facing children’s services are considerable, so too are the expertise, passion and commitment that exist across our membership.

Together, we will continue striving for a future in which every child has the opportunity to thrive, every young person can realise their potential, and every family receives the support they need at the right time.