The conference programme is designed to offer a variety of plenary sessions and workshops covering a wide range of interests to all those involved with YMCA.

The conference programme will be relevant for:

• Chairs and Trustees
• Chief Executives
• YMCA Senior Managers
• YMCA Staff and Volunteers
• Youth Ambassadors – current and prospective

The conference will begin at 11:00am on Wednesday 2 July (registration opens at 10:00am) and will finish at 3:40pm on Thursday 3 July.

Speakers at the conference will include:

• Jamie Masraff, Chief Executive of OnSide and Chair of the Back Youth Alliance, who will share his thoughts on what is happening and in the sector and what challenges lay ahead.
• Emily Wallace, Manager Director at Inflect, who will address the conference on the Government’s plans for Devolution and re-organisation of local government and the potential impact of this for YMCAs.
• Peter Dinsdale, National General Secretary and President of YMCA Canada, will be leading our international session. Peter will speak about the YMCA work in Canada; what is happening in the YMCA globally; as well as introduce what is planned for when Canada hosts the next World Council in Toronto in July 2026.
• Denise Hatton, National General Secretary of YMCA England & Wales, will deliver a review of the year and the work being undertaken to bring the Federation Strategy to reality in conjunction with the global Vision 2030 strategy.
• Richard Susskind CBE will deliver a session to conference on ‘How to think about AI: A Guide for the Perplexed’ and how the growth of AI will impact organisations like YMCA in the years to come.

Other speakers will be announced in due course.

Attendees will also have the opportunity to attend a number of workshops as well as Work Area Discussion Forums.

YMCA National Conference Social Evening – Arcade Rewind

The more informal YMCA conference social evening is back by popular demand. Step back in time and relive the glory days of arcade gaming at Arcade Rewind.

Join us for an unforgettable social evening filled with classic games like Pac Man and Pinball, our ‘retro’ quiz and all the nostalgia you can handle – as well as some good food!

A Full Delegate place with accommodation is £199. A Full Delegate place without accommodation is £150. When you book four full delegate places, a fifth delegate place is free. This offer is available until 2 June.

We have several conference packages to best suit the needs of your YMCA. This includes Full Delegate (not including accommodation); Wednesday/Thursday only delegate rates. These can be purchased through the online registration platform.

Full Delegate place includes:

• Access to all conference sessions
• Overnight accommodation
• Lunch on Wednesday and Thursday
• Wednesday Dinner and Social Evening
• Breakfast on Thursday
• Free Parking at the conference venue
• Complimentary Wi-Fi

Charity Bank is the loans and savings bank owned by and committed to supporting the social sector. Since 2002, Charity Bank has used its savers’ money to make more than 1370 loans totalling over £570m to housing, education, social care, community and other social purpose organisations.

TradePoint is B&Q’s trade membership scheme, launched in 2010 to give tradespeople access to exclusive offers and services.

At Social Investment Business (SIB), we help charities and social enterprises achieve their missions by providing tailored finance and support. Our goal is to strengthen the social economy to build a fairer, more equal society.

Utility Aid is the UK’s leading energy broker and consultancy for the voluntary sector, with over 4,500 charity customers.