Conference 2025 - One Big Coming Together and Thank You

Reflecting on an Incredible Day: The 2025 CYP Alliance Conference

On Thursday 12 June 2025, the Eco-Power Stadium in Doncaster became the beating heart of collaboration, inspiration, and action as over 150 delegates gathered for the fourth annual South Yorkshire Children and Young People’s Alliance Conference.

Under the theme “One big coming together and thank you,” this year’s event celebrated the power of youth voice, partnership, and shared vision in shaping a brighter future.

From the opening sing along to ‘Come on Eileen’ and ‘Walking on Sunshine’ led by the talented Latifah Makuyi, to the heartfelt closing reflections, the day was a vibrant showcase of what can be achieved when communities come together around children and young people.

Keynote speeches from influential figures such as Nigel Harrison (Yorkshire Sport Foundation) and Beth Stout (Golddigger Trust) challenged and inspired, while local NHS leaders like Ruth Brown and Cathy Winfield provided a powerful vision for collective change across South Yorkshire.

Throughout the day, delegates were treated to a dynamic programme of showcase presentations and videos featuring innovative projects across the region. Highlights of the speakers on the day included:

• Active Start (Yorkshire Sport Foundation): promoting physical activity in early years.
• Bump, Birth and Beyond (Barnardo’s): supporting parents and babies with holistic, community-based care.
• Youth Homelessness Education (Roundabout): empowering young people to share lived experience and advocate for change.
• Youth Co-Produced Action Plans (Sheffield Hallam University): developing community-driven responses to wellbeing and safety.

Nicola Ennis, South Yorkshire Children and Young People’s Alliance Programme Director, said: “We had a fantastic time at the event in Doncaster. It was great to see so many people from across the system, representing many organisations, come together to celebrate and collaborate.

“They say it takes a village to raise a child, this powerful proverb continues to guide the way we work together across South Yorkshire. The stories we heard at the conference was proof that through collaboration and partnerships we are all part of that village.”

In every session, gratitude was a recurring theme – “a space to say thank you” featured regularly, honouring the tireless efforts of professionals, volunteers, and most importantly, young people.

The true stars of the day were the Youth Health Champions and young speakers who courageously shared their experiences, hopes, and solutions. Their honesty, passion, and leadership embodied the very heart of the conference’s mission: to ensure children and young people are not only heard, but central to shaping the services and policies that impact their lives.

Nicola added: “A heartfelt thank you goes out to the young people, practitioners, organisations, and volunteers who made this conference such a resounding success. Your energy, ideas, and action are building the village it truly takes to raise every child.”

Saying "Thank You"

Attendeess were also able to hear from a range of other children and young people, senior leaders across South Yorkshire and a few celebrities who all wanted to say thank you, for all the work done across services, teams and organisations to make a difference and you can enjoy these here;

These films further showcased some of the amazing work that takes place by people across South Yorkshire to support the health and wellbeing of children and young people.  In addition, another 11 teams submitted showcase applications, and this shows the breadth and depth of work across the system.  Thank you to the following teams for submitting their work:

• Edd Crawley, Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust - Roma Resources
• Saran Muthiah, Enrich My Care
• Saima Nazir-Desforges, City of Doncaster Council - Vaping
• Ash Hibberd, Marvel Projects UK Community Interest Company
• Hannah Gormley, Neonatal Operational and Delivery Network
• Liz Purnell, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust - Teenage Cancer Trust
• Nina Rose, Sheffield Association for Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus 
• Mantha Fawkes, Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals - Health Inequalities Champion
• Suhail Habib, Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals - Epilpesy Partnership Working
• Sarah Davies, Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust - Support for families

An event led by Young People

Beyond the presentations, films and thank you messages, the real difference for the conference was the fact it was led by our young health champios from Chilypep.  These impressive young people led the event by introducing speakers, leading question and answer sessions, providing fun ice breakers. leading the afternoon quiz and generally creating a fun, frienldy and creative atmosphere for the day.

Further to this they also shared their own lived experiences of accessing various health, education and wellbeing services across South Yorkshire and their hopes for the future as they grow and develop into young adults.  Tehir experiences, voices, view and insights were through provoking to the audience, which included leaders from a range of servicces and bodies from multiple sectors including health, education, charities and voluntary organisations.  The Co-creation of the conference by the young health champions meant the day was a mix of moving stories, showcases of amazing work, fun and discussion about hw to create a better future for our children and young people.

What attendees thought about the conference

At the end of the day, attendees were asked to write down three words that best summed up their conference experience.  Over 240 words were generated, and a summary of the key themes was as follows:

Top Positve Themes:

• Inspired/Inspiring
• Positive/Hopeful/Proud
• Thought-provoking/Interesting
• Connectedness
• Educaional
• Fun/Enjoyable
• Emotional/Humble

Overall, the sentiment was overwhelmingly positive, with attendees feeling inspiried, connected and empowered.

 

 

 

Evaluation after the day

After the conference attendees were sent a survey to obtain a more detailed evaluation of the event, attendees responded to open-ended questions about what they valued most and what could be improved.

Most Valued Aspects

• Hearing lived experiences from young people
• Opportunities for networking and learning about regional initiatives.
• Youth-led presentations and authentic participation
• Inspirational keynote speeches

Suggestions for Improvement

• More structured networking opportunities
• Clearer session labelling and agenda
• Enhanced accessibility (e.g. for hearing impairments)
• Better balance between fun and professional content.

New Ideas Sparked

• Greater inclusion of youth voice in service design.
• Emphasis on co-production and trauma-informed care.
• Innovative approaches to engaging fathers and diverse communities.

What Attendees Said

• "It was definitely the best conference I've ever attended - and I've come from a teaching background, so I've attended a good few!"
• "Seeing how much of the presentation was led by young people was incredibly powerful.  Their insights, experiences, and confidence brough the themes of the conference to life".
• "The youth participation was a real strength of the conference.  Their contributions felt authentic and well-supported, showing the value of creating space for lived experience".
• "It re-energised me and made me even more excited to get involved in co-production as well as involving young people in service design."
• "The young people were amazing and it was excellent to hear things from their perspective."

Conclusion

The 2025 CYP Alliance Conference was a resounding success, with a fantastic engagement, amazing leadership by the young health champions, and a shared commitment to collaboration, inclusivity, understanding and transformation.  The event not only celebrated achievements but also sparked new ideas and strengthened the collective resolve to build a better future for children and young people in South Yorkshire.