The REAL Supply Research Unit is delighted to be hosting Oonagh Smyth, Chief Executive of Skills for Care, as the next speaker in our Health Economics and Policy Seminar Series.

Oonagh will present on:
Meeting the future challenges facing the Adult Social Care sector

This is a hybrid event. We’d love you to join us in person, but if you’re unable to attend onsite you’re very welcome to join us via Zoom.

Date and time: Thursday 16 October 10:00 – 11:00
Location: University of York, ARC/014 Alan Maynard Auditorium, YO10 5DD or online via Zoom

Join us for a discussion on the future of adult social care, exploring the opportunities and risks shaping the sector and how policy can help meet the increasing care needs of the population.

Bio: Oonagh is CEO of Skills for Care, the strategic workforce development body for adult social care in England – which works to ensure that the sector has enough people with the right skills and values to provide the best possible care and support. For seven years she was Executive Director of Strategy and Influence at Mencap leading a directorate of around 500 people across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Oonagh has held roles at the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action and the Northern Ireland Equality Commission, senior roles in Westminster Equalities Partnership and the National Council for Voluntary Organisations. She is a former Co-Chair of the Care and Support Alliance, which is a cross-sector alliance of 80 social care organisations influencing at the highest government levels.

The REAL Supply Unit Seminar Series brings together academics and other key stakeholders to hear directly from policymakers, decisionmakers and thought leaders – creating space for new insights and dialogue on the biggest issues facing the future of the NHS and social care in England.

To Join: This is a free event, which will be taking place in-person or online. You can secure your place by registering here.

Enquiries to: REAL Supply Research Unit

This event is designed for those in research adjacent roles:

Professionals and researchers involved in research management, coordination, administration, communication, engagement, knowledge mobilisation, impact and evaluation etc.

Research adjacent roles are essential for producing and mobilising research that can address societal needs and achieve meaningful impact. These roles require a blend of skills and expertise to bridge the multifaceted and highly strategic, relational and practical work within complex and unpredictable research environments – yet are often undervalued and unsupported.

This interactive session is the first in a series of capacity strengthening workshops aimed at those working in research adjacent roles. Together, we will explore how to establish and resource the capacities, ways of working and pre-conditions within research processes that lay the foundations for impact to emerge.

Highlights of the workshop include:

• A keynote provocation and panel of experts
• Peer-to-peer learning across different roles, projects and institutions
• Facilitation by experts from the Scottish Policy & Research Exchange

As part of the joint REAL Supply and REAL Demand Research Units Health Economics and Policy Seminar Series, we are delighted to be hosting Matthew Taylor, CEO of NHS Confederation, who will be presenting:

The REAL Units’ Health Economics and Policy Seminar Series: The Reform and Innovation Challenge for the NHS

Bio: Matthew joined the NHS Confederation as its chief executive in June 2021, having been chief executive of the Royal Society for Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) for 15 years.  During his tenure, Matthew transformed the RSA into a global institution, with 30,000 fellows and a high profile and influential research programme. Before the RSA, Matthew was chief adviser on political strategy to Prime Minister Tony Blair and he also ran the Institute for Public Policy Research for 5 years. He is a widely known commentator on policy, politics and public service reform and regularly appears on national media programmes, having had a distinguished career at the heart of public policy over the last 20 years

The REAL Units’ are thrilled to host Matthew who will outline his thoughts on how health economics and academia can help shape policy, and support healthcare organisations and leaders to ensure health and care systems are equipped to meet future challenges, deliver better outcomes and reduce health inequalities for the communities they serve.

To Join: This is a free event, which will be taking place in-person or online. For those in person, this will include an exclusive unrecorded Q&A section at the end of the session.

Enquiries: REAL Supply Research Unit