Grab a coffee and a breakfast pastry while you mingle with colleagues and peers from right across the public sector.

As Managing Director of Orlo, Phil will be on hosting duties for this year’s BIG Social.

Join Participation People and our team of expert Young Consultants for a dynamic, high-energy keynote that kicks off the day with purpose, provocation, and participation.

Drawing on our DfE-funded work across the North West and beyond, we’ll show how reframing youth and family voices and lived experience can radically transform communications and engagement across councils, healthcare, policing, education, and more.

We’ll explore how public services can:

• Turn Gen Z from “risk” to your most powerful engagement asset
• Use disengagement data as a strategic tool, not just a red flag
• Reimagine service touchpoints through user-centred design and storytelling
• Challenge the sector: If your comms aren’t co-created, you’re already out of touch
• Expect energy, laughter, challenge, and hope. And expect to win prizes

Session 1
Patrick Robins – Digital Public Contact

2025: What’s changed in police social media?

The session will explore early findings from the national public social media public survey, which the public responded to emphatically with over 60,000 responses this summer. Drawing from these insights, we will also look at how the use of police social media channels has changed in the last year and, as a group, consider what to expect in the year ahead.

Session 2 – Customer Stories
Linda McLean – Police Scotland

Sneaky Peek – Pulling back the curtain on online child sexual abuse and exploitation

Police Scotland’s behaviour change campaign “Sneaky Peek” is aimed at helping offenders (and those at risk of offending) of online child sexual abuse to get help to stop offending. Hear how this partnership campaign with Lucy Faithful Foundation was delivered using insight from offenders to develop the campaign messaging, targeting and execution. The digital campaign reached and diverted offenders, ultimately protecting children from online sexual abuse.

Sam Fleet – Walton Centre NHS Foundation Trust

Looking Back to Look Forward

See how The Walton Centre’s small but mighty communications team delves into their past social media to inspire future campaigns and optimise engagement. In this session, we will explore how flexibility and adaptability, gathered over the years, can be applied to meet targets.

Session 3
Matt Nicholls and Lucy Salvage – LGA

Communicating Through Political Change

Local government is undergoing its most significant structural transformation in over 50 years, bringing major implications for communications teams and the wider public sector. Alongside this, the sector is also experiencing substantial political shifts.
This workshop will explore how to navigate these changes and how communications teams can adapt their strategies to align with evolving priorities and expectations. It will cover how to build and nurture new relationships, thrive in uncertain environments, and develop political awareness, particularly at the officer/member interface.

The session will also unveil the latest results from the LGA Heads of Communication Survey, offering insight into the concerns, priorities, and aspirations of communications leaders across the country.

Ever wondered how to keep on top of inbox messages, surveys, and social listening without five different tools? In this session, we’ll showcase how our new Voice of the Community solution brings it all together to give public sector teams clarity, insight & confidence in decision-making.

This session explores how one simple question, “So what?” has transformed Valleys to Coast’s approach to social media engagement. Lizzie will share how the organisation moved from one-way broadcasting to authentic two-way conversations with customers.

The session also covers how Valleys to Coast embeds listening into their wider culture through initiatives like Tell Us Tuesdays, where customer feedback directly informs action.

Attendees will leave with simple, actionable tips to make their communications more authentic, people-focused, and trusted.

The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea’s Director of Communications and Public Affairs discusses the communication failings in response to the Grenfell Tower tragedy, the key findings and recommendations in the 2024 Inquiry report, and the important lessons we can take from such a terrible tragedy.

The session will include organisational and communication issues, ranging from cultural considerations in emergency response to why planning and training are so important. It will also include on the ground insight into what went wrong in the hours and days after the fire, and highlight key findings for the industry in the Inquiry report.

It is important that Grenfell can never be allowed to happen again, including the inadequate communications response. So this session is about passing on learning to all sectors, with that endeavour in mind.

Hosted by Helena Hornby, this year’s panel discussion will discuss ‘The Digital Divide: The role of technology in forging stronger, more resilient communities.‘

Audience members will have the opportunity to contribute to the conversation and put their questions to our expert panel as well.

Orlo’s awards are returning for another year with a new name and a new look! With over 400 customers across a variety of sectors, there’s no shortage of amazing stories and remarkable achievements to celebrate.

As Managing Director of Orlo, Phil will be on hosting duties for this year’s BIG Social.