Voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations from across North Yorkshire will be heading to Harrogate in May for the sector’s first one-day conference designed to build leadership skills at all levels.

The Ordinary Extraordinary Leaders conference (Tuesday 22 May at Pavilions of Harrogate) is being organised by VCSE support organisation, Community First Yorkshire. Its focus will be on sharing the experiences and insights of a diverse line-up of speakers to show how ordinary every-day actions can deliver extraordinary results.

As well as attracting people currently in a leadership position, the conference is aimed at new leaders, people wanting to take on a leadership role and anyone interested in exploring their potential to take their career in the VCSE sector further. It will be as relevant to someone leading a small team or project as it is to someone heading-up a department or organisation.

More than a dozen speakers throughout the day will offer a wide range of perspectives from tackling culture change in the British Army to establishing a charity from scratch, taking on a new leadership role or working with teams of volunteers.

Aim is to help vibrant VCSE sector thrive

“We have such a vibrant VCSE sector in North Yorkshire, playing an essential part in supporting community action and wellbeing, and providing a voice for local people and underpinning statutory health and social care,” said Community First Yorkshire Chief Executive, Jane Colthup.

“With around 7,000 VCSE organisations across North Yorkshire, that collectively employ the equivalent of around 10,000 full time members of staff and work with more than 67,000 volunteers, our goal is to ensure that they all have the skills they need to thrive and seize new opportunities.

“We know that excellent leadership skills can help drive success. So, as we celebrate International Leadership Week this week, I’m really looking forward to our first conference focused specifically on helping our fantastic VCSE organisations learn from each other.

“With so much diversity on the line-up, it promises to be a thought-provoking and inspiring event.”

Superb speaker line-up

Speakers attending the conference include:

•  Major General Zac Stenning – Commandant, Royal Military Academy Sandhurst & the Army’s Director Leadership
• Richard Flinton – Chief Executive, North Yorkshire Council
• Professor Stephen Eames CBE – Chief Executive of Humber and North Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership
• Johanna Hooper – Leadership and change management expert, Limitless Peak Performance
• Valentina Hynes – Entrepreneur, Founder and CEO of SVH Inc CIC
• Debbie North – Cabinet Office Disability and Access Ambassador for the Countryside and Founder of Access the Dales

Two interactive sessions, featuring another eight panellists to provide a wealth of different experiences and insights, mean the event will cater for everyone no matter what their background is, how much leadership experience they have or what their career aspirations are.

Find out more and book your place here.