On Tuesday 14th October 2025, Community Catalysts and the University of Birmingham were pleased to host an online event on Family and Group Conferencing for Adults.

The event featured a one-hour webinar followed by a virtual gathering for Research and Practice Network members.

We were delighted to welcome 98 attendees throughout the event who joined from across the UK and beyond.

The webinar section focused on the findings of research by the University of Birmingham. We heard from Professor Jerry Tew and two lived-experience researchers, Kar-Man Au and Katy Evans.

“I have really valued hearing about the impactful work in FGCs and the positive outcomes for the person at the centre and their family. “

“I really valued Katy's insight on the power of the adult person’s voice and their emotions through the FGC process.”

Sean Ahern and Katriona Hartnett (FGC for Adults Managers at London Borough of Camden) joined Nick Sinclair (Programme Director at Community Catalysts) to share about the upcoming ‘Test and Learn Together’ Programme co-hosted by the two organisations. This new programme is aimed at councils who are interested in adopting the FGC for Adults model in a sustainable way and will provide support to design, pilot and embed the approach.

Following the webinar, members and attendees were invited to stay to hear practice examples from:
• Edinburgh Council (Pam Dudgeon) – supporting adults with alcohol and drug issues
• Perth and Kinross Council (Lauren Suttie) – supporting young people transitioning into adulthood
• London Borough of Waltham Forest (Caoimhe McKenna) – as part of their early help offer.

The event was busy with lots of information, engagement and connection across people old and new to FGC for Adults.

There was a real sense of momentum and enthusiasm and we look forward to meeting in person in 2026.

“Thanks so much, great to hear how FGC is flourishing.”

Read about this year's Research and Practice Network Gathering which took place on 8th April in London.

Welcome to the "Family and Community Group Conference Lived Experienced Practice Notes" blog series, brought to you by Kar Man and Tim. In this series, we will share our insights and experiences from Family and Group  Conferencing (FGC).

Alivia Bray and Lyndsey Taylor of the Adult Mental Health Family Group Conferencing service in Essex talk about the training programme which has been developed there with the aim of sharing the skills and the ethos of FGC, and to demonstrate its place in the provision of collaborative mental healthcare and decision-making as widely as possible.

Dr Lynn Prendergast, Holistic Reach Consultancy Ltd and
Jo Shead, Senior Practitioner, Essex Perinatal Mental Health Service talk about the challenge of delivering a consistent and effective service in the everchanging landscape of health and social care.

A synopsis of the day

We opened by hearing from Nick Sinclair (Programme Director at Community Catalysts) about his interest in the approach as a tool to make personalisation real by giving power back to people and enabling them to access the support they want to live life their way. Community Catalysts are the hosts of the network and are delighted to be supporting the movement.

We watched a new video featuring many voices from the London Borough of Camden where the model is making a difference for local people.

Professor Jerry Tew (University of Birmingham) then shared the findings from research aiming to define the model and capture current good practice. He shared the working Programme Theory highlighting the contextual factors and the mechanisms and processes that make the approach a powerful tool that can contribute to a range of potential positive outcomes. Jerry spoke of his long history with the approach, his role in forming the network and supporting research and vision to see FGC thrive.

Caoimhe McKenna from the London Borough of Waltham Forest shared how the early help team have adopted the FGC approach and are supporting local citizens to draw on the resources and support of their networks to keep well and to prevent crises. It was impressive to see the scope of connections that the small team are making across directorates to ensure that people are offered an FGC at the earliest opportunity by linking with partners in housing, advice services and through community drop-ins.

If you would like a discussion about how the FGC approach could support adults in your area, please reach out to us via info@fgcforadults.org.uk and we would be more than happy to chat.

You can also sign up to our Family and Group conferencing for adults newsletter.