Headline Sponsor
UK IT Leaders Community Day
Thursday 24th September 2026
We are delighted to announce registration is now open for our 4th UK IT Leaders Community Day.
Following the success of previous community days in Leeds, Birmingham and Manchester, this year will be held at The Milner Hotel in York on Thursday 24th September.
The agenda is still forming but will resemble previous years' formats. We have a fireside chat with Lyndsey Burrow and Tanya Arnold which will undoubtedly continue the theme and inspiration previously provided by Jamie Peacock and Kevin Sinfield.
There is a gala dinner or the choice of 2 round table dinners on Wednesday evening, and we will have a charity event again on Thursday evening.
We have changed the event to Thursday this year. York is a beautiful city with much to see; we felt many people travelling may want to spend a couple of extra days there.
Keynote Speakers
- Freelance Sports Presenter/Reporter, Event host.
- Maximising Cyber Resilience While Minimising Waste.
- Chief AI Officer at RiverAI
Schedule of Events
9:00am – 9.30am Registration
9:30am – 11:00am Welcome and Keynotes
- 9:30am – 9:45am Welcome and Introduction - Heena Mistry
- 9:45am – 10:30am Keynote – The evolution of software engineering, Houston, we have an AI problem – Gav Winter, Chief AI Officer at RiverAI
- 10:30am – 11:00am - Keynote – Dr Chelsea Jarvie – Maximising Cyber Resilience While Minimising Waste
11:00am - 11:25am – Refreshment and Networking Break
11:30am – 12:15pm – Breakout Session #1 – 3 choices
- Choice 1 – Workato - From Backlog to Built: How Workato's AIRO Is Rewriting the IT Delivery Model, Kelian Mos, Solutions Consulting Manager
- Choice 2 – Digital Ways of Working - Beyond the Data: Building a Future-Ready Data Strategy at UCAS, Steve Yick, Chief Digital and Data Officer at UCAS, Emma Corbett, Fractional Data Leader and Strategy Consultant at Digital WoW Group, Facilitator Shirley Cooper OBE
- Choice 3 – Networking / Visit Exhibition Stands
12:15pm – 13:30pm – Lunch and Networking Break
13:30pm – 14:15pm – Panel - The Board Perspective on AI
Kate Cooper, CFO at IoD / Janet Cooper OBE, Chair at Royal Commonwealth Society / Tim Coles, Global CIO at Hitachi Rail / Chair and Facilitator, Mark Sacker, UK Managing Director, Generate Upcycle / Tim Flagg, CEO, UKAI.
14:15pm – 14:25pm – UK IT Leaders Charities 2026
14:30am – 15:15pm – Breakout Session #2 – 3 choices
- Choice 1 – Audacia - From Proof of Concept to Production: Delivering Trusted AI in Regulated Environments, Philip White, Managing Director, Audacia and Amy De-Balsi, Independent Programme Manager, Healthcare Regulation
- Choice 2 – Managed 247 and Huntress - Inside the Mind of a Hacker with Huntress and Managed247, Stephen Boardman CTO at Managed 247 and Alex Hitchen, Senior Sales Engineer at Huntress
- Choice 3 – Networking / Visit Exhibition Stands
15:15pm - 15:45pm – Refreshment and Networking Break
15:45pm - 16:30pm – Keynote Lindsey Burrow and Tanya Arnold
16:30pm – 16:45pm – Charity Raffle Prize Draw
16:45pm – 17:00pm – Closing Remarks and Final Comments
Closing Remarks and Final Comments – Heena Mistry
17:30pm to late – Sponsored Charity Evening
Evening event - Charity networking with food and drinks. In aid of the Ella Dawson Foundation and Heroes at Headingley for:
- Leeds Hospitals charities
- Doddie’s Foundation
- Rob Burrow Discretionary Trust
- Darby Rimmer
At Thor's Tipi in the grounds of The Milner Hotel. Join us for a fun evening and to socialise with your peers. Dress code is Casual.
It's going to be fantastic to get so many of the UK IT Leaders together in one location, we really can't wait.
If you want any more information, contact us below and watch this space for updates as we get closer.