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Social Care Ireland Annual Conference 2025
April 2 @ 8:30 am - April 3 @ 5:00 pm
€30.00 – €220.00Thanks you to all our delegates, presenters and the conference committee for making this years conference a success. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did ! The presentation are available to download (at the end of this page)
We value you feedback if you attended the conference please fill out this short survey https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/8RQ6FYJ
The theme of this years conference was
‘Creativity, Innovation and play in Social Care – The Power of Possibility in an era of regulation’
Date: 2nd & 3rd of April 2025
Venue: The Fairways Hotel. Dublin Road, Haggardstown, Dundalk, Co. Louth, A91 E6KC. Email: reception@fairwayshotel.ie
/ Phone: +353 42 934 3910
2025 Conference Timetable
Conference extended brochure 2025 V2
Social care practice often requires thinking and acting creatively and innovatively in complex and sometimes ambiguous contexts which are now increasingly bounded by regulation. While standards, regulations and legislation provide essential benchmarks, recognition, promotion and support for creative, innovative and playful practice is central to bringing about positive change for individuals and communities, and within cultures of care. It is widely recognised that creativity and innovation are essential 21st century skills. However, with the professionalisation of the social care sector the importance of creativity and innovation in being an effective social care worker may have diminished. The Standards of Proficiency for Social Care Workers, for example, contains just one reference to creativity (SP 5.16). With so many regulatory bodies overseeing social care services (e.g. Tusla, HIQA, CORU) staff teams may find it more difficult to think laterally, problem solve and collaborate while respecting regulatory parameters. Thinking and acting creatively and collaboratively can often provide innovative solutions and challenges to existing systems. The 2025 annual conference will focus on the power of possibility in adopting and enhancing creative, innovative and playful practice in such contexts.
More videos from the conference on our Video page
Conference Sponsors 2025
🌟 A Huge Thank You to Our Sponsors! 🌟
We are incredibly grateful to our sponsors for their generous support
Please see link below to access this year’s sponsor brochures.
Social Care Ireland Conference Sponsors 2025
Student Award & Outstanding Achievement Award 2025
We are delighted to announce the winners of this years Student award and Outstanding Achievement award. The student award goes to Shauna Kelly from SETU Waterford and the Outstanding Achievement Award goes to Dr James Forbes a Director of Social Care in ChildVision for the visually impaired. Congratulations to you both. The awards will be presented at the gala dinner during the conference on the 2nd of April.
Student Mentorship Programme:
We have selected all our participants for the mentorship programme. We hope everyone enjoys themselves and makes some lasting memories.
Keynote Presenters:
Keynote: Professor Neil Maiden
Theme: ‘Digital, AI and Creative Thinking in Social Care’
Creative thinking is a skill that employers are increasingly seeking from their employers. In 2024 the World Economic Forum reported it is the fastest-growing skill demanded by organisations across professions. Social care is no different. Not only can creative skills encourage people in care to engage more in artistic activities, but also creative thinking is essential to overcome everyday care challenges and seize new opportunities. This keynote will define creative thinking in the context of social care work, and frame it is a skill can that be relearned by professionals in the form of specific techniques and more general good practices. Moreover, it will present how emerging digital technologies, and in particular Artificial Intelligence can be used in simple and secure ways to augment this creative thinking, as one means of broadening our understanding of the social care profession.
Biography: Professor Neil Maiden of Digital Creativity at the Bayes Business School at City St George’s, University of London, and Director of the Centre for Creativity enabled by AI funded by Research England. His research interests include uses of artificial intelligence to augment human creativity. He is and has been a principal and co-investigator on numerous EPSRC- and EU-funded research projects with a total value of over £64 million. He has published over 220 peer-reviewed papers in academic journals and conferences. He chaired the Steering Committee for the IEEE International Conference on Requirements Engineering series 2009-2012, and was Editor of the IEEE Software’s Requirements column 2005-2013. His details are available at https://www.city.ac.uk/people/academics/neil-maiden.
Keynote: Professor Vlad Glăveanu
Theme: ‘Creative experience: How to discover new possibilities for self, others and society’ 
Biography: Vlad Glăveanu, PhD, is Full Professor of Psychology in the School of Psychology and Director of the DCU Centre for Possibility Studies at Dublin City University, and Professor II at the Centre for the Science of Learning and Technology, University of Bergen. He is the founder and president of the Possibility Studies Network (PSN). His work focuses on creativity, imagination, culture, collaboration, wonder, possibility, and societal challenges. He is editor of Europe’s Journal of Psychology (EJOP), an open-access peer-reviewed journal published by PsychOpen (Germany) as well as Possibility Studies and Society, launched by Sage in 2022. In 2018, he received the Berlyne Award from the APA Division 10 for outstanding early career contributions to the field of aesthetics, creativity, and the arts.
Keynote: ‘That’s Life’ project Brothers of Charity Services Galway. Elizabeth McCormack – Lead vocals, Karen Breen – Keyboards
Tiago DaSilva – Drums, Martin McDonagh – Guitar, Aengus Hackett – Guitar and vocals, Andrew Madec – Bass and vocals
Theme: That’s Life program will showcase the inspiring work of artists with intellectual disabilities, including in-person presentations and performances by adults engaged with That’s Life. This offers a unique opportunity to witness firsthand the creativity and community impact fostered within social care through the arts.
Biography: That’s Life, part of the Brothers of Charity Services Galway, is an inclusive arts and personal development program that empowers adults with intellectual disabilities through music, visual arts, and physical theatre. Over the past 25 years, it has evolved into a dynamic platform that fosters creativity, self-worth, and community involvement. The program’s innovative approach combines high-quality engagement with accessibility, collaborating with local artists and organizations to create transformative experiences. Participants engage in diverse projects—from music performances and visual installations to sensory-rich theatre—showcasing their talents in public and challenging perceptions around arts and disability. Through its commitment to inclusivity and artistic excellence, That’s Life has become a vital part of Galway’s cultural landscape.
PRESENTATIONS:
Keynote One: Professor Vlad Glăveanu
‘Creative experience: How to discover new possibilities for self, others and society’
Possibility Studies Network – https://www.possibilitystudies.net/
The summer conference (our annual conference) – https://www.possibilitystudies.net/event/5th-international-conference-of-possibility-studies/
1 Workshop: David Friel and Denise O’Boyle
“Creativity in Social Care as Embodied, Reflective, and Bilateral”
2. Policy/Practice:
Dr Denise Mac Giolla Ri
“Fostering Creativity in Social Care: An E-book Approach to Integrating Creative and Recreational Practice in Social Care Education”
Noelle Reilly, Eileen Farrell, Dr Denise Lyons, Majella Finnegan, The Cairdeas Centre, Social Care Students from SETU
“Enhancing the learner experience through the creation, design and delivery of a shared project between learners with Intellectual Disability and Social Care Students”
3 Workshop: John Byrne
“Snowflakes to Snowmen; Building Resilience Through Creative Approaches to Social Care Education”
4 Policy/Practice:
Delores Crerar
“Exploring Creativity in Social Care Supervision: Presenting the Six Frame Model of Creative Supervision”
Adrian McKenna
“What’s fun got to do with it? Supporting creativity, curiosity and play in ‘meta-supervision’ to build meaningful relationships”
5 Research:
Louisa Goss
“Narratives of Creativity among Social Care Educators in Irish Higher Education”
Rose Doolan Maher
“TikTok feedback- Creative and innovative ways of promoting young people with disabilities expressed views in research”
-Dr Caroline Coyle
“Awakening the Goddess Within: An Autoethnographic and Poetic Inquiry into Older Women’s Identity and Ageing in Ireland”
6 Workshop: Sandra Conroy & Louise Beecher
“Nature Based Activities for Self-Care and Interventions in Social Care”
Keynote two:
Professor Neil Maiden
“Embracing creativity and creative thinking in social care”
CreativityCognitionSubmissionv1.3
Digital Health Paperv3.00 Pre-Print
Charlotte Burke
“CPD Update for Social Care Ireland”
7. Workshop: Dr Nicola O’Sullivan and Amanda Kelly
“The Other ‘Regulation’ – Creating the necessary conditions to support physiological and psychological regulation in social care staff”
8. Workshop: Dr Danielle Douglas, Máire O’ Reilly, Shauna Faith Kelly, Leah McHugh, Keicha Wall, Claudia O’ Neill, Adrienne Blocksidge, and Edith Chukwu
“Innovate, Create, Collaborate: Lessons from the Social Butterfly Social Care Magazine Project”
9. Policy/Practice:
Dr Denise Lyons and Charlotte Burke
“Film as a creative tool – ‘The History of Social Care practice and Education’ (40 minute documentary)”
10. Policy and Practice:
Philip Stallard
“Safe spaces in Adventure Therapy”
Dr Niall Hanlon and Dr Margaret Fingleton
“Speaking-up! Co-learning about advocacy and disability”
11. Policy and Practice:
Conn Holohan
“Immersive Empathy: Co-Creating Immersive Narratives on Home and Homelessness”
Julie McKenna and Jenny Smyth
“Empowering drug users to prevent and respond to overdose through innovative, strength-based practice”
Keynote Three:
Elizabeth McCormack – Lead vocals, Karen Breen – Keyboards
Tiago DaSilva – Drums, Martin McDonagh – Guitar, Aengus Hackett – Guitar, vocals, Andrew Madec – Bass, vocals
Brothers of Charity Services Galway
‘That’s Life’ project including songs from Electric Dreams”
12. Workshop: Delores Crerar, John Balfe, Marian Connell, Caroline Coyle, Jenny Fahy, Louisa Goss, Claire Hopkins, Denise Lyons, Kate Palmer, Grainne O Rourke
“The Creativity and Innovation in Social Care (CISC) Network: Every Moment Has Potential”
13. Workshop: Dr John M Digney & Maxwell Smart
“More than just a laugh – Fun, Humour and Adventure as lifespace needs”
14. Policy and Practice:
Dr Nicola O Sullivan
“Writing to reflect and not record; the continuation of a conversation about emotional experience at work”
15 Workshop: Sandra Rocke
“The use of Virtual Reality (VR) as a tool to practice Mediation”
16. Workshop: Jasmin Stallard
“The Adventure Toolkit’: Tools and inspiration for engagement and practice”