Technician Conference 2026
Join us at the Ray Dolby Centre, Department of Physics on Wednesday 30 September from 9:30 - 4:00
The conference features a full day of talks and workshops as well as an exhibition, facility tours and a Repair Cafe.
Sign up to attend the conference
Register for the workshops
Join us at the Technical Conference to grow your network, support your development, share best practice, and raise the visibility of technicians.
Russell Wilson
Technical Lead, UoC
This is the biggest conference the team has run so far and will feature a poster campaign highlighting technical roles across the University!
If you'd like your role to feature in the future campaign, we still need volunteers so sign up below!
Poster campaign
Conference Details
Talks include:
Opening Plenary 9:30-10:15
Professor Sir John Aston, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research and Dame Athene Donald, Professor Emeritus
Technicians: a national perspective 11:00-12:00
Dr. Simon Breeden, Technician Commitment Associate Lead, Sarah Allen, Career Pathways Lead, ITSS and Dr. Sara Bacon, Centre Manager, National Technician Development Centre.
Cambridge in practice 13:00-14:00
Hannah Mannering, Manager, Disease Model Core, IMS, Thomas Glenday, Head of Design and Technical Services, Dept. Engineering and Tom Sharp, Lab Services Training manager, Dept. Physics.
Development focus: skills and future 14:00-15:00
Sarah Allen, ITSS and Matt Flury, Lead, Employee Value Proposition.
Reflection and next steps 15:00-16:00
Dr. Mark Kristiansen, Associate Professor, Genomics, UCL, Dr. Michelle Jackson, Registrar, Institute of Science and Technology.
UoC Technician Conference 2026 Workshop Signup | Eventbrite
LEGO®SERIOUS PLAY® Introduction 10:15-11:00 & 11:00-12:00
Emotional Culture Deck: Dealing the Cards for Better Conversations 10:15-11:00
Building the Technical Talent Pipeline: Apprenticeships, T Levels, Outreach 11:00-12:00
Shared Facilities & Knowledge Exchange 11:00-12:00
Fair Attribution and Publishing for Technicians 13:00-14:00
AI and the Future of Research: The Evolving Role of Technicians 13:00-14:00
Application Sprint: A Masterclass in Professional Registration 14:00-15:00
Grant Writing for Technicians 14:00-15:00
Women in Robotics: Support, Networks and Career Development 15:00-16:00
Technicians and Sustainability: LEAN, LEAF and beyond! 15:00-16:00
Please pre-register for workshops using Eventbrite:
UoC Technician Conference 2026 Workshop Signup | Eventbrite
Our exhibition features sponsor stands, information relevant to your roles and some of our community initiatives including details on how your area could join Robot Club! The exhibition features stands showcasing technical skills and knowledge and our poster campaign showcases real technicians from across the University. If you would like to highlight your skills or roles for a future campaign, then contact us!
There will also be tea, coffee and refreshments!
Come along and visit the repair cafe to see technical skills and know-how in action! Our UoC repair cafe initiative is in partnership with Cambridge Carbon Footprint and designed to create a technical community and show the importance of our skills and knowledge!
If you want to bring along a broken item on the day, bookings are now open but will close before the conference. We are also still looking for technical staff to volunteer as repairers! If you can fix anything at all, we'd love to hear from you!
Finish off the day with a tour around the brand new facilities at the Ray Dolby Centre. The Department of Physics has cutting edge laboratories, workshops and facilities. Take a peek behind the glass and join technicians to explore the areas and see what it takes to keep the place running!
Register below:
UoC Technician Conference 2026 Workshop Signup | Eventbrite
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This conference is supported by:
