Outlines of Conference Presentations
Presentations at M25 Consortium’s Annual Conference 2026 – Sunshine through the rain: celebrating our successes
This page provides brief outlines of the Presentations and sessions.
Keynote Presentation
10.10-10.30
Truth, trust and democracy: the role of the House of Commons Library and good information in the UK Parliament’
Martin Reid, Director of Library Services, House of Commons Library
This presentation will explain how the House of Commons Library puts accurate, authoritative, timely information at the heart of the UK’s parliamentary democracy, describe the rewards and challenges involved in providing a library service in such a unique environment, and discuss some of the Library’s most important recent initiatives, including developing a digitisation strategy for Parliament and leading training to educate law makers about mis- and disinformation.
Speaker Presentations
(in programme timing order)
Lightning Talk Two
11.05-11.15
Saving money, reducing waste and sharing knowledge – Senate House Library’s partnership with the Internet Archive for the preservation of withdrawn stock”
James Cook
A brief description of how Senate House Library has been working with the Internet Archive in offering them elements of our withdrawn stock for them, ultimately, to digitise, preserve and make available online. In particular we have been focusing on areas of stock that, in the digital age, have otherwise become very difficult to rehome successfully such as print periodicals, reference materials and official publications. In so doing we have been able to reduce our disposal costs, minimise the amount of waste created through recycling or other disposal processes and ensure, as far as possible, that materials are given a second life both physically and online.
Innovation Fund Update
12.00-12.15
Introducing your open-access library excellence framework resource
Carly Ramirez-Herelle
Many university library teams are facing increasing pressure to improve efficiency and reduce costs. A lightning talk at last year’s conference introduced the underlying concept for this work. In this session, I will share how a flexible, customisable, and adaptable Library Excellence Framework resource is used at the University of Bedfordshire and will actively invite feedback and co‑creation through a forthcoming focus group discussion. This collaborative approach will support the continued evolution of the resource and the sharing of good practice.
AM Presentation
12.15-12.45
Plugging The Gap: Learning Experiences in UCL LCCOS
Aanchal Bhatt and Kate Cheney
UCL’s LCCOS (Libraries, Culture, Collections and Open Science) has over 400 library and museums staff at all stages of their career journey, in over 60 teams, delivering services across multiple campuses and with a variety of working patterns. We will describe the steps taken over 20 years to support the specific development needs of our community, from the annual staff conference to an innovative Aspiring Managers programme.
End of lunch break mindfulness session
13.30-13.45
A Mindful Pause.
Jem Shackleford
A short session of easy and accessible mindfulness practices to help settle for the afternoon.
Lightning Talk Four
14.45-14.55
The Next Chapter Challenge – University of Surrey Library and Learning Services
Catherine Batson
This year marked our first Library competition, The Next Chapter Challenge—an innovation initiative inviting students to propose ideas to enhance the Surrey student experience, with a cash prize. As a pilot, it aimed to empower students to shape services and work in partnership with library staff.
In this lightning talk, we outline how we planned and delivered the competition, including scoping the brief, recruiting staff mentors, and designing a transparent and student-friendly judging process. We also reflect on challenges such as building awareness and balancing ambition with feasibility within a short timeframe.
Despite this, student engagement was highly positive. Finalists proposed ideas spanning wellbeing, digital tools, inclusive spaces, and community building. Participants particularly valued being listened to and presenting to senior leaders.
We share early outcomes, including ideas moving towards pilot implementation, and reflect on the wider impact in strengthening student–staff partnership and co-creation.
Closing presentation
15.05-15.20
“The Art of Being Brilliant”
Dr Andy Cope
In a world where there’s a lot of talk about ‘best self’ and ‘living your best life’, THE ART OF BEING BRILLIANT shows you how. Based on the science of positive psychology, the art of being brilliant is evidence-based but with the big words surgically removed and replaced with common sense, doable principles and great fun.
The art of being brilliant is grounded in the real world. The truth is simple – when the world’s doing its worst, it’s even more important that we know how to be at our best.