Crafting Events That Matter: Spirit of 2012's Final Conference

We are delighted to invite you to Spirit of 2012’s final conference, where we will reflect on and celebrate over a decade of our work - exploring how we've harnessed the power of events to build lasting social impact and leaving a call to action for what comes next.

The event will bring together our valued partners, stakeholders, and friends from across the UK to share stories, celebrate what we’ve achieved, and explore the impact of our work, as Spirit draws to a close at the end of 2025. Arrivals from 9.30 for a 10am start.

Throughout the day you’ll journey through the story of Spirit of 2012 - from our founding vision to the lasting impact of our funding, and what the future holds for events in the UK.

• Hear from those who shaped Spirit’s beginnings in a panel exploring our original aims and intentions, including Spirit patron Susie Rodgers MBE.
• Discover insights at our interactive ‘Learning Stalls’, from the partners who will be carrying on the spirit of our work, including WBS & UWS.
• Dive deep into our learning with experts from across the UK events sector, including dynamic breakout sessions with our three learning partners, including PBE, Loughborough and Belong.
• Look ahead with us as sector leaders discuss the future of events in the UK, and how we can shape and deliver events with a social impact that lives on, chaired by Phil Batty OBE.

Expect a day full of reflection, inspiration, and action, and the chance to connect with peers across culture, sport, volunteering, government, and community sectors.

This is more than a celebration - it’s a call to action. Together, we can ensure the legacy of Spirit of 2012 lives on in the way the UK commissions, funds and delivers events with social impact.

NB - when signing up, you will be asked to choose between three break-out sessions with Spirit of 2012 learning partners. The options are:

Belong - Power of Events: Maximising the social value of community events

Launching the Power of Events digital learning resource and Social Value Estimator created by the Belong Network in partnership with Spirit 2012. The digital learning resource supports community event planners to design events with social cohesion at their heart, and the Social Value Estimator places a value in £ on the benefits to the wider community.

PBE - Tricky trade-offs: how can funders, commissioners and programme designers take the next step on their impact journey?

Choosing what to measure and how is a difficult decision for anyone looking across a programme of different interventions. Balancing the need for clarity on impact with the pressures that it can place on those delivering frontline services and their clients is tricky. Likewise, the capacity, knowledge and confidence to use both the qualitative and quantitative information that grantees share back can feel out-of-reach. In this session we’ll draw on the findings of PBE’s Helping funders to measure what matters report as well as the What Works Centre for Wellbeing’s Spirit of 2012 case study synthesis to outline the options a simple spectrum. This will help you to see where you currently are, what your next steps could look like and how taking a wellbeing lens can provide valuable structure to help you.

Loughborough - Inclusive learning: Shifting Perceptions Through Digital Storytelling

Loughborough University showcases innovative uses of Spirit of 2012’s evidence bank and creative communication tools to improve perceptions—including self-perceptions—of disability and impairment. Using early years education as a case study, this session reveals how digital storytelling and events can drive inclusive change. Attendees will gain practical insights, inspiration, and opportunities to contribute to the next phase of this pioneering project.