Great Northern Conference 2021: date, venue, speakers and how to buy tickets

The landmark event, organised by the Northern Powerhouse Partnership and NationalWorld’s parent company JPI Media, is set to take place at Sheffield’s iconic Cutler’s Hall venue on Thursday October 28.

Some of the biggest names in business have leant their backing to the event which will be held as both an in-person and digitally streamed conference.

Which speakers will be attending?

• CLARE BAMBRA, Professor of Public Health, Newcastle University
• KEN COOPER, British Business Bank
• HANNAH DAVIES, Head of External and Public Affairs for the Northern Health Science Alliance (NHSA)
• SUE FERNS, Deputy General Secretary at Prospect
• DAN JARVIS, Mayor of Sheffield City Region
• PROF SUSAN LEA, University of Hull
• ANNE LONGFIELD CBE, Former Children’s Commissioner for England
• MIKE MAUDSLEY, Group Operations Director, Drax Group
• BEN MORGAN, Research Director, AMRC
• MALCOLM MORLEY, Chair, Radioactive Waste Management
• THARA RAJ, Director of Public Health, Warrington Borough Council
• DR HELEN RAFFERTY, Interim CEO, SHINE
• JAMIE REED, Head of Corporate Affairs, Sellafield Ltd
• STEVE ROTHERAM, Metro Mayor, Liverpool City Region
• KATY SHAW, Director of Cultural Partnerships, Northumbria University
• DAN SMITH, Director of Energy Services, Northern Gas & Power
• SARA WALKER, Director of the EPSRC National Centre for Energy Systems Integration

The headline sponsor for this year’s Great Northern Conference comes from telecommunications giant Huawei, who will be backing the digital session.

Additional sponsorship is set to come from power firm Sellafield for the education and skills session, and Drax which is supporting the Net Zero Future Session.

There are also breakout session sponsorship from Hermes for the Investment and Development Session, Radioactive Waste Management for the sustainable infrastructure session, Northern Gas & Power for the energy session and the Northern Health Science Alliance for the health session.

Additional support comes from the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund and Be the Business.

Victor Zhang, Senior Vice President with Huawei, said: “Huawei has been supporting the UK’s digital infrastructure for 20 years, our technologies keep communities connected and ensure that no one is left behind by bringing super-fast internet and connectivity across the country.

"Huawei helps level up the UK by directly and indirectly supporting many jobs and providing digital skills training – last year, Huawei supported over £571m in contribution to the GDP in the North of England with more than 9,900 direct and indirect jobs.

“We are pleased to join the Great Northern Conference discussion in support of the Government’s levelling up agenda.”

Now in its third year, the Great Northern Conference will once again bring together key politicians, business leaders, media and thought-provoking influencers.

The event, which has previously attracted the likes of Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the former Archbishop of York John Sentamu, is a must attend event for those that want to be part of the discussion and influence the direction that the region takes as it rebuilds in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The outcomes from the event will be documented in a special report published across the JPI Media portfolio.

Henri Murison, the director of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, said: “Every year the Great Northern Conference offers business and civic leaders from across the North a chance to come together to discuss priorities and shape policy ideas.

“This year that will mean addressing the fallout from the pandemic, including tackling the huge learning loss in northern schools as well as building a stronger economic recovery across our towns and cities.

“It also allows us to identify opportunities to rebalance the UK’s economy.”

How to get tickets

For tickets visit www.greatnorthernpowerhouse.co.uk

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