NAPCE Belfast Symposium 2026 a Great Success

Relationships at the Heart of Education: Building Respect and Wellbeing through Understanding

The National Association for Pastoral Care in Education (NAPCE), in partnership with Stranmillis University College, was delighted to welcome delegates from across Northern Ireland and beyond to the NAPCE Belfast Symposium 2026.

Held on Tuesday 23 June at the Stranmillis University College campus in Belfast, the Symposium once again proved to be a great success, bringing together educators, pastoral leaders, researchers and school staff to share ideas, celebrate excellence and explore the vital role that relationships play in education.

This year’s theme, “Relationships at the Heart of Education: Building Respect and Wellbeing through Understanding,” set the tone for a day of inspiring presentations, thoughtful discussion and professional collaboration.

Delegates were privileged to hear the keynote address from Dr Anne Emerson, who explored how educators can foster meaningful relationships that promote school belonging, pupil autonomy and positive wellbeing throughout every stage of a young person’s educational journey.

The Symposium also showcased examples of outstanding pastoral practice from finalists and winners of the National Awards for Pastoral Care in Education 2025, providing delegates with practical ideas and inspiration to take back to their own schools and settings.

Among the highlights was a presentation from St John the Baptist’s College, Portadown, winners of the 2025 Pastoral School of the Year Award, who shared their successful approach to creating a culture where every young person feels valued, supported and able to thrive.

The programme concluded with an interactive discussion session, giving delegates the opportunity to engage directly with the keynote speaker and presenters, exchange experiences and explore the challenges and opportunities facing pastoral care in education today.

Throughout the day there was a genuine spirit of collaboration, with valuable networking opportunities helping to strengthen connections across the pastoral care community.

NAPCE would like to thank everyone who attended, our excellent speakers and presenters, and our partners at Stranmillis University College for helping to make another Belfast Symposium such a memorable and successful event.

Photo Gallery

Please enjoy our photo gallery below, capturing some of the highlights from another inspiring day dedicated to supporting and celebrating excellence in pastoral care.

All photographs are courtesy of Greg McCready.

The third NAPCE Symposium in Belfast was a sell-out success, once again.

It was the second year in a row that the conference, at Stranmillis University College, was fully booked.

Speakers included Dr Nicole Cara (Teacher, Educational and Child Psychologist and tutor at University College, London) on the main conference theme of “Building Resilience in Schools: Supporting Pupil and Teacher Wellbeing”, and an opening address from NI Children’s Commissioner Chris Quinn on “Wellbeing in our schools: are we doing right by our children?”.

The programme also featured local NAPCE award winners in 2024: Fiona Boyd and Martine Rooney, Holy Trinity Primary School, Belfast – Winner of Pastoral Development of the Year; and Heather Law and Joanne Wilson, Glenlola Collegiate, Bangor – Winner of Providing Effective Pastoral Care for Learners (Special Recognition Plaque).

A panel discussion was chaired by Phil Jones, UK Chair of NAPCE, featuring Dr Caron Carter, Senior Lecturer in Childhood and Early Childhood Education, Sheffield Hallam University; Hilary Cunningham, Principal, Fane Street Primary School, Belfast; Jonny Hampton, Reach Monitoring; Claire Kerr, Director of Student Services and Wellbeing, Stranmillis University College; and Katrina Moore, Principal, Malone Integrated College.

Huge thanks to lead organiser Professor Noel Purdy OBE and to everyone at Stranmillis University College for their support with this event.

See below, a photo gallery of the event (click on any image twice to expand to full size).

All photos supplied kindly by Greg McCready.

The second NAPCE Symposium held at Stranmillis University College on June 24th was hailed a “huge success”.

The event featured an impressive range of guests speakers including Linsey Farrell, Deputy Permanent Secretary at DE and Nicola Byrne, Assistant Chief Inspector at ETI.

Delegates also heard good practice from some past winners of the National Awards for Pastoral Care in Education including Áine Deane, Sacred Heart Primary School, Derry and Raymond Herron, St Mary’s Christian Brothers Grammar School.

There was also a panel discussion, led by NAPCE National Chair Phil Jones and featuring Dr John McMullen, Queen’s University, Belfast (Educational Psychologist, Researcher and Educator), Jonny Hampton, Organisation Lead, Reach Mentoring, Niall Manogue, Principal, West Winds Primary School, Newtownards, Hannah Campbell, Nurture Leader and Programme Coordinator, St Patrick’s College, Dungannon and Sheila Lavery, Trauma Educator and Therapist.

Lead organiser of the event was NAPCe Journal Editor Professor Noel Purdy who opened the event.

For your information and reference, we are very pleased to share the presentation slides shown on the day with you below.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1w1xg1K4Yd5YjuFCYSIss_3VZHnN9OObF?usp=share_link