NCG helped lead important conversations at this year’s Association of Colleges Annual Conference, sharing expertise in AI, leadership development and regional collaboration with leaders from across the further education sector.
Scott Mulholland, NCG's Chief Information, Data and Estates Officer, chaired the Hot Topics session AI and Digital Technologies: Creating a vision for the 2035 student experience.
He was joined by Sally Alexander, CEO and Group Principal at Milton Keynes College Group; Robin Ghurbhurun, UK Managing Director Further Education and Skills at Jisc, and Anthony Painter, Director of Strategic Engagement at Ufi.
The session explored the opportunities AI presents for further education and how AI and other digital technologies could support and shape the student experience over the coming decade, alongside the challenges the sector will need to navigate.
The discussion also reflected an area of growing focus across NCG, following significant investment in digital infrastructure and learning technologies in recent years, a journey that has seen NCG become an AoC Digital Insight Hub for 2026/27.
Later in the day, Deputy Principal Lisa Hoseason and HE Achievement Coordinator Gill Bradley led the breakout session Leading Through Coaching: Connecting Talent across NCG, sharing how NCG is developing an inclusive coaching culture across its colleges and professional services.
Through NCG’s Leadership Hub coaching programme, colleagues from different colleges, teams and specialisms are brought together to support professional development, share expertise and strengthen leadership capability across the organisation.
The session explored how coaching is supporting colleagues at different stages of their careers, from stepping into leadership roles and navigating professional challenges to developing confidence, gaining new perspectives and building stronger networks across NCG.
NCG was also represented by Christian Thersby, Principal of West Lancashire College, who joined Danny Braithwaite, Principal and CEO of Lancaster & Morecambe College and Vice Chair of The Lancashire Colleges, for the session How do 11 autonomous colleges actually collaborate? Lessons from The Lancashire Colleges.
Led by The Lancashire Colleges, the session shared learning from the development of its 2025–2030 strategy in response to Lancashire’s changing skills landscape and devolution.
It explored the practical realities of bringing autonomous colleges together, including building consensus, creating a collective voice while maintaining institutional autonomy, working with employers and regional partners, and turning shared ambitions into action.
All three sessions gave NCG an opportunity to share its own experience and learning, while hearing different perspectives and approaches from colleagues across further education.
Whether through embracing emerging technology, collaborating with community, or investing in its people, NCG's contribution to the conference reflected its mission to enable social mobility and economic prosperity through exceptional education, and its commitment to working with the wider sector to improve the experience of students.