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With instability as our new norm in the sector, we must find ways to be evermore creative, resilient, and adaptable. We may find ourselves preparing for vastly different scenarios at any one time, and faced with increasingly heavy decisions about what we can and can't do.
Join Claris, Flóra, Liz, Michele, and Yasmin on Zoom along with guests, friends and supportive peers for another energising day of celebration, learning, sharing and hope.
This conference is aimed at leaders of small* social impact organisations, with a focus on the small charity model, but open to all who work in and support the sector.
*Defining 'small': If you're resource-stretched, it's probably for you!
This event is supported by gunnercooke LLP. We hope that you can join us for the whole day, but if not, session recordings will be available to access or relisten later.
Conference schedule
9:30-9:45 SCFC Welcome
9:45-10:00 Keynote speaker
10:00-10:30 Bending with the Wind - Michele Price
Flexing your constitutional and governance foundations adapt to challenge and change. When the winds of change are blowing all around you, does your organisation remain rooted and inflexible, or are there simple changes that you can embrace to meet the prevailing winds?
Join Charity Lawyer and gunnercooke partner, Michele Price, to discover practical and effective ideas to make your constitution work with you and for you.
10:30-11:30 Finding peace in the pieces- Yasmin Glover and Flóra Raffai + panel
It can be hard to feel like you're making 'good' decisions for your organisation when the world is unpredictable. We can easily become too rigid, and watch our plans crack the moment something changes, or avoid looking to the future altogether and completely lose sight of where we were trying to get to. Join Flóra and Yasmin to explore a 'kaleidoscope approach' to planning in uncertainty: identifying the pieces that are constant and how they can work for you, even when the pattern changes
When faced with constant uncertainty, you can rely on your constants to guide you through. We'll outline the areas to hold firm to, and learn from the experiences of a panel of small charity leaders in creating clarity through the kaleidoscope. Replace the overwhelm of planning in uncertainty with the peace that comes with knowing your constants, as part of the 'Reason' section of this year's 'Small Charity Friendly' Conference.
11:30-11:45 Morning Break
11:45-12:15 - A practical rhythm for bringing AI into your small charity - Flóra Raffai
How do we embrace new technology when we’re already resource-stretched? Whether you’re a team of two or twenty, integrating AI is less about the software and more about the "rhythm" of how you work. We’ll walk through a systematic checklist to help you move from "AI-curious" to "AI-enhanced" in a responsible, intentional way. From setting shared boundaries to tidying up your digital filing system, this presentation offers a grounded roadmap for small charities. You’ll leave with a practical framework you can use to map your existing rhythms and decide where AI can (and cannot) help you move through uncertainty.
12:15-13:15 Planting hope: learning to cultivate our small organisations- Yasmin Glover and Liz Pepler
As stewards of the land, gardeners make many intricate decisions year-round. What to keep, what to sow, what to move or lose, what complements each other (and what doesn't). Curating a thriving, sustainable landscape takes constant consideration, and is full of endings-some planned, others forced, as well as new beginnings.
As stewards of our organisations, we must equally respond to our environment, adapt to the elements, and make sometimes tough, always balanced, decisions about how best to nurture our resources.
Join Liz and Yasmin to explore regenerative leadership, and learn from the rhythms of nature to better understand how we can accept endings and new beginnings as invited, welcome parts of our regular work.
13:15-14:00 Lunch
14:00-15:00 Leading in uncertain times: confidently, differently and with impact - Claris D'cruz, Jamie Ward-Smith, Kevin Taylor-Mcknight and Fiona McAuslan.
We will be looking at how to spot opportunities in difficult times, sustain good relational governance when the going gets tough and avoid the sorts of disputes and relational governance issues that we are seeing, or nip these in the bud. We will also explore how collective and flatter board leadership models can help in challenging times.
15:00-15:15 gunnercooke Foundation- Heather Kerr
15:15-15:30 - The Gold from the Stone Foundation - Sarah Sansom
15:30-15:40 Keynote speaker
15:40-15:45 SCFC Closing
Meet the guest speakers
Sarah Sansom
Managing Director, Gold from the Stone Foundation
Sarah Sansom is an executive leader, coach and facilitator working internationally at the intersection of strategy, culture and social impact. She is Managing Director of the Gold from the Stone Foundation, a UK charity supporting a national network of community-led Christmas dinners ensuring care leavers aged 18–25 are not alone on Christmas Day.
Alongside her role at the Foundation, Sarah works with founders, boards and senior leadership teams to navigate complexity, lead organisational change and align people, culture and strategy. Her practice brings together executive coaching, team dynamics and systems thinking to support thoughtful decision-making and effective collaboration.
Her previous leadership roles include Executive Director of LIFT (London International Festival of Theatre), CEO/Artistic Director of Time Won’t Wait, Senior Producer at Punchdrunk, Head of Creative Development at Contact Theatre and Participation Producer at Southbank Centre.
Sarah holds an ILM Level 7 in Executive Coaching and Mentoring and is trained in ORSC Systems Coaching, NLP and a range of relational coaching methodologies.
Cristina Otelea
Partnerships Manager at Berkeley Foundation
Cristina is the Partnerships Manager at the Berkeley Foundation, where she leads on the Resilience Fund. Cristina is passionate about building meaningful partnerships and working alongside organisations to channel more resources and funding into opportunities that help them build and strengthen their resilience, so they can continue supporting young people into the future.
Her time at the Berkeley Foundation and in previous roles at UK Youth and Youth United Foundation has allowed her to champion causes close to her heart, always with a focus on listening to and amplifying the voices of young people.
Meet the Speakers
Liz Pepler MIAB FRSA
Small Charity Financial Resilience Consultant
Liz is a charity resilience specialist who works alongside social leaders to help them feel more financially confident and financially resilient.
She is founder of Embrace Finance, co-founder of the Small Charity Friendly Collective and provides financial resilience building support to Boards and Leadership teams of small and medium charities.
Liz is co-designer and co-deliverer of the Lloyds Bank Foundation's Organisational Resilience Programme and co-author of the Association of Chair's Financial Leadership in Small Charities and she has delivered financial resilience training and masterclasses for NCVO, ACEVO, Lloyds Bank Foundation, The Fore Trust, Association of Chairs, Berkeley Foundation, Northern Ireland Arts and Business, FoodRise, Scottish Contemporary Artists, School for Social Entrepreneurs, Civic Power Fund, Young Trustee Movement, Trussell Trust and many more.
Liz is a member of the Institute of Accounts and Bookkeepers, holds a Master's degree in Charity Accounting and Financial Management (Distinction) and a PG Certificate in Charity Administration. She is also a Fellow of the RSA.
Contact details
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Michele Price, Charity Partner, gunnercooke LLP
Charity & Philanthropy Lawyer
Michele combines a passion for helping charities and all forms of not-for-profits succeed, with an enthusiasm for advising philanthropists and social investors on how best to support the causes close to their hearts. Above all, she cares about what you care about. She will get to the bottom of your issues and help you thrive. Her clients value her because she is a trusted adviser who delivers solutions with wisdom, care and a real appreciation for the not-for-profit landscape. Michele Price is recognised by Legal 500 as a “very gifted, personable and experienced lawyer with an in-depth knowledge of the legal framework of the charity sector”. She has a passion for helping charities and all forms of not-for-profits succeed by ensuring that the best legal and strategic advice is available, accessible, and functional. She is a co-founder of the Small Charity Friendly Collective, and a small charities trainer with the Gunnercooke Foundation. Her legal knowledge is complimented by a range of charity roles that she holds as a trustee, board clerk, volunteer, and campaigner.
Contact details
https://gunnercooke.com/people/michele-price/
michele.price@gunnercooke.com
Claris D'Cruz, Claris D’cruz Ltd
Governance Consulting and Trainer
Claris provides board training and facilitation on a range of governance issues including legal responsibilities, recruitment, board effectiveness, diversity, and inclusion. Claris also undertakes governance reviews and provides other board support including skills audits, diversity data mapping and facilitated board self-assessments. Her mission is to empower trustees and help boards to unleash their potential.
Claris has nearly 25 years as a charity lawyer having worked in-house for a charity, at the Charity Commission and in private practice. She also has over 15 years of voluntary leadership experience. Using this, she provides practical and solution-focused advice and support.
Contact details
Yasmin Glover, The Olive
Strategic Leadership Support
Facilitation | Coaching | Consultancy | Training
Yasmin works through The Olive, a social enterprise supporting organisations to become more intentional, purpose-driven, and impactful.
Yasmin is an experienced facilitator, coach, consultant and trainer providing support in areas including strategy and impact, executive support, change management, communications, project development, and staff development.
With over ten years' experience in the sector, Yasmin works to apply realistic approaches and reduce the pressure on small charity leaders and teams, strengthening and supporting the development of skills, services and processes within the social impact sector.
Yasmin is a cofounder of the Small Charity Friendly Collective, and an Associate with Embrace Finance and NCVO.
Contact details
Flóra Raffai, Rapport Coaching
Founder, Trainer, Consultant
Flóra is an EMCC-accredited coach, trainer, and consultant who specialises in supporting small organisations to make a big difference. A CEO with over a decade of leadership and trustee experience across health, education, community development, and technology, she understands first-hand the weight of responsibility leaders often carry. Through her practice, Rapport Coaching, she provides one-to-one coaching, interactive training, and collaborative consultancy that help leaders and teams find clarity, confidence, and momentum. Flóra is the author of ‘Chief Everything Officer: A Field Guide for Small Organisation Leaders’ and currently serves as Co-Chair of Support Cambridgeshire and as a member of the Small Charity Friendly Collective.
Contact details
Website: https://www.rapport-coaching.com/
Who: The Small Charity Friendly Collective is an informal collective of small charity-friendly specialists who have come together to answer the challenge set in the Small Charities Coalition’s (SCC) “Small and Mighty” final report: to provide dedicated and trusted support to small charities. We have a shared commitment to working in a small charity friendly way, which you can read more about here: https://www.linkedin.com/company/small-charity-friendly-collective/.