“Please be aware that registration for this event officially closed on 3rd June; however, due to a late wave of interest we have re-opened registration. Please note that we may not be able to accommodate any additional requirements (e.g. dietary or accessibility) at this late stage, and we will also not be able to list you in the delegate pack as that has already been finalised”.

Welcome!

The Bristol Poverty Institute (BPI) are excited to welcome you to our upcoming conference on Poverty and Social Justice in a Post-COVID World, which is the seventh event in our Peter Townsend Memorial Conference series. This important conference marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Townsend Centre for International Poverty Research at the University of Bristol, which formed the foundations the BPI has built upon since our launch in 2017.

This is the information and registration page for Day 1 (Wednesday 5th June), which is an in-person event in Bristol. If you are interested in attending Day 2 (online), please visit our Day 2 event page. For more information on the conference overall, please visit our main conference event page.

Background

Our in-person conference day will feature a range of sessions, including formal presentations, interactive workshops, and networking opportunities. We will convene in the fantastic Wills Hall Conference Centre in Bristol to explore the impacts of the pandemic on different dimensions of poverty within the UK, with thematic sessions on topics such as mental health, families, finances, structural inequalities and social mobility, as well as dedicated networking spaces. We aim to attract a broad audience, representing the public, private and civil sectors alongside academics from across the globe at all career stages. Together, we will explore how we can combine our different expertise, approaches, and perspectives to help improve the lives of those suffering from poverty. Find out more about the background of our conference on the main conference event page.

Day 1 Programme

We are in the process of finalising our Day 1 programme and speakers and we will be updating this page with more information soon – watch this space! We are pleased to confirm the below speakers and programme, with more details to be added in due course.

Registration and refreshments on arrival

Welcome and introduction

Professor Esther Dermott, Faculty Pro-Vice Chancellor for Arts, Law and Social Sciences at University of Bristol
Professor David Gordon, Director of Bristol Poverty Institute and Professor of Social Justice at University of Bristol
Dr Lauren Winch, Manager of Bristol Poverty Institute at University of Bristol

Session 1: Education, Employment, and Escalating Inequalities

Dr William Baker, Senior lecturer at University of Bristol
Professor Sharon Collard, Chair in Personal Finance at University of Bristol
Mr Alex Collison, Policy officer for the Trades Union Conference Economic and Social Affairs Department
Professor Jane Millar, Chair of Trustees for Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) and Emeritus Professor in Social and Policy Studies at University of Bath

Refreshment break

Session 2: Mental Health, Poverty, and the Pandemic

Professor Laura D Howe, Professor of Epidemiology and Medical Statistics at University of Bristol
Ms Tricia Jessiman, Senior Research Associate in Qualitative Public Health Research at University of Bristol
Dr Julie Mytton, Professor of Public Health at University of the West of England
Ms Dinithi Nisanka Wijedasa, Associate Professor in Child and Family Welfare at University of Bristol

Lunch and networking

Session 3: Structural Inequalities and Social Justice

Professor Ann Singleton, Associate Professor in Migration Policy at University of Bristol on behalf of Mr Tony Bunyan, Emeritus Director of Statewatch and Honorary President of the Institute for Race Relations
Professor Saffron Karlsen, Professor of Sociology at University of Bristol

Refreshment break

Session 4: Closing session

Professor David Gordon, Director of Bristol Poverty Institute and Professor of Social Justice at University of Bristol
Mr Peter Matejic, Chief Analyst at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF)

Networking drinks reception

Please note that we have now submitted the catering order to the venue, so may not be able to accommodate any dietary requests received after this date (23rd May). If you have not registered yet and have dietary requirements, please contact the BPI team via bpi-conference-2024@bristol.ac.uk to check if these can be accommodated by the venue.

Please be aware that the organisers plan to take photographs and may also do some filming during the event, which we will share online (including our Twitter/X feeds, websites and/or blogs) and may include in future marketing materials. If you are uncomfortable with this, please notify a member of the team on the day and we will endeavour to try and avoid including you in any photographs. Due to the nature of the event we cannot guarantee you won’t be in any images, but we will try and avoid capturing images where you are clearly visible.

Contact

If you have any queries, please contact the BPI team via bpi-conference-2024@bristol.ac.uk.

Venue information and transport

The Wills Hall Conference Centre is located at Parry’s Lane, Stoke Bishop, Bristol, BS9 1AE. The venue have provided the following information on travel options:

By Local Bus

Several bus services stop within a short walk from Wills Hall:

Services 1, 2 and 2a all run from Temple Meads train station. Alight at Westbury Road.
Service 3 runs from the city centre. Alight at Wills Hall.
Service U1 operates term-time only. At peak times, the service runs from Clifton Triangle, and at off-peak times, the service runs from the city centre.

Timetables for all these services are available at: www.firstgroup.com/bristol-bath-and-west.

By Train:

Bristol Temple Meads is the main closest train station, and you can use local buses or an e-scooter to transport you to the venue.

There is also a connecting train service from Temple Meads to Clifton Down train station on Whiteladies Road which will take you closer to the venue. From there, you can take the 1, 2, 2a, 3, 4 and U1 buses or a 30-minute walk.

By Bike:

Bicycle parking facilities are located just behind the conference centre.

By E-scooter:

TIER e-scooters operate in the Bristol area and are a great way to get around the city. You will need the app on your phone and a driving licence to use them: https://www.tier.app/en/

By car:

Parking is monitored by a third-party operator and is enforceable 24/7: see location here. You can pay by phone, SMS or app. For more information and charges, please visit: https://www.bristol.ac.uk/accommodation/parking/visitor-parking/ .

Park & Ride:

Park and Ride services allow you to park without difficulty on the outskirts of the city. A bus transports you to the city centre. For further information, please visit: www.travelwest.info/parkandride

Other Transport:

Please visit the following website for further information on other ways to travel to the university: http://www.bristol.ac.uk/maps/directions/

Accessibility

If you have any access requirements, please visit the venue's accessibility page for information.

Travel bursaries

We recognise that costs of attending a conference can be a barrier to attendance for some, particularly those with lived experience of the topics under discussion. We will therefore have a limited number of travel bursaries available to enable more people to participate in this event. Please visit our bursaries webpage for more information, which will be set up shortly.