About
The AoC Annual Conference and Exhibition brings together further education leaders, staff and partners to explore the issues shaping the sector. This year's programme focuses on the power of collaboration, with discussions on policy, partnerships and improving outcomes for learners.
We're proud to once again support the conference as Digital Partner and Beacon Awards sponsor.
This year, we're helping college leaders and governors to navigate some of the sector's biggest challenges, from digital transformation and AI to data and cyber security. Through conference sessions, expert conversations and a new suite of leadership resources, we'll be sharing practical frameworks and guidance to support strategic decision-making and organisational resilience.
Visit the Jisc stand
From strategy to assurance: resources for college leaders and governors
Visit us to explore a new suite of leadership resources designed to help colleges turn ambition into action. Covering digital transformation, AI and cyber security, these practical frameworks and leadership question sets will help senior leaders and governors strengthen strategy, improve oversight and build organisational resilience.
Featured resources
Strategy and transformation:
- Strategic questions for college leaders and governors: using digital to advance college priorities
- Leading AI in colleges and universities: a strategic framework for senior leaders
Governance and assurance:
- Strategic questions at a glance: 16 questions for college leaders and governors leading digital
- Jisc | 16 questions SLTs and boards should ask about AI
- 16 questions you need to ask to assess your cyber security posture
At the stand you can:
- Explore practical frameworks for digital transformation, AI and cyber security
- Access leadership question sets designed for senior leaders and governors
- Discuss your organisation's priorities with Jisc specialists
- Learn about consultancy, leadership and professional development support
Jisc sessions - Tuesday 10 November
Business continuity and cyber preparedness
Cyber threats facing the UK education sector continue to grow in frequency, sophistication and impact.
This session will explore the current threat landscape, key strategic risks and what organisations should prepare for when a serious cyber incident occurs. The session will provide practical guidance on strengthening cyber preparedness and business continuity.
It will examine the questions senior leaders should ask their technical and security teams to gain assurance and enable a faster, more effective recovery. It will also consider upcoming regulatory and compliance changes and their potential impact on colleges over the coming years.
Attendees will leave with:
- A clearer understanding of the evolving cyber threat landscape
- Practical guidance for strengthening organisational preparedness
- Key questions to assess existing response and recovery arrangements
- An understanding of emerging regulatory and compliance requirements
- Greater confidence in assessing cyber resilience and executive assurance
Paul Knee, deputy director of sector security
Richard Jackson, head of cloud security
If you don't own your data, who will?
Many colleges are surrounded by reports, dashboards and spreadsheets, yet still struggle to answer the questions that are important. In this session, we share our journey of trying to get a grip on our data: what we expected from it, what we asked of our teams, and what we discovered about ownership, priorities and decision-making. Attendees will leave with practical questions to take back to their own college: who decides our data priorities, do we have a data strategy, and are we ready for modern data operations?
Mark Monahan, vice principal: digital and communications, BHASVIC
Andy Simm, data manager, Jisc
Who should attend
The AoC Annual Conference brings together senior leaders from across further education, including college principals, vice-principals, chairs of governors and heads of department.
Booking information
Ticket prices and booking information can be found on the AoC Annual Conference website.