Cross-Sector Collaboration Takes Centre Stage as 130+ Delegates Gather for County Durham Pound Conference
County Durham Pound brought together more than 130 delegates from across the public, private and voluntary sectors for its third annual social value conference, Stronger Together: Connected for Impact, at the Radisson Blu Hotel Durham on Thursday 1 October 2026.
Sponsored by national independent construction and property services company Willmott Dixon, the conference centred around three themes to tackle the challenges facing local residents through collaborative action: increasing employment support, improving local health and wellbeing, and supporting the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) sector.
Speaker sessions included Phil Pollard, Group Director of Karbon Foundation and Customer Engagement, on Creating the Conditions for Change; Val Kilner, Co-Director of Aspire Learning, Support & Wellbeing, on The Power of Volunteering; and Kate Gong, Senior Social Value Manager at Willmott Dixon, on Driving Opportunity Through Social Value. A key take away from each speaker was the need for greater collaboration to maximise social value opportunities in County Durham.
Delegates also heard from a panel discussion on workplace health, featuring Amanda Healy, Director of Public Health at Durham County Council; Liz Fisher, Deputy Chief Executive of Pioneering Care Partnership; and Jonathan Walls, Assistant Pre-Construction Project Manager at Willmott Dixon.
The day concluded with an interactive workshop to identify practical opportunities for collective action, stronger connections and lasting impact for communities across County Durham.
Debbie Howe, Social Value Officer at Durham County Council, said:
“The whole event has been a fantastic opportunity for collaboration, with people coming from right across the region to share insights and best practices for social value creation.”
Richard Carroll, Head of Procurement, Sales and Business Services at Durham County Council, said:
“County Durham faces some really tough challenges, from health inequalities to uneven economic opportunities. Only by working together and across sectors can we hope to make a real and lasting difference in the lives of residents.”
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