GM Moving Conference 2025

GM Moving Conference 2025

Get your Conference tickets here

Be a part of creating healthier, happier, and more active lives for all.

Building on the energy and learning from last year's conference, 2025 promises to bring even more insightful stories, practical workshops, and opportunities to connect with those driving positive change.

Together, we’ll explore innovative ways to enable active lives for all—tackling inequalities, empowering communities, and unlocking the potential of movement to transform lives. Whether you're a policymaker, practitioner, community leader, or passionate advocate, this is your chance to be part of a growing movement shaping a more active, inclusive future.

Tickets are available now. Visit the Conference Eventbrite page here to get your tickets and book your workshops.

For questions about the 2025 Conference, please email us at [email protected].

Workshops

There are several workshops that we have designed based on what you have told us you would like to explore. If you would like to join a workshop, please make your selection in the order form on Eventbrite when selecting your ticket. Be quick - these are likely to fill up fast.

Morning session (11.30am-12.30pm)

Indoor workshops: 

1. Unlocking sport's potential: Tackling inequalities and growing participation. Room: Lyric Theatre.

This workshop will explore how sport can be a powerful tool for tackling inequalities and increasing participation, particularly in under-served communities. We will discuss strategies for moving sport closer to communities, working in a place-based, collaborative way, and sharing real-life stories of success and challenges. It’s ideal for those working in sport and physical activity who are interested in promoting inclusion and diversifying participation.

2. Learning from the evidence: A business case for walkable communities and more active neighbourhoods. Room: Pier 8.

Using examples from three different spatial scales, participants will hear how data and evidence is used to make the case for investment into quality environments that support active lives, and a more prosperous, healthy and city region. We will also work how this can be applied to challenges and opportunities in your area.

3. (Youth-led) Youth Voice leadership and participation: Do we have the same priorities? Room: Lookout.

This workshop will engage young people to share their priorities and experiences in sport and physical activity, focusing on removing barriers and promoting youth leadership. Attendees will learn how to create inclusive environments and foster meaningful youth involvement.

4. Place in Action: Transforming public leisure for lasting health. Room: Compass.

This workshop will share Greater Manchester's journey in reshaping public leisure services to create a broader, more connected health creation model. We will explore the impact of this shift, explore the conditions needed for success, and look ahead at opportunities to advance public leisure and health services. It’s ideal for leisure, public health, and local authority professionals interested in the future of health-driven leisure services.

5. Storytelling: Changing lives by changing the narrative. Room: Hexagon.

Using individual experience and data, participants will explore skills in framing and telling impactful stories about movement, physical activity, and sport. Led by narrative expert Nicky Hawkins, the session will focus on creating clear, memorable stories that demonstrate change and advocate for the work being done. It’s ideal for marketing, communications professionals, and anyone looking to better communicate the impact of their work.

Outdoor workshops: 

1. Try out session: E-cycles, adapted cycles and everything in between

Come and try one of our adapted cycles - tricycles, recumbents, or e-cycles. Understand the needs and potential, and experience the difference.

2. Incorporating walking and wheeling into the working week

A one hour walking tour around Salford Quays at an easy pace, taking in the waterside views and engaging in some outdoor co-coaching. Working in pairs and threes, you’ll consider the benefits of integrating more walking and wheeling into your working week, consider what your options are, what will work best, and plan some actions.

3. Drift Bingo - An Open Space Adventure

Afternoon session (1.30pm-2.30pm) 

Indoor workshops: 

1. Shifting culture and systems to support active lives for all. Room: Lyric Theatre.

This workshop focuses on creating systems and cultures that support active lives for all. It explores community empowerment, overcoming barriers, and promoting leadership to drive change. Attendees will discuss challenges, share insights, and collaborate on solutions to remove obstacles, with a focus on system and culture transformation for better physical activity outcomes.

2. Connecting health and community-led wellbeing for stronger outcomes. Room: Compass.

Focussing on integrating community groups and the health system to improve physical activity in Greater Manchester, this workshop will highlight the Live Well initiative and successful partnerships, while discussing the challenges of creating sustainable collaboration.

3. Creating safe, inclusive spaces in sports and physical activity: Practical steps for progress. Room: Lookout.

The workshop will focus on how we amplify the importance or raise the profile of the value of investment into equitable (inclusive) environments by drawing on the evidence, influencing multiple agendas, and speaking to broad shared outcomes (Health and wellbeing, stronger communities, environmental resilience and economic prosperity). This workshop has limited capacity. 

4. Women & girls moving in GM: The art of possible. Room: Hexagon.

This workshop will explore the potential for collective action to improve the experiences of women and girls in physical activity, sport, and movement across Greater Manchester. Discussion will explore how a joined-up approach could drive positive change and better access. The session consider the challenges, share learnings from local initiatives, and reflect on what needs to be done to bring about lasting change. It’s ideal for anyone working with women and girls or those interested in influencing decision-makers and shaping inclusive, accessible opportunities for women in physical activity.

5. Place-based change: Transforming systems for a more active future. Room: Pier 8.

This workshop will explore how place-based working can create healthier, more active communities. We will reflect on the GM journey and the key factors that support systemic change. Through creative visioning exercises, attendees will identify both immediate and long-term actions to transform local environments and support physical activity. It’s ideal for anyone passionate about driving change in community health and wellbeing through collaborative, place-based efforts.

Outdoor workshops:

1. Right to Roam, Left to Wander