Dr Mine Conkbayir

Dr Mine Conkbayir is an award-winning author, trainer and researcher. She is the winner of the Nursery Management Today (NMT) Top 5 Most Inspirational People in Childcare Award.

Mine is passionate about bridging the knowledge gap between neuroscience and Early Years. She has designed the new Cache Neuroscience in Early Years qualifications and accompanying textbooks as part of this endeavour. She is the founder of the award-winning Cache Endorsed Learning Programme, Applying Neuroscience to Early Intervention and the two times award-winning online training programme, Self-regulation in Early Years. She is also the designer of the two times award-winning free self-regulation app, the Keep Your Cool Toolbox and has contributed to the development of the Birth to Five Matters non-statutory guidance for the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), on the subjects of self-regulation and co-regulation. The second edition of her latest award-winning book, Early Childhood and Neuroscience: Theory, Research and Implications for Practice, will be available this November.

Mine is a frequent public speaker, speaking at the Ofsted Big Conversation, delivering training on behalf of local authorities and fostering organisations as well as various Early Years providers. Mine has also hosted three sell-out talks with Funzing on the subject of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and the long-term impact of trauma.

Dr Sue Allingham

Sue’s expertise and passion for teaching and learning in the Early Years started with her classroom experience and Senior Lead role as Early Years Co-ordinator and Lead Teacher for her Local Authority. Moving into research, Sue gained an MA followed by a Doctorate, both in Early Years Education from Sheffield University. Her career then developed from being a Lead Teacher to Local Authority Adviser.  Sue is now an Independent Consultant, Author and Trainer.

Research also informs the articles she writes regularly for Early Years Educator magazine where she is now the Consultant Editor.

Her writing has gained Sue a commission from Practical Preschool Publications to write Transitions in the Early Years which is now in second edition. Her latest book, Emotional Literacy in the Early Years, is out now.

Ursula Krystek-Walton 

Ursula Krystek-Walton is Head of Early Years at Thrive Education, which has 38 nurseries across Scotland and England. Ursula has worked in the Early Years sector for over 20 years, in a variety of roles starting as a modern apprentice. Ursula has a first-class degree in Childhood Studies and is currently reading for a Master’s in Children’s Rights. In 2018, Ursula completed Dr Mine Conkbayir’s Neuroscience and Self-Regulation courses and since then has been working hard along with her teams to embed knowledge and understanding in these two areas across all Thrive Settings. Ursula has been pivotal in transforming policy and practice across Thrive all Thrive settings, ensuring these are embedded in the theory of self-regulation.

Ursula believes that understanding the neuroscience of early brain development is fundamental to getting our practice right in the early years, to give all children the best possible start in life.

Dr Janet Rose

Dr Janet Rose is currently Principal of Norland College, a specialist early years college, and is a former Reader in Education and Associate Professor at Bath Spa University.

She initially trained as a primary teacher and early years specialist and has worked in a range of schools and early years settings both in England and abroad. She has a particular interest in applying neuroscientific research into practice and was Project Leader of a national research project called Attachment Aware Schools and Settings which was a comprehensive programme of support for children affected by early attachment difficulties, trauma and neglect, and incorporated evidence-based strategies for supporting children’s behaviour and wellbeing based on recent neuroscientific research. Emotion Coaching was one of these key strategies and Janet has developed several research projects on the use of Emotion Coaching in schools and early years settings to support children’s mental health. She is the co-founder of Emotion Coaching UK and has led training for a number of Local Authorities and professional organisations in the UK. She has also worked with various government organisations and has presented her research at the House of Lords and the House of Commons. She has written numerous publications on topics related to the application of neuroscientific findings, one of the most recent being a book on Health and Well-being in Early Childhood which outlines some of the neuroscientific research that sheds light on how young children develop resilience and how practitioners can support children’s mental health and wellbeing. She is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, a Level 1 Theraplay Practitioner and a Level 1 Sensory Attachment Intervention Practitioner.

Wendy Ratcliff

Wendy Ratcliff is Her Majesty’s Inspector and Principal Officer for Early Education Policy at Ofsted.

Originally qualified as an early years practitioner, Wendy has extensive experience of inspection and regulation across a full range of early years provisions, including schools. Her role as Principal Officer for early education in Ofsted’s education policy team is focused on the inspection of early education curriculum, including through the education inspection framework (EIF) and any changes for the future.