Conference Agenda 

08:30: Registration, Tea/Coffee, Networking & Exhibition Stands.

09:30: Opening Remarks – Victoria Stevenson, Headway Lincolnshire Chair of Trustees

09:35: Sponsors' Foreword - Ewan Bain, Senior Associate, Sinton’s LLP

09:45: Tony and Nikki Strong, Husband and Wife 

Topic: Finding a Voice after Brain Injury 

Tony and Nikki provide a unique perspective of a brain injury survivor and their primary carer. Their lives were changed forever following Tony’s 37-foot fall from a warehouse roof space. While the physical trauma was immediate, the subsequent challenges to Tony's mental health proved equally demanding, highlighting a gap in brain injury crisis support. Facing significant barriers to accessing appropriate psychiatric care, they were forced to navigate a complex system. This firsthand experience empowered them to become vocal in helping others. 

10:15: Tanya Gibbons – Physiology Module Leader, Centre for Nutrition Education & Lifestyle Management 

Topic: Nutrition after Brain Injury 

Nutrition plays a crucial but often overlooked role in life after a brain injury. This session explores how food choices can influence energy, mood, cognition, and overall recovery, while acknowledging the very real challenges survivors face—from fatigue and memory issues to changes in appetite and motivation. Rather than promoting perfection, the talk focuses on practical, achievable strategies that help people nourish themselves with confidence. Participants will gain a clearer understanding of how nutrition supports brain health and leave with simple tools they can adapt to their own circumstances, making healthy eating feel more accessible and empowering.

10:45: Break, Tea/Coffee, Networking, and Exhibition Stands.

11:15: Samantha Herrick, Neurodiversity Support Manager, HMP Lincoln. 

Topic: Brain Injury and The Criminal Justice System 

This talk will outline the evolving role of Neurodiversity Support Managers (NSMs) in public prisons, a role introduced to ensure that neurodivergent individuals receive appropriate care and advocacy. At HMP Lincoln, this includes screening for cognitive impairments, coordinating with healthcare and education teams, implementing personalised support plans and how targeted interventions can improve outcomes for individuals with brain injuries, both during their sentence and upon release.

Sam will also give a lived experience of a gentleman that she has supported since he arrived at HMP Lincoln – there will be dialogue that will discuss how this affected him, support given, how he has developed strategies and coping skills, how this has impacted on his recovery, confidence and self-esteem.

11:45: William Knight, Brain Injury Survivor 

Topic: Missing Neurons 

After acquiring a brain injury at the age of nine, William experienced a number of significant losses. He missed out on friendships, parts of his education, important events and experiences, time with his family, and many of the memories that shaped his early life. These gaps have had a lasting impact, and they form an important part of Williams story.

At the same time, William's brain injury has also given him things he never expected. He's gained resilience, persistence, a completely new perspective on how to approach life, and a much deeper sense of acceptance. These strengths continue to shape who he is and how he moves forward.

12:15: Dr Vicki Williams, Consultant in Rehabilitation Medicine, Active Care Group. 

Topic: When Hope Steps In: Transforming a Palliative Prognosis into Possibility 

Dr Vicki Williams shares the extraordinary journey of a patient whose life changed in an instant after a devastating motorbike accident. Initially placed on palliative care and expected not to survive, his family were urged to say their goodbyes.  

Refusing to give up on his potential, Dr Williams fought for a second look — and for a second chance. Her intervention led to his transfer to Ashby Ward at Lincoln County Hospital, where specialist rehabilitation began to unlock possibilities, no one thought remained.  

Today, that same patient is not only alive, but thriving. His story is a testament to hope, expert rehabilitation, and the power of believing in recovery even when the odds seem impossible

12:45: Lunch, Networking & Exhibition Stands

13:45: Sponsors Foreword – Alex Demetrious – Seymour, CEO and Clare Harrison, COO - The Brain Injury Group 

13:55: Lucy Dawson, Disability Advocate, Content Creator and Brain Injury Survivor. 

Topic: The Cost of Being Dismissed: When Brain Disease Is Mistaken for Mental Illness 

Lucy will share her personal experience of developing a rare autoimmune brain disease that led to her being sectioned for three months after it was initially dismissed as a mental health condition. As her neurological symptoms worsened, including seizures, hallucinations, cognitive decline and loss of mobility, they were repeatedly attributed to psychological illness without physical investigation.

Lucy will explore the impact of delayed diagnosis, the lack of joined up understanding between neurological and psychiatric care, and how simple early testing could have dramatically changed her outcome. Her talk highlights the real-life consequences of missed links within healthcare and the importance of listening to patients.

14:25: Patrick Limb KC, Ropewalk Chambers. 

Topic: Minding the Gaps in Subtle Brain Injury  

This talk addresses subtleties of definition, the primary markers assessed in SBI litigation, the tension between classification and outcomes,  timelines and how they fall to be assessed, horizon-scanning to what extent neuroradiology helps, why subtle cognitive deficits have variable effects, the role of medico-legal experts, differences between adult and child cases (and meeting particular challenges posed by the latter)

14:55 - 15:25 -  Break, Tea/Coffee, Networking, and Exhibition Stands.

15:25: Dr Salwa Ahmed – Rehabilitation Consultant, United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust 

Topic: Impact of Traumatic Brain Injury on Pituitary Function 

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is increasingly recognised as a major contributor to neuroendocrine dysfunction, with damage to the hypothalamic–pituitary axis occurring in both the acute and chronic phases. Post‑traumatic hypopituitarism often presents subtly and may not emerge until months or years after the initial injury. Even individuals with mild TBI remain at risk of developing anterior pituitary hormone deficiencies, which can be easily misattributed to the wider effects of brain injury.

When unrecognised or untreated, these hormonal disturbances can worsen fatigue, cognitive difficulties, mood changes, and overall morbidity, limiting rehabilitation potential and long‑term outcomes. Early identification, appropriate screening pathways, and timely hormone replacement therapy are therefore essential components of comprehensive, person‑centred TBI care. Dr Ahmed’s session will explore the mechanisms, clinical presentation, and management of post‑traumatic pituitary dysfunction, highlighting this often overlooked “missing link” in brain injury recovery.

15:55: Colin Morris, Director of Communications – Headway the Brain Injury Association

Topic: Isolation after Brain Injury – Causes and Connection.

Headway’s Action for Brain Injury (ABI) Week 2026 focuses on isolation and loneliness—common, often hidden consequences of brain injury. This session shares insights from the UK wide survey of survivors and carers, exploring why isolation can take hold and what helps people reconnect.

16:25: Closing Remarks – John Knight, Trustee of Headway Lincolnshire, and Senior Director at Ringrose Law.