UK - The Association of British Theatre Technicians (ABTT) has announced the launch of the third edition of its annual proactive conference day, the ABTT Make A Difference Conference, which is committed to finding solutions to current industry issues. The 2025 conference will be held on Friday 28 March 2025 at Rose Bruford College in Sidcup.
The theme for this year’s discussion is Rethinking backstage technical teaching and apprenticeships with and for Industry.
The conference is designed to be more than simply talking. There is no passive sitting and listening at the conference and if you attend, you are to committing to taking action by sharing your thoughts and views. You will spend the day developing ideas and strategies to achieve solutions for the issues discussed.
Following the success of the 2023 conference, which covered the recruitment and retention crisis, and the 2024 event on the topic of bridging the gap between education and employment, this year’s title continues to develop many of the themes raised from the previous two conferences.
On the conference day the ABTT will be exploring three key areas:
What are the barriers and issues we face in our current training? i.e. apprenticeships, university courses, etc.
What solutions can we find to help tackle these barriers and issues?
What ideas can we explore to improve our current training offerings, OR can we think of any new ideas?
ABTT co-chair and senior lecturer at Guildford School of Acting, Mig Burgess Walsh commented: “I’m encouraged by how many great ideas and projects have already been inspired by our previous conferences, and I am hopeful and excited to see what we can come up with in 2025 to really make a difference.
“It’s a thought-provoking and brave title choice from Rose Bruford and I’m looking forward to the freedom to explore backstage training without being held back by how we currently do it. It’s also exciting to get the input from employers and industry as we look to the future of training.”
Liz Sillett, ABTT chief executive, stated: “It is fantastic to be able to present a third edition of the Make A Difference Conference. I am tremendously grateful to Rose Bruford College for partnering with the ABTT and GSA in order to deliver the Conference in 2025 and accommodate more participants than ever.
“Those who attended last year’s event reported that they had found it a beneficial and inspiring mechanism to bring about change. I very much hope that the 2025 event will help even more delegates achieve progress in continuing to develop backstage technical teaching and apprenticeships that are designed for the future of our industry.”
Nick Hunt, professor of Lighting Design and Performance Technologies at Rose Bruford College, said: “Rapid changes in the industry mean existing job roles are changing and new ones emerging. The world of training and education is also evolving.
“There has never been a greater need for industry and education to talk and work together, to ensure the industry has the workforce it needs and new professionals are confident and well prepared for their careers. The ABTT’s innovative Make a Difference format is the ideal vehicle for us to have this conversation.”
The ABTT is inviting those working in higher education and apprenticeship training along with businesses and organisations to express their interest in attending and join in with the campaign to Make A Difference.
To express you interest in attending the 2025 Conference please do so here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/6GXHBYT
