Our People Event 2026 celebrates achievement, inclusion and having your say
Published 18 September 2026
A packed Sheffield City Hall Ballroom came together for the Making Space Our People Event 2026, a day filled with celebration, entertainment and opportunities for people who draw on our support to share their voices and celebrate their achievements.
Taking place on 16 September during National Inclusion Week 2026, this year's event brought together people who draw on our support, colleagues and volunteers from Making Space services across the country.
We were delighted to welcome back mental health campaigner and comedian Jake Mills, founder of national charity Chasing the Stigma, who once again hosted the event and helped keep the celebrations flowing throughout the day.
The spectacular Sheffield City Hall Ballroom provided the perfect backdrop for a day dedicated to celebrating people, creating connections and making inclusion an everyday reality.
With a fantastic turnout and a brilliant atmosphere from start to finish, there was plenty to celebrate.
Full photo gallery coming soon!!
Celebrating personal growth
This year, we decided to do our awards a little differently. Rather than holding our traditional awards ceremony, we wanted to recognise the unique achievements of as many people as possible – because progress and achievement look different for everyone.
Whether it was learning a new skill, overcoming a challenge, reaching a personal goal, building confidence, trying something new or making a positive difference to others, we wanted to celebrate it.
We received 20 inspiring achievement stories about people who draw on our support, each highlighting personal growth, determination and progress over the past year.
Every person nominated received a ‘Personal Growth Award’, recognising their individual achievements and giving us the opportunity to celebrate them together.
Congratulations to all our 2026 Personal Growth Award recipients:
Darren, Dean and David from Kingshill; Chris, Ben and Katie from Silver Street; Hayder and Mark from Petherick Road; Paul and Neil from Bluebell Lane; Brian, Dawn and Paul from Primrose Court; Eugene and Michael from Preston New Road; Anne and Ian from Greengate House; James from Bracken Court; Bradley from Bright Street; and Wayne from Castlewood Court.
Among those recognised were Darren, who has overcome anxieties to become more independent, access his community, travel independently and regularly attend the gym; Bradley, whose volunteering and work as an Oliver McGowan trainer is helping him use his own experiences to educate professionals; and Eugene, who has been smoke-free for more than a year while making positive changes to his health and becoming more engaged with his community.
We also celebrated James, who has grown in confidence and independence since moving into his first tenancy and is now volunteering as he works towards his ambition of becoming a support worker; Katie, recognised for her extraordinary resilience following a life-changing health experience; and Wayne, who has overcome barriers, sustained employment for two years and become a supportive friend to others.
And if we haven't heard your story this year, we want you to know that your achievements matter too. Whatever progress you've made, challenges you've overcome or goals you've reached, we're incredibly proud of you.
The Big Conversation - having a say in the future of social care
Celebrating people's achievements was only one part of the day. Our People Event 2026 was also about making sure the voices and experiences of people who draw on our support are heard.
A major focus was our first Big Conversation event with people who draw on our support, led by Making Space Deputy CEO Phil Orton. The session created an opportunity for people to tell us what matters most to them and help shape the future of social care.
It was the first in a series of conversations and roadshows Making Space will be holding as part of the Big Conversation on Care.
During the session, groups explored 10 of the 45,000 proposals already submitted to the campaign, discussing which issues should be prioritised, what mattered most to them and whether anything important had been missed.
Their views, experiences and feedback will help shape the priorities Making Space champions through our own open letter to the Prime Minister, as well as contributing to our collective voice in the wider Big Conversation on Care.
By listening directly to people who draw on our support, we can help make sure conversations about the future of social care reflect what matters to the people who use and rely on it.
Click here to find out more about our commitment to the Big Conversation.
A ballroom celebration
Of course, it wouldn't be an Our People Event without plenty of fun.
We couldn't visit the iconic Sheffield City Hall Ballroom without doing some ballroom dancing of our own, with an energetic and interactive session combining professional performances with the chance for everyone to get involved.
Guests were also treated to afternoon tea at their tables before joining in with an ‘Elvis – One More’ Times singalong.
Throughout the day there was plenty more to discover, including a photo booth, henna artist and a sketch artist creating miniature watercolour paintings of attendees.
Our Fundraising Team were also on hand, with name the teddy and hoopla games, plus everyone receiving a free raffle ticket and the lucky winner announced at the end of the event.
A special thank you to our main sponsor, Nourish Care
We were delighted to have Nourish as the main sponsor of this year's Our People Event, generously donating £4,000 to help make the day extra special.
Thanks to their support, every person who draws on our support attending the event received a voucher to exchange at the Nourish gift stall for a gift of their choice. The gifts proved a huge hit and added another special moment to an already memorable day.
Nourish were very much part of the celebrations too. Kyle Haggis and Elisha White from Nourish joined us in Sheffield, helping out on the gift stall and getting involved in the activities and fun throughout the day.
A huge thank you to Nourish for their generous sponsorship, and to Kyle and Elisha for throwing themselves into the day and helping us create such a fantastic experience for everyone who attended.
Making Space CEO Rachel Peacock said:
Our People Event is always such a special day because it brings together people from across Making Space to celebrate what really matters – people, their achievements and their voices.
This year felt particularly special. Hearing so many stories of personal growth and seeing people recognised for achievements that mean something to them was incredibly powerful. I'm also proud that we created space for people to have their say about the future of social care through the Big Conversation.
Our ambition is to go beyond simply including people. We want to create places and communities where everyone feels that they genuinely belong, and days like this show what that can look like.
Thank you to everyone who joined us, everyone who helped make the day possible and to Nourish for their incredibly generous support. Most importantly, congratulations to everyone whose achievements we celebrated – you should be very proud.
The Our People Event 2026 was a day filled with laughter, conversation, dancing, celebration and some truly inspiring stories.
Most importantly, it was a day centred on the people who draw on our support – celebrating how far they've come while making sure their voices help shape where social care goes next.