2026 Annual Conference – Creating, strengthening and retaining talent on the island of Ireland: Cross-border push and pull factors

• What is the scope of the options school-leavers initially consider in terms of where they will go once they leave school, and do these include options in the other jurisdiction on the island of Ireland and/or elsewhere?
• What influences their final choice, particularly if it involves going to the other jurisdiction on the island of Ireland or elsewhere, whether that be continuing into further or higher education, vocational training, an apprenticeship or entering directly into employment?
• Does it matter to employers where school leavers go to begin their talent journey?

Just some of the questions our ‘Creating Talent’ panel will explore at the CCBC 2026 Annual Conference on Thursday 17 September in Ballymascanlon Hotel, Dundalk.

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Paddy Hannigan (Senior Lecturer for Strategy at Atlantic Technological University and Programme Manager for the North West Tertiary Education Cluster) and Damien Duffy (Chief Executive of Belfast Metropolitan College) at the 2025 Annual Conference