with ex ACAS staff, Damian Warburton and Paul Beard

About this event

with ex ACAS staff, Damian Warburton and Paul Beard

Join us for our Annual meeting, where we will reflect on the year’s achievements, share updates on branch activity, and outline priorities and plans for the year ahead.

This is an opportunity for members to hear directly from the committee, contribute to future direction, and stay connected with developments across the branch.


Following the formal proceedings, we are pleased to welcome former ACAS staff Damian Warburton and Paul Beard for an engaging and practical session on Mental health and psychological safety at work.

This event will look at what mental health is along with some of the more common reasons why people experience poor mental health at work. It will then go on to consider some of the early warning signs for employers to look out for and discuss some practical steps to enable better conversations about mental health in the workplace.

This session will provide valuable insights for HR professionals, managers, and leaders seeking to strengthen wellbeing practices, reduce conflict, and foster a culture where individuals feel safe to speak up, contribute, and perform at their best.

There will also be time for discussion and questions.


Speakers bio:

Damian Warburton is an expert in employment relations, employment law, HR practice and resolving conflict in a variety of different settings. With 30 years’ experience working for Acas in the UK and their equivalent body MIRS in the Isle of Man he has an unrivalled knowledge of the law and best practice in both jurisdictions. Damian has worked extensively with the full range of public, private and third sector employers. He has worked closely with them on both a strategic and practical level providing support, guidance, facilitation and training to find solutions to issues and support business growth.

He is an experienced manager of conflict having conciliated in thousands of Employment Tribunal claims; worked in unionised environments to resolve collective disputes; and mediated in many interpersonal disputes giving him a unique insight into the workings of the Tribunal process.

Damian is a hugely experienced trainer having designed and delivered training courses covering all aspects of employment law, employment relations and good practice ranging from technical subjects such as TUPE to more hands – on issues such as managing mental health in the workplace. Damian has also lectured at Liverpool John Moores University on workplace conflict.

Damian combines both theory and practice and is qualified to Post – Graduate level in Individual Employment Dispute Resolution as well as being a qualified trainer. He has developed and delivered accredited mediation training as well as

held the role of internal verifier within Acas which ensured educational standards were met across all learners.

Damian has a particular expertise in equality and diversity and enjoys dealing with complex disciplinary, capability and grievance cases either by providing “hand holding” support to line managers and HR or by undertaking investigations, chairing disciplinary panels or holding appeal hearings. He is a sitting Magistrate, an experienced media commentator and public speaker. Damian is available to work across the UK and internationally.

Paul Beard is the founder of Takeoff Training & Consultancy – a specialist HR/Employment Relations consultancy with expertise in employment law and complex HR cases; most of the consultants are former ACAS senior leaders/advisers. He has substantial experience in both the private and public sector. Having trained initially as a solicitor, he moved through various legal, investigation and compliance positions before studying for an MBA, qualifying as a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute and spending over 16 years working in employment relations, training and consultancy. Alongside this, he has a background in aviation and defence; in 2011 he was seconded to British Airways leading a global project. He enjoys supporting clients with a wide range of needs, but especially business strategy, legal and contractual issues, leadership and management, and complex casework (particularly workplace investigations and negotiations). He also enjoys coaching at executive level and for those with aspirations to reach the top of their organisations/industries. Paul is qualified to use both MBTI Step I and Step II psychometrics, along with a number of other models.

He has more than 15 years’ experience of working in the Channel Islands and more recently in the Isle of Man, so he has extensive knowledge of the relevant legislation and regulations. Finally, Paul is an experienced media commentator, conference speaker and conference chair. He is available to work across the UK and internationally.


Please note:

1. Reminder emails will be sent to you the day before, with a further reminder on the day of the event.

2. Photography and video production may be taking place at the event, and these images may be used in the CIPD newsletters.

3. By attending the event, you are giving your consent for your image to be used on any CIPD promotional materials.

4. As we are supplying refreshments, if you can no longer attend, please cancel your place either on Eventbrite, responding to this email.

5. This event may include an external speaker who has prepared their own presentation. Any views or opinions expressed by the speaker are their own and do not reflect those of the CIPD.

6. If you require any reasonable adjustments to enhance your experience, please get in contact with us by responding to this email and we will do our best to accommodate.