ASCN UK News

What the Jean Preston Fund means to attendees

Date: 19 October 2026

The ASCN UK’s Jean Preston Fund (JPF) enables members to apply for an Education Grant which can be used towards any stoma care specialist professional educational. Members are able to apply for the Fund to support with their attendance at the Annual ASCN UK Conference.

For ASCNUK26, the JPF supported Stephanie Delaunay (IBD Specialist Nurse) and Lindsay Rainford (Colorectal Specialist Nurse) in being able to attend in Birmingham.

Stephanie shared her reflections with ASCN UK, highlighting how the opportunity to attend supported her learning, inspired her practice and reinforced the importance of patient-centred care. Her feedback demonstrates the value of the JPF in helping members access professional development opportunities that can benefit both their own practice and the patients they support:

“I would like to sincerely thank you for supporting our attendance at the ASCN UK Conference.

I found the conference extremely valuable and came away feeling both inspired and motivated in my role as a specialist nurse.

A particularly meaningful part of the conference was hearing directly from a patient about their own experience. It was a powerful reminder of how important it is to see care from the patient’s perspective and how much of an impact our communication, support and advocacy can have on someone living with a long-term condition or a stoma. Hearing their personal experience made some of the clinical discussions feel much more real and reinforced why patient-centred care is at the heart of specialist nursing.

I also really enjoyed the sessions around stoma care and nurse advocacy. The discussions about the role of nurses, having a voice within healthcare and advocating for both our patients and our profession resonated strongly with me. As a specialist nurse, I feel increasingly passionate about developing our role and being able to contribute more to improving services and patient care.

One of the presentations that particularly stayed with me was the talk involving the doctor discussing ketamine and AKA. I found it fascinating and thought-provoking, particularly because it was something quite different from the more familiar clinical topics. It reminded me of the value of attending conferences where we are exposed to different perspectives, emerging areas of practice and experiences outside our usual clinical environment.

Overall, the conference gave me an opportunity to learn, reflect and look at my own practice from a different perspective. I have come back with new ideas and a renewed motivation to continue developing my knowledge and the support I provide to my patients.

I am very grateful to the Jean Preston Fund for making it possible for me to attend. Your support has allowed me to access professional development that I can bring back into my everyday practice and share with my colleagues.

Thank you again for investing in my professional development and for giving me the opportunity to be part of such a valuable and inspiring conference.”

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