Technicians of Place: Making Creative Ecologies Visible
London South Bank University, London, England
Wednesday, 04 November 2026 • 1:30 PM - 4:30 PM
HOST
London South Bank University, London England
HOST LOCATION
LSBU, 103 Borough Rd, London SE1 0AA
Behind every thriving studio, workshop, maker-space and learning environment are technicians whose contributions often remain unseen. They are educators. Connectors. Problem-solvers. Makers. They help students build confidence, develop identity and create a sense of belonging.
Yet their role in shaping institutional culture is rarely made visible.
This workshop invites participants to explore how technical communities create environments in which learning, creativity and belonging can flourish.
About the Workshop
Through dialogue, reflection and creative activities, we aim to surface stories, experiences and perspectives that are often overlooked but are fundamental to how our institutions function and thrive.
The workshop centres around five interconnected themes.
The Invisible Labour of Technicians
Recognising the hidden expertise, care and work that underpin learning.Technicians as Place-Makers
Exploring how technicians shape physical, social and creative spaces.Belonging and Student Development
Understanding how technician-student relationships foster confidence, growth and success.The Third Space
Examining hybrid professional identities that bridge academic and professional worlds.Looking Forward
Reimagining the Technician Role
Participants will take part in:
A facilitated round table discussion around the 5 themes
Creative reflection
Collaborative idea generation
Story-sharing and lived experience conversations
Exploration of institutional enablers and barriers to culture change
Co-creation of an artefact
The emphasis is on creating a safe and supportive space where participants can reflect openly on their experiences and perspectives.
Voices We Want to Hear:
We are interested in the experiences of:
Technical staff
Academic colleagues
Students
Academic leadership teams
Professional services colleagues
Every voice contributes to a richer understanding of how belonging, identity and culture are experienced across the institution.
Join the Conversation
Help us make visible the people, practices and places that shape student success. Together, we can explore how technicians contribute to creative ecologies, foster belonging, and enable meaningful culture change across Higher Education.
The GLAD Regional Series 2026–27: PLACE is delivered in partnership with CHEAD (Council for Higher Education in Art and Design). We gratefully acknowledge CHEAD’s support in making the series possible.Our GLAD events since 2023, have increasingly highlighted that creative education is essential civic infrastructure, not peripheral to society, but central to cultural, economic and community development. Participants have challenged deficit narratives about art and design education and emphasised how creative practice can advance equity, sustainability, collaboration and future-ready skills. In response, GLAD are doing something a little different in 2026/27!
Instead of a one-off event, GLAD will present a UK-wide series of regional half-day gatherings at HEIs. The series will create a distributed platform for exploration and co-creation under the broad theme of PLACE. By situating these conversations across the UK, the series will recognise diverse regional strengths and local contexts, elevating collective narratives that demonstrate how art schools lead through, for, and with their communities.
