This takes place at the Leicester Marriott Hotel from Friday 23 January to Sunday 25 January 2009 and Patricia Hewitt will open the business sessions on Friday afternoon by looking at “2009 and Beyond: An Economic Outlook”.

Describing himself as a diving explorer and adventure journalist, Monty Halls will close the business programme on Saturday by talking about “Getting it Right and Hideously Wrong”.

Leading speakers from the industry include Anne de Boer of the ABS Group, Jim Franklin of Ecolab, Sean Doyle of Connaught Compliance, Dr Geert Böttger of Expo and Consulting and Terry Sheldon of Tonrose.

TSA chief executive Murray Simpson will describe the association’s projects and policies. The government-backed Train to Gain programme and the recently established NVQs have given fresh impetus to training. John Shonfeld from Tibard Laundry Services and Jamie Petrie from Skillfast UK will host a special ceremony to present the “NVQ learner of the year awards”.

The conference’s social programme includes the president’s cocktail reception, followed by a gala dinner on Friday, and a more informal dinner for those staying on Saturday night.