Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
1. What formats are you accepting for this year’s conference?
We are holding a hybrid conference with in-person and online presentations. We will be accepting the following:
- In-person full-paper presentation in Sheffield
- In-person lightning presentation in Sheffield
- Online full-paper presentation at the International Housing Symposium
- Online lightning presentation at the International Housing Symposium
2. What length should the presentation be?
In-person full-paper presentations should last between 15 and 20 minutes, followed by 5-10 minutes of questions..
Online full-paper presentations should last between 15 and 20 minutes, followed by 5-10 minutes of questions.
Lightning presentations should be 5 minutes, whether in-person or online, followed by 5-10 minutes of questions.
3. What is a lightning presentation?
You can choose to deliver a 5 minute talk on your work or ideas. These are ideal to showcase work in progress or condense your research and thinking down to key take-aways for policy actors
3. If I am submitting a presentation for an online session, do I need to record my presentation?
No, if your online presentation is accepted you will not need to pre-record your presentation. You will be scheduled a time in the programme to present your paper "live". We will be working to arrange presentations at suitable time across timezones to make attendance as easy as possible.
4. Do I have to present a PowerPoint, or can I propose a different format for the session
We are open to alternative presentations and proposals. We encourage you to contact us to find out if we can accommodate your idea. Please email us at [email protected]
5. When will I find out if my presentation/proposal has been accepted?
We will contact you by end of January 2026 if your presentation has been successful. You can check your application progress on the Oxford Abstracts app.
6. How can I submit an abstract/proposal?
We are using the Oxford Abstracts platform for the end-to-end management of the conference. Please submit your paper here.
You will be asked to create an account, please make sure to enter your email address correctly, as all communications around your paper and registration will come through this system.
7. Do I have to submit a full paper?
No you do not have to submit a full paper, however, we will be making it possible for you to upload a paper to your contribution. You will need to export your paper as a PDF and upload on the abstract dashboard. This will become available in Mid-March 2026. You can access this here: https://app.oxfordabstracts.com/stages/5929/submitter
8. Where is the venue of the conference?
The in-person element of the conference is taking place at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Sheffield.
9. Do I need to send my presentation in to the conference team ahead of the in-person element of the conference?
We are only a small conference team of volunteers. It is not possible to receive and upload all presentations to the laptops in the rooms ahead of the conference.
However, to maximise the experience for those attending online, we are asking that those with a presentation in Session's A, located in the Ballroom , send their presentations to us by 5pm BST on 17th April 2026 for merging into one PowerPoint file ready for presentation. You can find out which session you are presenting in on the conference programme.
If you are scheduled to present in a different workshop session (i.e. Session's B, D, E, or F), please bring your presentation in PowerPoint format on a USB drive and attend the session five minutes early to upload your presentation to the laptop.
10. Can I book discounted hotel accommodation?
We have secured a number of rooms at a discounted rate for conference delegates at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Sheffield. Please contact the hotel venue and inform them that you are a delegate. Guests can call 0114 252 6511 or email [email protected] to book in with the hotel.
Alternatively, there are a wide range of hotels available near to the conference venue.
