A Message from the Facilitator And Organisers - SoCraTesUK/socrates-uk GitHub Wiki

This message was sent by email to attendees on the 8 May 2025. We had trouble in the past where many people found it had been flagged as spam because of the large number of links. It is included here to ensure all participants have access to the information included.

Dear [name],

Welcome to SoCraTes UK 2025! We are very excited to hold this event once again. We are gathering Thu 29th May to Sun 1st June at Milton Hill House, Steventon, Abingdon, Oxford, OX13 6AF England, United Kingdom.

⚠️ If you are coming from outside the UK, the government has introduced an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) that applies, amongst other people, to EU citizens. Check the guidance. We've also made a wiki page to share experiences applying.

The thing that makes the SoCraTes events special is all of us - the sessions and conversations that we take part in all contribute to the magic of the event. Now might be a good time to think of any lightning talks you might be able to give (they can be super informal, without slides and all!), sessions you could run or would like to see happen.

We also would like to make the event work for you: tell us about your dietary and other needs via the participant preference form 📝. Please fill it in by Tue 13th May so we have time to adjust.

We will have kits with masks and COVID tests available on arrival (one for each day you are at the event).

You will be able to access your room at the venue from 3pm on Thursday. If you arrive earlier in the day, there are public areas where you can start meeting other participants. A few organisers will be there from the morning.

The open space will start informally at 6pm on Thursday with a chance to meet fellow participants and start sharing ideas for the event. We hope you will be able to join us for this session, but don’t worry if you will still be travelling at this time as all the important information will be shared on Friday morning.

The open space will officially open at 9.15am on Friday, and will run from 9.15am to 7.15pm on both Friday and Saturday. Each day will start with the Marketplace, where we will collaborate to draw up the timetable for the day, and we will end each day with a chance to reflect on what we’ve learnt over the day and a mini retro.

We’ll keep the evenings free for social activities, so feel free to bring cards, games and anything else you’d like to make use of during this time. There is a pool at the venue!

Checkout on Sunday (for the venue) will be at 11am. The conference goes on until lunchtime. Lunch is included. There are often informal activities in the morning (conversations, walks, etc) or more sessions! There will be a locked room to store your luggage.

We have more details available in our Attending SoCraTes UK guide, which includes how to get involved ahead of the event (tl;dr whoami, session incubation and arrivals).

We are grateful to our sponsor cyber-dojo for their support. You will be able to find out more about them in our sponsors’ corner during the event.

A reminder that all attendance is subject to your agreement with our code of conduct and terms and conditions.

We look forward to spending time with you soon! In the meantime, we’re here if you have any questions: reply to this email or use one of our contact methods. The fastest response time is probably the #ev_socratesuk channel on the Software Crafters Slack.

Kindest regards, The Facilitator Matthew and The Organisers Amélie, Chris, Ian and Alex