WHO'S IN THE STEERING GROUP?
Alissa Ruane
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Alissa De Luca-Ruane is a mum of three and Children and Families social worker. She is very worried by the predetermined nature of the Care Review and its failure to discuss the role of poverty in the lives of children. She doesn’t consider herself an experienced activist, but became involved with the Social Work Action Network in 2011, and discovered how important it is just to share the information and perspectives that are hidden from public view by the government. As a result she has ended up on the steering committee for the past 7 years! She would encourage anyone who is worried about this review to feel welcome and make contact with the Alliance.
Ana Olea Fernandez
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Bio coming soon…
Ana Olea Fernandez
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Bio coming soon…
Jane Collins; LLB, B.Ed QTS (Hons)
Director of Foster Support and Foster Carer
I’m a director of FosterSupport which is a not for profit organisation supporting fostering families in the UK. I studied Law at Leeds Law School and also have a second degree, a Bachelor of Education and qualified teacher status. I’m a mum to my son with cerebral palsy and my talented daughter (who built this website for us) I’m a foster carer specialising in children with additional needs. I am passionate about children’s rights and social justice.
Anna Gupta
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Bio coming soon…
Anna Gupta
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Bio coming soon…
Annabel Goddard
Post Graduate Research, Loughborough University
Annabel Goddard is currently a post graduate researcher at Loughborough University looking at the role of risk assessments in children in care social work. Prior to returning to academia Annabel worked as a specialist CSE youth worker with responsibility for children in care, missing children and as a link worker between local authority and residential care homes. Annabel is also a proud Foster carer for teenagers and offers long term therapeutic placements.
Diana Harris
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Bio coming soon…
Diana Harris
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Bio coming soon….
Caroline Bald; MSW, PE, FHEA
Lecturer in Social Work & Course Lead for MA Social Work, University of Essex; Co-Book Editor Social Work Education; & BASW Criminal Justice co-chair
Caroline Bald is lecturer who has worked in adult and youth criminal justice social work since 1999 in Glasgow and Essex. Her primary teaching and research focus is has been around social justice and social work education. Caroline’s current research interests are in public sector profession admissions, collateral consequences of criminal records and brain injury curriculum development. She is an active member of the British Association of Social Workers (BASW) currently co-chairing Criminal Justice Special Interest Group. Caroline keeps in touch with practice through volunteering as a trustee and lead board member for safeguarding. She is on the editorial board for the international journal, Social Work Education.
Donna Peach
Lecturer in Social Work and Integrated Practice & Admissions Tutor for BSc Social Work
Dr Donna Peach is a lecturer who has worked in social work since 1985 and remains optimistic about the future providing we hear the voices of children, families and those who work with them. Her research interests include adoption and child sexual exploitation. Donna’s childhood experiences of poverty anchor her passion for social justice, and experience of the impact of oppressive government policies.
Joe Hanley
Lecturer in Social Work
Joe Hanley is a lecturer in Social Work at the Open University, with an interest in social work education, social policy and continuous professional development. His current work focuses on analysing the influence of networks on driving policy and reform, and highlighting the importance of developing alternative networks of challenge. He has also written extensively on the topic of fast-track education in social work and the impact of organisations like Frontline. Joe is an active member of BASW and a member of the BASW Policy Ethics and Human Rights Committee.
Joe Hanley
Lecturer in Social Work
Joe Hanley is a lecturer in Social Work at the Open University, with an interest in social work education, social policy and continuous professional development. His current work focuses on analysing the influence of networks on driving policy and reform, and highlighting the importance of developing alternative networks of challenge. He has also written extensively on the topic of fast-track education in social work and the impact of organisations like Frontline. Joe is an active member of BASW and a member of the BASW Policy Ethics and Human Rights Committee.
Ian Gould
Ambassador for ECLCM.org
Sue Kessler; LLB
Retired Child and Education Law Solicitor; LLB, Solicitors Regulation Authority no. 431273; Law Society Children Panel accreditation up to 2015
Raised on a council estate I’ve devoted my life to supporting and improving life chances for children through my work in inner city schools via sports development, youth work and working in children’s homes for over a decade, one on one with children in crisis.
Passionate about children’s rights I qualified as a solicitor as a mature student. I have worked for many charities, at various local authorities, and for parents and children.
I formed my own law firm providing Legal Aid to children and families. Now disabled, I continue to work voluntarily with children and families and campaign vigorously for children’s rights.
Sue Kessler; LLB
Retired Child and Education Law Solicitor; LLB, Solicitors Regulation Authority no. 431273; Law Society Children Panel accreditation up to 2015
Raised on a council estate I’ve devoted my life to supporting and improving life chances for children through my work in inner city schools via sports development, youth work and working in children’s homes for over a decade, one on one with children in crisis.
Passionate about children’s rights I qualified as a solicitor as a mature student. I have worked for many charities, at various local authorities, and for parents and children.
I formed my own law firm providing Legal Aid to children and families. Now disabled, I continue to work voluntarily with children and families and campaign vigorously for children’s rights.
Nushra Mansuri
Senior Lecturer in Social Work, Coventry University
My name is Nushra Mansuri and I currently work as a senior lecturer in social work at Coventry University. I am a social worker and as a practitioner worked extensively with children and families in a variety of settings including statutory, voluntary and multi-disciplinary. My passion as a social worker was always supporting children and young people in the care system and those who left care. My last job in direct practice was in a specialist service for children in the care system which enabled me to do a lot of direct work and advocacy with children and young people, including being critical of services and trying to improve practice and working relationships between agencies to benefit children, young people and their families. I was sad to end my time as a social worker working directly with children and young people but at the same time, frustrated with different aspects of the system that created barriers. My next position provided me with greater opportunity to effect change at a strategic level: I worked for the British Association of Social Workers leading on children and families social work in England. This experience helped me to understand in much greater depth how policy is decided and the importance of representing the voices of my profession as well as working alongside children, young people and adults with lived experience through joint campaigns and shared activities which meant that we learnt things from one another and enriched our relationships. I now teach social work students and hope that I can influence the next generation of social workers to be compassionate and humane when supporting children and young people in the care system and understand their responsibilities and how they have the potential to make a difference to their lives.
Rich Moth; PhD
Lecturer, Liverpool Hope University
I am an adoptive parent and also a registered social worker. I have 15 years’ experience working in the adult social care field in statutory and voluntary sector settings including as a mental health social worker. For the last 10 years I have worked as a social work lecturer.
I have been involved as an activist alongside mental health service users/survivors in a number of campaigns to challenge austerity-related cuts to services, support and welfare over recent years. I am also an active trade unionist in UCU (and was a member of and activist in UNISON before that). I am a member of the Social Work Action Network’s (SWAN) national steering committee.
Rich Moth; PhD
Activist, Social Work Lecturer/Researcher and Adoptive Parent, Liverpool Hope University
I am an adoptive parent and also a registered social worker. I have 15 years’ experience working in the adult social care field in statutory and voluntary sector settings including as a mental health social worker. For the last 10 years I have worked as a social work lecturer.
I have been involved as an activist alongside mental health service users/survivors in a number of campaigns to challenge austerity-related cuts to services, support and welfare over recent years. I am also an active trade unionist in UCU (and was a member of and activist in UNISON before that). I am a member of the Social Work Action Network’s (SWAN) national steering committee.
Robin Sen
Co-Editor Practice: Social Work in Action; Lecturer in Social Work, University of Dundee; & Honorary Research Fellow, University of Sheffield.
Dr. Robin Sen is an active member of the British Association of Social Workers (BASW). He is a lecturer in social work at the University of Dundee and an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Sheffield. His primary teaching and research focus has been around improving the experiences of children and young people who are in, or who have left, state care. He practised as a child and family social worker in Glasgow in the 2000s, and also undertook community development work in a voluntary capacity in the city in this period. Robin continues to keep in touch with practice activities through voluntary work. Most recently he was part of the Global Steering Group for the first Care Experienced History Month, which ran in April 2021, led by Who Cares? Scotland.
Leanne Watkins-Gale; MA, MDes, PGCE
Foster Support: Principal Education Advisor
Leanne has over 15 years’ broad experience and knowledge in education policy and funding with proven success as a senior leader, reaching the position of Principal. Leanne originally started out as a teacher in the engineering and design field of Automotive Design, where her students consecutively obtained outstanding results surpassing national averages, and who are now working in prestigious employment such as Bentley, McLaren and Aston Martin.
Leanne’s expertise in managing and leading teams in the education sector is extensive and comprises of the following areas, including their corporate services and business management:
Curriculum and Quality (Inc. Timetabling)
Pastoral Support
Inclusion (Inc. SEND, Student Services and Learning Resources)
Safeguarding
Human Resources
MIS and Examinations
Marketing and Admissions
Finance and Estates
Leanne also has excellent understanding of the OFSTED Inspection Framework and was an experienced OFSTED Nominee.
Leanne proceeded from education in 2018 to become self-employed as a Specialist Foster Carer, a role that rehabilitates her local authority’s most vulnerable and challenging children. Leanne has a comprehensive understanding of National Fostering Minimum Standards (2011) and Foster Carers Charter, along with expertise in GDPR and fostering procedures and policies. She also has substantial understanding of educational law and the Department for Education’s policies, procedures and legislation surrounding Looked after Children.
Leanne joined the team at Foster Support in 2020, an organisation aimed to improve the retention of existing foster carers. Leanne helps to provide robust targeted support and advice to members, enabling and empowering foster carers to give the highest level of care to vulnerable children. Leanne’s specialist focus at Foster Support is being their Principal Education Advisor and she has secured many vulnerable children to receive the quality educational experience that they so rightly deserve, challenging Head Teachers through to Parliamentary Ministers.
June Thoburn; CBE, LittD
Emeritus Professor of Social Work
It is some years since I was a case-accountable social worker so I value remaining liked into practice and policy concerns through Care Review Watch colleagues. I can mainly offer time that busy social workers don’t have, and also as an Emeritus Professor of Social Work at UEA, links with research across the field of child and family social work and social services, and also across national boundaries. I strongly believe that in moving forward we must build on past experience and learning. I qualified as a Child Care Officer in 1963, the year of Section 1 (the ‘preventive work’ clause of the 1963 Act) and ‘family support’ has always been central to my practice. I have worked in child and family social work in England and Canada and also had a period as a ‘patch’ generalist social worker. In 1979 I took up a joint appointment as a University of East Anglia lecturer and patch social worker and after 10 years became full time at UEA, retiring in 2004. I have taught and researched across social policy, family support, child protection, adoption and fostering. I have always had an interest in helping social workers to work collaboratively with parents and children and colleagues in other professions. Along the way, I was Vice Chair of GSCC and Board member of Cafcass and until recently chair of my Local Family Justice Board as well as Trustee of a Charitable Children’s Voluntary Organisation. I’m still involved as a volunteer with a local family contact centre. I’m currently a member of BASW’s Children and Families Group and Hon Sec of Labour Social Work Group.
Nick Burke
University Teacher, University of Sheffield
Nick has been a children’s social worker, UNISON steward and Social Work Action Network member since 2007. His experiences of austerity social work have led him to argue for a radical shift in social work, away from parent blaming and towards community based family support. Having supported many burnt out colleagues as a union rep, Nick is a staunch critic of the drive towards “performance” improvement which masks the deliberate underfunding and running down of Local Authority social work. He currently works in post-adoption support in a northern Local Authority. Nick has written about the failure of neoliberal social work to respond to Covid-19 and is due to start a part time PhD in September.
Nick Burke
University Teacher, University of Sheffield
Nick has been a children’s social worker, UNISON steward and Social Work Action Network member since 2007. His experiences of austerity social work have led him to argue for a radical shift in social work, away from parent blaming and towards community based family support. Having supported many burnt out colleagues as a union rep, Nick is a staunch critic of the drive towards “performance” improvement which masks the deliberate underfunding and running down of Local Authority social work. He currently works in post-adoption support in a northern Local Authority. Nick has written about the failure of neoliberal social work to respond to Covid-19 and is due to start a part time PhD in September.
