The Secure Start® Podcast

Welcome to the Secure Start Podcast. I am Colby Pearce, and joining me for this episode is a respected former leader in residential and therapeutic foster care in the UK. I say “former”, because he is now retired, and has been for the past ten years. Nevertheless, I could not pass up this opportunity to talk with him and anticipate that listeners will enjoy our conversation to.

Before I introduce my guest, I would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land I am meeting on, the Kaurna people, and the continuing connection they and other aboriginal people feel to land, waters, culture, and community. I would also like to pay my respects to their elders past, present, and emerging.

My guest this episode is John Whitwell . . .

John’s Bio

John was formerly a UKCP registered Psychotherapist and a full member of the British Psychotherapy Foundation (BPF).

John was also the Chair of Trustees of the Gloucestershire Counselling Service and Trustee of the Planned Environment Therapy Trust and the Mulberry Bush Organisation.

Between 1985 and 1999 John was the Principal of the Cotswold Community a pioneering therapeutic community for emotionally unintegrated boys.

Thereafter, between 1999 and 2014 John was the Managing Director of Integrated Services Programme (ISP), the first therapeutic foster care programme in the UK.

I am very much interested in John’s views from working across these different types of out of home care. I hope you will enjoy our conversation too.

John's Website: https://www.johnwhitwell.co.uk/

Welcome to the Secure Start Podcast. I am Colby Pearce, and joining me for this episode is a highly respected practitioner in my home jurisdiction.
Before I introduce my guest, I would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land we are meeting on, the Kaurna people, and the continuing connection they and other aboriginal people feel to land, waters, culture, and community. I would also like to pay my respects to their elders past, present, and emerging.
My guest this episode is Sally Rhodes . . .
Sally has a Master of Social Work, and a Graduate Diploma in Family Therapy.
Sally, commenced working in residential care in 1985, then followed her passion for strengthening families through working intensively in family preservation services.
In 2004 Sally established Connecting Families, a therapeutic Reunification and Family Preservation service, which has grown to 17 practitioners.
Sally is trained in Narrative Therapy, Marte Meo, Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy, the Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics ,and Signs of Safety.
Sally was awarded a Churchill Fellowship to work in the UK with the Resolutions Approach - Working with Denied Child Abuse.
Connecting Families is now the largest Reunification Service is South Australia and, together the team has safely reunified over 1200 children, and prevented the removal of many more. In Connecting Families, Sally has selected practitioners who share her commitment to social justice and human rights, and ethically driven practice.
Sally provides training and consultation to Government and Non-Government organisations and remains a strong advocate for vulnerable families. Sally has been integral in leading the development of a Partnering for Safety approach to child protection through training and consulting, and is passionate about family led decision making and bringing the child’s voice into child protection work.
I hope you enjoy our conversation.

Welcome to the Secure Start Podcast. I am Colby Pearce, and joining me for this episode is a respected member of the child protection and social care community in Ireland.

Before I introduce my guest, I would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land I am meeting on, the Kaurna people, and the continuing connection they and all aboriginal people feel to land, waters, culture, and community. I would also like to pay my respects to their elders past, present, and emerging.

My guest this episode is Dr Nicola O’Sullivan . . .

Nicola’s Bio

Nicola is a Lecturer, Clinical Supervisor and Social Care Consultant, and has worked with children and families in community and residential settings for 24 years.

Nicola’s work has included overseeing the provision of residential and community-based services to children and families involved in child protective services.

Nicola also works intensively with foster carers to support their provision of care to children and young people.

Over a five-year period Nicola studied at the Tavistock and Portman Trust NHS, London. There she completed a Professional Doctorate in Social Care and Emotional Wellbeing.

Nicola completed post graduate training in clinical supervision in 2021 at Dublin City University (DCU). She provides therapeutic support to Sexual Assault Unit Teams across Ireland in the form of professional therapeutic reflective practice spaces to frontline practitioners.

Nicola consults to senior managers in organisations nationally and internationally, and provides individual and group supervision to social workers, social care workers, forensic teams, and frontline workers at all levels in community and hospital settings. Nicola works clinically in frontline practice with foster families.

Nicola has a special interest in wellbeing, racism, and emotional and relational health in health and social care settings. Nicola is a visiting lecturer at Trinity College Dublin, Munster Technological University Cork, and the Tavistock and Portman NHS foundation Trust.

In this episode we discuss supervision in social work and social care settings.

We hope you like our conversation.