School of Social and Political Science

Background

I have worked in social work in local authority services and social work education in Scotland in a variety of roles since 1983, I am a registered social worker.

Having attended the University of Strathclyde to undertake a Degree in Community Education.  I then worked with Strathclyde Regional Council until 1998 within adult carers services as a community worker, which aimed to implement the new Carers Recognition Act 1995.  

Having undertaken my practice educators award in 1997, I left the local authority social work service in 1998 to take up a place at the University of Glasgow social work initial qualifying post-graduate programme, in which I gained a P.G Dip social work. From 2000 to 2017 I worked within a large local authority in the West of Scotland, as a social worker, senior social worker and service manager within the Children and Families locality teams and the learning and development section

I also continued on a part-time basis to continue with my own professional development having successfully gained a graduate certificate in Child Welfare and Protection from the University of Dundee and an MSc. from Glasgow Caledonian University in Applied Leadership and Management.  

I regard myself as care experience and this very much sparked my interest in social work as a career, I am part of the British Journal of Social Work editorial board member and currently serve as a  member of the care experience committee within the University.    I am also a committed trade union member with a special interest in LGBT+ and identify as part of this community.

My passion for social work is entrenched in fieldwork education and an area that I have learned a great deal of and continue to contribute and lead within the social subject area.