Experience

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  Freelance

  Jul 1979 - Oct 2022

  Independent registered social worker (specialist in mental health and wellbeing)

  My professional social work registration (renewed annually) was maintained by virtue of my work in education to train suicide prevention caregivers and the action community work I undertook, often with those who are bereaved by suicide.

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  Intercept publishers

  Mar 1988 - now

  Publisher

  Publishing and marketing books in very specialist subjects. The skill is getting the flyer on the right desk!

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  Middlesbrough council

  Jan 1996 - Sept 2012

  Adult mental health project lead

  Project managed partnership arrangements during most significant growth in Mental health services ever seen. Now working to prevent people from using the crisis services he helped develop by his work in mental health prevention. project managed the largest library of free to use/download mental health self help files in the world. www.middlesbroughheartsandminds.org Now retired from Local Government so I can work towards suicide safer communities.

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  "socialreports" .... specialist advocacy, standards and consultancy

  Oct 1999 - Aug 2019

  Specialising in standards and quality for mental health, recovery and wellbeing

  Provision of advocacy and complaints resolution since 1999, including expert witness work and complex complaints resolution (including Government advisory work).

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  Self employed - professional training & coaching

  Jan 2000 - Jan 2019

  Independent mental health social work, training and consultancy

  At the forefront of the most complex issues around in Adult Social Care. From working with legal representatives to help them achieve their rights and promote recovery (including judicial review) to complex complaints resolution (including as a Government advisor). Inspiring others wherever he trains across the UK. Most all work over the past 11 years has been by networks, word of mouth and repeat business. Always person centered, which comes from many years as a sensitive but robust Independent Registered Social Worker. Proud to be a Master Trainer for LivingWorks Canada (ASIST, safeTALK and suicideTALK). 1,200,000 people have so far completed the internationally recognized courses he delivers! His own training numbers are a bit more modest than the above! Also fully accredited MHFA and Wellness Recovery Action Planning (WRAP) Facilitator Show less

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  .

  Sept 2008 - Sept 2017

  Mental health first aid facilitator (adult)

  Gold Award holder, now concentrating on suicide prevention training

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  Livingworks

  Jan 2010 - now

  Independent Trainer for LivingWorks Canada (I hold their gold award and deliver workshops directly for HQ in Calgary). The trainings help make participants more Ready Willing and Able to help someone stay safe for now from suicide. Training caregivers allows me to meet some wonderful, warm hearted people who want to save lives from suicide. I travel widely within the UK to deliver trainings.I deliver my own courses, deliver in house to organisations and work for other training organisations. I work with other high quality, passionate trainers (associates of Preventing Suicide Workshops) to ensure we can always meet the demand for evidence based, effective and cost effective trainings. I often deliver workshops with my primary school teacher wife to make our communities safer from suicide - one life saved at a time. We meet the most amazing people as we train around the UK 😁. Show less

  • Licensed trainer, ASIST and safeTALK

    Apr 2020 - now

  • ASIST (suicide first aid) LivingWorks master trainer safeTALK suicideTALK facilitator

    Jan 2010 - Feb 2025
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  Lifeline

  Jan 2019 - now

  Ask (assessing suicide in kids) workshop organiser

  Children are not small adults. So why use approaches designed for adults to help a child? The ASK Workshop is the only suicide prevention workshop that specifically addresses suicide risk in children and gives participants developmentally appropriate strategies and tools to identify young children at risk of suicide and quickly gather and organize key details needed to assess risk and inform safety planning.