Details about speakers, workshops and panel members for the celebrating social work conference on 26 October.
Speakers
Julie Morgan MS
Deputy Minister for Social Services
Julie Morgan worked as a social worker and manager in South and West Glamorgan County Councils before becoming an Assistant Director at Barnardo’s. She was a councillor on South Glamorgan County Council until she was elected as MP for Cardiff North in 1997.
Julie was elected as the Assembly Member for Cardiff North in 2011. Julie was appointed Deputy Minister for Health and Social Services in 2018 and Deputy Minister for Social Services in 2021.
Delyth Lloyd Griffiths BA (Hons), CQSW, DSW, MBA
Delyth’s background is in child protection, working in local authorities.
She has held roles with Barnardo’s, Welsh Government, and was a panel member for Welsh Government’s complaints panel.
Delyth has also worked as senior lecturer at Swansea University and Bangor University, and an External Assessor at Bangor University.
Delyth currently works for Liz Saville Roberts MP for Dwyfor Meirionnydd in north Wales.
Rhoda Emlyn-Jones OBE MA social ethics, CQSW, Dip SW
Rhoda has worked in the voluntary and statutory sectors since the 1970s, helping to develop adult and children’s services, health and social care.
She was awarded Welsh Woman of the Year in 2007 for innovative contributions to effective practice and delivery. She was awarded the OBE in 2008 for services to disadvantaged families through influencing models of best practice throughout the UK.
She now works in an independently, supporting health and social care organisations throughout the UK in strategic workforce development. Her recent work includes building skills and capacity within public services to empower individuals, families, and communities.
Sarah McCarty
Director of Improvement and Development at Social Care Wales
Sarah joined Social Care Wales in 2016 and holds executive leadership for workforce development, service improvement, research, data and innovation.
Starting her career as a youth worker, Sarah has worked in a variety of statutory and voluntary organisations, supporting children’s participation and inclusion.
She has held positions in local authority policy development and service improvement and prior to her current role worked as Director for the UK partnership of social care workforce organisations.
Sarah is a Welsh language learner.
Michael Gray
Director of Social Services and Housing at Pembrokeshire County Council
Michael has a background working in the charity sector, supporting people in recovery from substance misuse and homelessness to progress back into employment, training and education. He strongly believes that at its best, strengths-based social work is transformational. It helps to supporting people to live in the place of their choice, with people they love and something to do.
Aaron Edwards
National Telecare Programme Manager for TEC Cymru
Tec Cymru is the national programme for technology enabled care in Wales, sponsored by Welsh Government.
Aaron has held several roles in the telecare sector in Wales, and now plays a key role working with the 22 council-delivered Welsh telecare services.
Aaron works with services to progress national initiatives and give dedicated support to help move services to digital platforms.
Samantha Baron
Emeritus Professor in Social Work
Samantha will take up the new position of BASW National Director (Cymru) in October.
Sam has considerable experience as a social worker having qualified nearly 40 years ago. Initially practicing within the criminal justice system in England, before working in statutory mental health services as Head of Service.
She later became Professor of Social Work at Manchester Metropolitan University and The Open University. As Professor, Sam advised the social work regulator, Whitehall and Westminster, on social work policy and practice. She’s the author of DHSC Practice Framework for Strengths-Based Practice.
Amy Davies
Senior Practitioner, Caerphilly County Borough Council
Amy qualified in 2016 and is herself a foster carer for her local authority.
Amy and her husband have fostered for 22 years, influenced by Amy’s experience of being looked after as a child and seeing a need for foster carers to specifically care for teenagers.
She’s passionate about care experienced children and trauma informed care, specifically in fostering and within schools.
Panel members
Abyd Quinn Aziz (Chair)
Programme Director of the MA in Social Work at Cardiff University
Abyd is a reader in social work at Cardiff University, and is completing a professional doctorate in social work. He previously worked in social care, management development and as a social worker for over 25 years. Abyd set up the first Family Group Conferencing projects in south Wales across local authorities and chaired child protection conferences.
He is a committee member of BASW Cymru, Race Alliance Wales steering group, a trustee with Tros Gynnal Plant and on the Islam UK Management Board. He has research interest in family group conferencing and in anti-racism. Recently he co-edited Social Work in Wales.
Rhoda Emlyn-Jones OBE MA social ethics, CQSW, Dip SW
Rhoda has worked in the voluntary and statutory sectors since the 1970s, helping to develop adult and children’s services, health and social care.
She was awarded Welsh Woman of the Year in 2007 for innovative contributions to effective practice and delivery. She was awarded the OBE in 2008 for services to disadvantaged families through influencing models of best practice throughout the UK.
She now works in an independently, supporting health and social care organisations throughout the UK in strategic workforce development. Her recent work includes building skills and capacity within public services to empower individuals, families, and communities.
Michael Gray
Director of Social Services and Housing at Pembrokeshire County Council
Michael has a background working in the charity sector, supporting people in recovery from substance misuse and homelessness to progress back into employment, training and education. He strongly believes that at its best, strengths-based social work is transformational. It helps to supporting people to live in the place of their choice, with people they love and something to do.
Jonathan Griffiths
Jonathan is the Transformation Director for Children and Adult Social Care at Welsh Government’s Social Services and Integration Department. Before this, he was Director of Social Services for Pembrokeshire County Council.
Jonathan was the president of the Association of Directors of Social Services Cymru from April 2021 to December 2022.
Jonathan has worked in social care for more than 25 years and is passionate about working collaboratively to promote independence and well-being.
Jon Day
Assistant Director for Workforce at Social Care Wales
Jon’s 30-year career in health and social care started in learning disability services in the health and voluntary sectors. He’s since held roles in education, training and human resources, and acted as an advisor to Learning Disability Wales. Jon is currently Chair of Learning Disability Wales.
Mark Roderick
Mark's been attending New Horizons day service for physical disabilities in Barry for the last eight to 10 years. He's been part of two very successful projects.
He also leads the client panel at New Horizons Day Service. The panel represents clients’ needs both in the centre and in the wider community.
Sarah Jane Waters
Sarah’s been involved in co-production of social work education in Wales for several years. She has contributed to several research projects and has a chapter discussing co-production within social work education in Social Work in Wales.
Sarah sits on the National Standing Committee for BASW Cymru, is a member of BASW Experts by Experience group. She’s also been the chair for Cardiff University’s MASW co-production group and Cardiff Metropolitan University’s undergraduate social work group.
Workshops
Developing trauma-informed approaches for supporting staff well-being
This workshop will share experiences and learning from developing trauma-informed approaches for supporting staff well-being in Powys local authority children’s services. In the session, you’ll get to share your own experiences, reflections and practice.
About the presenters
Rob Painter
Before training as a Clinical Psychologist, Rob worked in the NHS and non-statutory sector with vulnerable young people with complex needs including substance misuse, mental health issues and offending behaviour. Rob has also worked with Looked After children with complex needs and challenging behaviours, at-risk of out of county residential placements.
Rob is based in Children’s Services with a specific role to support practitioners, teams and carers around their work supporting children and families.
Claire Phillips
Claire’s 24-year career began in children and family teams. She moved into fostering for seven years and for the last thirteen years has been in adoption practice. Claire feels privileged to work in the field of Adoption and practice through a trauma informed lens.
Since being in a managerial role, Claire has been drawn to the area of traumatic stress for both service users and staff and developing strategies which respond compassionately to traumatic stress.
IFSS 13 years on Reflect and Refresh: the journey of strengths within
With a focus on the positive outcomes of IFSS and families working together, this session will include the voices of families, touch on origins of IFSS, overcoming teh challnge of change and the philosophy of truly being with someone whilst balancing statutory duties.
About the presenters
Integrated Family Support Service was created 13 years ago and is a whole approach looking at building the strengths within a family to be able to undertake the challenges of change.
The importance of peer advocacy and the social work parent relationship
PAN (Parent Advocacy Network) West Glamorgan develops individual, peer and collective advocacy for parents and their families involved in the child protection system.
The group builds bridges between parents and professionals and changes the nature of the social work conversation.
Social work and self-advocacy for adults with learning disabilities
Presented by All Wales People First
Gerraint, a person with lived experience, will interview a social worker and a person with learning disabilities about how they benefit each other, followed by a Q&A with the audience. The session will end with a fun quiz that focusses on the different types of advocacy and their benefits to social workers and the people they support.
About the presenters
All Wales People First is the umbrella body for self-advocacy groups for adults with learning disabilities in Wales. It's a preventative service with co-production at its heart. It creates innovative solutions for people with learning disabilities to have their say in decisions both individually and collectively.
Social Care Compendium of Good Practice: learning from innovation and new ways of working during the Covid-19 pandemic
ADSS Cymru was commissioned by Welsh Government to investigate innovation in social care during Covid-19. The workshop will focus on what they found, including the work achieved by practitioners, during this time.
About the presenter
Sarah is a natural and empathetic leader who strives to work with others to achieve positive change.
She has led projects for national and local government and third sector organisations in Wales. She seeks to work with people who are expert in their support so they have a voice in developing policy and improving social care and health services.
The first National Practice Framework for Children’s Services in Wales
Presented by Anthony Douglas CBE and Jonathan Griffiths, Transformation Director for Children and Adult Social Care at Welsh Government
This workshop will go through the framework, its principles and the draft standards. You’ll get a chance to comment and feedback on the work in progress.
About the presenters
Anthony Douglas CBE
Anthony Douglas was Chief Executive of Cafcass Cymru from 2004 to 2019. Under his leadership Cafcass Cymru’s Ofsted rating went from ‘inadequate’ to ‘outstanding’, and it grew to support 140,000 children a year. in 2019.
Anthony has written several books about social care. He was given the ‘outstanding contribution to social work’ award at the Social Worker of the Year Awards in 2018.
He now works across the UK and internationally on system leadership and rapid improvement programmes. He is currently developing and writing the National Practice Framework for the Welsh Government as an essential product within the overall Programme to Transform Children’s Services.
Jonathan Griffiths
Jonathan Griffiths is the Transformation Director for Children and Adult Social Care at Welsh Government’s Social Services and Integration Department. Before this, he was Director of Social Services for Pembrokeshire County Council.
Jonathan was the president of the Association of Directors of Social Services Cymru from April 2021 to December 2022.
Jonathan has worked in social care for more than 25 years and is passionate about working collaboratively to promote independence and well-being.
The Carmarthenshire Well-being Service: an inclusive approach
Delivered by practitioners from the Carmarthenshire well-being service, this workshop will focus on the story of a person with lived experience's involvement with the service.
About the presenters
This well-being service provides an inclusive approach to mental health support that uses a strength-based and preventative approach aimed at improving the resilience and mental health of adults across Llanelli and Ammanford.
It’s primarily delivered by Sian (Social Work Assistant) Josie (Social Work Assistant) and Andrew (Social Worker) and is supported by the wider social work team. Collectively, they have experience working with children, adults and families across a wide range of social care settings.
The voice of children and young people in private and public family law proceedings in Wales
Presented by Laura Scale and Beth Altman, Cafcass Cymru
This workshop will focus on private and public law family proceedings in Wales. You’ll get a chance to discuss how children's voices are heard within proceedings, and learn about problem-solving approaches to family justice.
About the presenters
Laura has been a social worker for 24 years and has always worked with children and their families in Wales.
Laura is a member of the public law working group. In her spare time she likes doing anything related to the outdoors and spends as much time as she can in the sea.
Beth Altman is Head of Operations for Cafcass Cymru Gwent and strategic lead for safeguarding and domestic abuse.
Beth has been a social worker for 23 years in the field of safeguarding children and families within statutory social work, in Wales. She joined Cafcass Cymru as a Family Court Advisor in 2009. Outside of work, Beth enjoys the outdoors, spending as much time exploring Wales as possible.
The importance of peer advocacy and the social work and parent relationship
Presented by Parent Advocacy Network
This workshop delivered by parents and social workers will cover the history of PAN and social work involvement in the network's development. This interactive session will focus on the importance of relationship based social work practice and the value of peer parental advocacy.
Planning ahead: the value of discussing death and dying in social work
Presented by Jonathan Pierce
This conversation based workshop will focus on strengths-based practice in end of life care. It will consider ethical dilemmas in social work practice and focus on having ‘difficult’ conversations about death and dying.
About the presenter
Jonathan, who works in education within Powys Teaching Health Board, qualified as a social worker in 1999 and has worked in mental health and palliative care. His areas of interest include well-being (he is a qualified coach) and palliative work involving direct service provision, supervision, coaching and education. He feels passionately about creating opportunities to develop the confidence, competence and value of conversations about dying, death and grief.
Compassionate leadership and why it matters
Bec Cicero (Social Care Wales) and Taryn Stevens will deliver a workshop which focuses on compassionate leadership, and why it matters.