In
more detail:
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Joan
Maughan Chief Executive |
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Joan has worked
to support people with learning disabilities for over
20 years in social services, health and the voluntary
sector. Originally trained as a teacher and subsequently
as a social worker she holds a B.Ed (Hons), an MA in Social
Policy and CQSW.
Over her career, Joan has worked in both direct practice
and in developing and managing services. She has had a
long association with the NDT, initially as an Associate
Consultant and joined the agency in 1996 to develop children
and family work. |
In 2000 Joan
was appointed as Chief Executive, after a year of Co-Directorship
with Simon Whitehead, a current Associate Consultant and
former Deputy Director of the NDT.
Joan takes a lead within the agency on service and organisational
development, leadership and policy development. She is
particularly interested in the needs of young people as
they approach adulthood, people labelled as ‘challenging’
and those people with learning disability who have additional
mental health needs. |
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Peter
Bates, Senior Consultant, Mental Health |
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Peter Bates
has been with the National Development Team since 1999,
leading the work with mental health services, mostly around
the theme of social inclusion. He previously worked in
probation, the employment service, social services, the
NHS and audit. Recent work has been undertaken for the
National Social Inclusion Programme, Scottish Executive,
Valuing People Support Team and many local services. |
Peter has published
in the areas ofemployment, disability, empowerment and
inclusion (see publication
list) and is in constant demand as a lively and effective
trainer. |
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Andrew
Bright, Director of Participation |
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| Andrew's
previous work included a period with London People First.
He later joined the staff of Values Into Action for a
year, providing training on Direct Payments. Before joining
the NDT he was an established independent consultant,
with a particular interest in Direct Payments. |
Andrew's
work covers a variety of projects, including training
on person-centred planning and Direct Payments, but his
special role within the NDT is to encourage councils and
service agencies to let people with learning disabilities
take an active part in the services they provide, in planning
and delivery. |
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Steve
Dowson, Director of Development |
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Steve Dowson
is a member of the consultant team, but his work also
includes promoting the NDT itself - for example through
this Web site and the marketing materials you'll find
here. He has been involved in services for people with
learning difficulties for many years, including seven
as national director of Values Into Action.
Many of Steve's past projects, and publications over the
years, have explored the way in which the culture and
structure of services affect the self-determination of
the people who use services. He has had a special interest,
for more than 15 years, in the Individualised Funding
and Support brokerage model, as originally developed in
Canada. For the six years prior to joining the NDT he
worked as an international consultant providing training
and consultancy Canada, the USA, and Australia. |
His work included organising the programme for the
First International Conference on Self-Determination
and Individualised Funding, held in Seattle
in 2000; support, over three years, to the development
of the Individualised
Funding project in San Diego, California, and a
review of global innovations in disability policy to
assist Canadian policy development. As a result of this
work Steve is known internationally as one of the leaders
in the development of the IF model.
The expertise from this work is now being used to develop
the Life Planning
projects in Brent and North Somerset.
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Steve
Easter, Associate Consultant |
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Steve has
been involved with services for children and young people
for over 30 years. His experience includes:
•Direct work with disabled and disadvantaged children,
young people and their families.
•Development and leadership of new services.
•Strategic leadership, corporate planning and change
management.
• Project management of dispersed and complex initiatives.
• Building partnerships across sector with significant
funding.
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• Developing networks that strengthen
policy and practice influence.
• Consulting with disabled children, young people,
self-advocates and family carers.Steve has gained this
range of experience through his involvement as a social
worker, volunteer, project leader and grant fundraiser,
as a regional manager developing community projects,
and as a family carer for a young man with complex disabilities.
In addition, Steve has taken a lead
role in the Transition
Information Network.
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Paula
Edmondson, Associate Consultant |
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Paula has
a wide career experience that includes:
• RNMH qualification and experience
• Nurse Tutor (RNT) qualification and experience
• Project development and management within local
community settings, the national policy context and the
European arena.
• National and international training, consultancy
and research across mental health and learning disability
services - including communication, organisational change
and development and practical issues relating to the involvement
and participation of people who use services and their
families, friends and carers. This includes particular
work with people to ensure their inclusion into service
evaluation and quality assurance.
• Involvement in the initial development of a national
voluntary sector organisation
• The development and implementation of a number
of courses designed to promote positive approaches to
working with people who have labels of challenging behaviour.
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• Graduation as a Partner in Policymaking
leading to the development of local, sustainable support
initiatives.
• Supporting accessible communication methods and
approaches – particularly in relation to helping
people to be key players in their own meetings.
• Contribution to the Changing Minds Project (MIND)
• National training/consultancy in person-centred
approaches – planning and service development
• Person-centred planning facilitation, particularly
in relation to individualised service design and support
Paula lives in the South-West of England.
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Bill
Love, Development Partnership Director |
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George Sapiets, Associate Consultant
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| George Sapiets
has been working with services for people who have learning
disabilities for over 25 years, including special education,
residential and day services as well as community teams.
He has been involved in the closure of a number of long-stay
hospitals in London and the South East and in developing
alternative ways to support people who have learning disabilities
to have a meaningful life in the community. George has
a background in social work and training and has management
experience at a senior level as well as working directly
in a support role. He gave up work for a number of years
in order to support a disabled relative. |
George has a particular interest in
exploring the personal values and principles that challenge
traditional models of providing large-scale services
and has considerable experience in service evaluation.
He is currently working closely with other members of
the NDT around how to develop person-centred approaches
more effectively within organisations.
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Joanne
Seddon, Associate Mental Health Consultant Trainer |
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Jo has been
working in the voluntary sector in a range of different
mental health services and settings across Merseyside
since 1983. Her experience includes service development
and working in and managing day services and supported
accommodation.
Jo pioneered, managed and developed the widely acclaimed
Mainstream service at Imagine and appeared on the front
cover of the Social Exclusion Unit’s report Mental
Health and Social Exclusion, where Mainstream was cited
as a model of good practice in promoting Community Participation.
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After leading this local development,
she took the project beyond the North West of England
by
• Working part-time as an affiliate of the National
Social Inclusion Programme
• Working closely with the national lead for Day
Service Modernisation
• Representing Imagine as it bid for and won a
development contract to provide the Mainstream approach
in London.
Jo has experience of developing new projects, inspiring
and leading teams and has delivered presentations and
workshops at national and local conferences on social
inclusion and Community Bridge-Building.
She brings her passion, confidence and belief in the
achievement of social inclusion in the area of mental
health to the NDT.
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Julia
Cowie
Programme Manager, Scotland |
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Julia Cowie leads
development partnerships in quality and is working with
self-advocates in a number of areas across Scotland.
Julia works with 2 participation advisers on ‘Safe
and Active’ a Community Funded project that offers
assertiveness training, tailored to meet the participants
requirements for community safety, self-advocacy or
music and video work. She also works with volunteer
supporters to a network of self-advocacy meetings.
Julia is Scottish development
worker for Values into Action, for whom she is currently
doing some research into information giving on medicine;
and she works for Quality Network, for
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whom she is working
on ‘Involving People Properly’ – investigating
ways of involving self-advocates in reviews and planning
meetings.
Having been Learning Disability Strategy Manager in
Lanarkshire and Grampian, she is experienced in inclusive
strategy development. She has also facilitated participative
research, stakeholder events and workshops with parents,
staff and self-advocates. Julia has more that 20 years
experience of work in the public sector as a planner,
researcher, programme manager and commissioner; working
in planning, housing, social work, joint working and
health.
She lives in Glasgow with her daughter.
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Wendy
Silberman, Associate Consultant |
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Wendy Silberman
was born and raised in the USA, but has lived and worked
in England since 1978. She has an honours degree in
psychology, post-graduate certificate in Social Work
and over 30 years of experience working and managing
services in Health, Social Care and the Voluntary Sector.
For the past six years, Wendy has been self-employed
as a Management Consultant in Mental Health and Forensic
Services, having worked in those settings since 1990.
She has also worked for the NHS Executive in the policy
development unit and managed the country’s only
Healthy Living Centre for adults with Learning Disabilities
to support their social inclusion.
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Wendy was a Non-Executive Director
of an acute teaching medical hospital in Nottingham.
She is a co-founder of an independent training and consultancy
partnership called Integritas, applying integrity, experience
and learning in partnership with others; specialising
in risk management and the interface between the Criminal
Justice and Health and Social care systems for offenders.
Wendy joined the NDT to lead on the Tough Times project,
raising the profile of adults with learning disabilities
stuck in the secure care system. She believes passionately
in supporting people in the least restrictive environment,
and aspires to support communities to build the skills
and services required to enable people with forensic
histories or ‘severe reputations’ to be supported
at home.
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Peter
Gilbert, Associate Consultant |
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In the field
of Mental Health, Peter practised under the 1959 Mental
Health Act, and also had experience in working in one
of the old long stay hospitals. He managed services for
people with Mental Health needs in Kent in the late 80’s
and early 90’s, and was very involved in partnership
working in Mental Health Services in both Staffordshire
as Director of Operations, and Worcestershire as Director.
Since retiring from Local Government in April 2001, Peter
has been a Core Group Member, helping to set up the National
Institute for Mental Health in England. He has also been
Senior Adviser on Social Care for the Sainsbury Centre
for Mental Health. |
He is NIMHE/SCIE Fellow in Social Care (Policy and
Practice), and NIMHE Project Lead on Spirituality and
Mental Health.
A Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Sussex
and Honorary Research Associate with Staffordshire University,
Peter has recently co-authored a Pack on Supervision
and Leadership with Professor Neil Thompson, and runs
regular workshops at Worth Abbey, in Sussex, on Spirituality
in the Workplace. In June 2003 Peter published The Value
of Everything: Social Work and Its Importance in Mental
Health , with Russell House Publishing .
Peter's full CV can be downloaded here.
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| Administration staff in
the main national office, Ipswich - |
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| Staff
in the finance office, Bury - |
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 Andrea
Halden
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 Gary
Nield
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