I want to affect change – Solution Focused talking in all social work

Luke Goldie-McSorley is a passionate and proud Social Worker in the DBIT service in Essex Children’s Social care. Nearing 10 years as a Social Worker working in Solution Focused (SF) Edge of care & Emotional wellbeing work, with some of the most high risk, strained, oppressed, unsafe and challenging families and circumstances. The success of Luke’s work and the incredible work of his colleagues in the DBIT service in Essex has led to the point of inspiring the small steps of SF revolution in Social Work practice. With the benefit of extensive time with BRIEF and Elliott Connie over the last 10 years, Luke has gone on to love SF in practice every day with children, young people, adults, families and in supervision. Over time Luke has been fortunate to have contributed to published SF pieces including ‘The Solution Focused Approach with Children and Young People: Current Thinking and Practice’ and well as blogs and a DBIT Blog Book in print. He currently produces weekly SF video content on twitter (@SFBTEssex) consistently, with over 170 videos. Luke has a passion for teaching and supporting the development of practitioners within Essex social care and externally to partners and other organisations as part of the Essex Solution Focused Centre.

Anne Manning qualified as a Social Worker in 2006 and has since worked at Essex County Council in the Children and Families Service.  Anne’s first role as a social worker was in a Family Centre setting.  Anne took a Senior Practitioner role in the Family Group Conference (FGC) Service in 2009, and for the last eleven years has been a Team Manager in the Divisional Based Intervention Team (DBIT).  Within her time in DBIT, Anne has Managed an Edge of Care Team, and took a project lead role in establishing a Connecting and Uniting Team, An Emotional Wellbeing Team, and now is Managing and developing the Essex Solution Focused Centre Training Service.  

Anne is a Practice Educator and has a Level 3 Award in Education and Training. Anne was trained in the Solution Focused Approach with BRIEF and has completed the Advanced Certificate in Solution Focused Practice with the Essex Solution Focused Centre.  Anne’s passion is to provide the best support to clients that Essex Social Care work with through ensuring the professionals who serve them reach their potential in their own development and skills and are able to put this into practice.

Allegra has over 25 years of experience in the social service, public health, and mental health fields working in a variety of contexts both statutory and voluntary. She is originally from the USA where she obtained a BA in Clinical Psychology (1996) and Masters in Social work (2004), and has been living and working as a social worker in the United Kingdom since 2009.  Whilst in the UK she completed a Diploma in Solution Focused Practice at BRIEF, an Adult Teacher/Trainer Credential, and is also a qualified Practice Educator for social work students and newly qualified social workers.

Over the past 10 plus years Allegra has been working in various teams within the DBIT Service, a therapeutic Solution Focused intervention Service within Essex County Council Social Care.   In her current roles she is responsible for staff development and training, including planning and delivering solution focused training for internal and external teams and organisations, whilst also providing direct Solution Focused Emotional Wellbeing support for young people open to children’s social care and for parents of children with significant disabilities.

Greg has been a Social Worker since 2006. He has worked in a Leaving Care team as a Social Worker, Senior Practitioner and a Team Manager. Greg has also worked as part of Essex’s front door triaging referrals into Social Care and for the last ten years, he has worked with the D-BIT Service helping to keep families together using the Solution Focused approach. Greg’s passion and enthusiasm for the SF approach has led him to being part of the Essex Solution Focused Centre focusing on supporting others to learn and develop their own use of SF practice. Greg is a published author, and is the co-lead for Solution Focused Accreditation with the United Kingdom Association for Solution Focused Practice (UKASFP).