Dr. Gavin Swann Email and Phone Number

I qualified in 1998 starting my career in a referral and assessment where I completed an MSc in social work. I moved to Westminster CSC (2000) practising in long-term child protection before moving into management initially in a disabled children’s team in Camden and then in children in need work again in Camden becoming a team manager in 2002. During this time, I became a guest lecturer in social work at South Bank University. In 2002 I started working for UNICEF and other governmental and Non-Governmental Organisations in Eastern Europe, the Caucuses and Central Asia advancing community based social work and child protection. On returning to the UK in 2006, I started studying part-time at the Tavistock completing an MA in Child Protection and Complex Case Work in 2009 and a Professional Doctorate in Social Work and Management (May 15). My thesis was entitled; 'Breaking down Barriers; Developing an Approach to Include Fathers within Children's Social Care. From 2007 to 2013 I was employed as an Operational Manager in Islington’s Children in Need Service. My function to optimise the service, ensure the system, (of referral – assessment – investigation – intervention – planning – permanency), operated efficiently whilst developing practice by engineering a careful balance between quality assurance, rigours performance management, reflective practice and a culture of learning. Whilst in post Islington achieved the Ofsted judgement of Good in four separate inspections. In 2013 I became Head of Service for Safeguarding and Quality Assurance in the borough of Croydon. My role to drive forward good social work practice across the services, whilst also developing and implementing a strategic approach to improving safeguarding practice across the Borough and LSCB through CSC. In this role I lead on all performance related activity and also managed the LADO, the CP and IRO teams drive forward a systemic approach to practice whilst also managing the implementation of a new ICS system. I lead strategically and operationally on combating CSE, Missing, Child Trafficking, Radicalisation and Sexually Harmful Behaviours and all learning and development for CSC and the LSCB. I have recent experience of a Joint Targeted Area Inspection into CSE and Missing Children and can demonstrate my contribution to practice improvement and organisational development. In 2016 as a family we moved to the cost of Kent. In 2018 I became Integrated Service Manager for Kent County Council Children Social Work Services where I manage a district child in need and child protection service.