Consultancy and Research

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Helping organisations see their services through the eyes of the child.

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I work alongside organisations to understand, improve and shape services that truly meet the needs of children and young people.

Drawing on both lived experience and professional expertise, I help teams notice what children are communicating beneath their behaviour, uncover the blind spots that systems can easily miss, and turn those insights into meaningful improvements in practice.

I believe that the smallest details often reveal the biggest opportunities for change. My passion is making the invisible visible, helping organisations see behaviour as a form of communication and ensuring children's experiences shape the services designed to support them.

Below are some of the consultancy services I offer. If you'd like to explore how we could work together, please complete the enquiry form and I'll be in touch as soon as possible.

Why Work With Sam?

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Experience of foster care, residential care, multiple placements, transitions and leaving care.

20 years in the care system

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Worked directly with children, families and professionals, translating trauma-informed practice into everyday education.

8 years as a primary school teacher

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Connected to a growing professional community

Through Lessons From The Care System™, regularly engages with an audience of more than 31,000 people, providing ongoing insight into the questions, challenges and experiences shaping practice today.

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Consultancy and Research Options

Reviewing impact

I review documents, language and materials to ensure they reflect the child's experience.

  • Policies and procedures

  • Children’s guides and welcome packs

  • Assessment, referral and matching templates

  • Care plans, Pathway Plans and transition materials

  • Behaviour and support policies

  • Letters, reports and case-recording templates

  • Participation, consultation and advocacy materials

  • Recruitment campaigns and public-facing communications

  • Other bespoke approaches - feel free to ask.

Research & Lived Experience Insight Report

I help organisations explore complex questions through a combination of evidence, lived experience and professional insight.

Whether you're developing a new service, responding to a challenge or looking to better understand children's experiences, I'll produce a tailored insight report that brings together current evidence, lived experience, frontline perspectives and practical recommendations to inform your next steps.

  • Placement stability

  • Behaviour as communication

  • Leaving care

  • Building trust and belonging

  • Foster carer recruitment and retention

  • Children's experiences of education

  • Staff wellbeing and burnout

  • Service redesign

  • Any bespoke topic or emerging issue

Every project combines multiple perspectives.

How I Work?

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A book or article page with a graphic of an eye at the top. The text mentions looking through a child's eyes and discusses reviewing policies or supporting service development.
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Process

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Let's Start the Conversation…

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