Adele Gladman is a highly experienced independent safeguarding trainer and consultant who works in both the UK and overseas with those who have contact with both children and adults. Adele founded what is Safeguarding Children Training and Consultancy in 2002 (now Adele Gladman & Associates) after two formative experiences. One was as a solicitor, representing young people going into the care of the local authority, and seeing how much of their harm was preventable. By 1999 over 95% of the young women on her caseload were suspected victims on child sexual exploitation and Adele was appalled at how services designed to protect them failed them instead. Adele went on to lead the Home Office Child Sexual Exploitation research and development pilot in Rotherham, South Yorkshire in 2002. Her harrowing experiences there resulted in her leaving the law completely to work with organisations and help them to understand children’s experiences and how best to address the risk associated with safeguarding.
Adele is an NSPCC Associate and an approved supplier for several organisations including Durham University, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), University of Cambridge, Merlin Entertainments, the Kings Active Foundation, Flywheel IT, a number of multi-academy trusts such as The Harpur Trust, The Harmony Trust, and Wellspring Academy Trust. She also works with ASPCo (The Association of Professional Staffing Companies) as one of their in-house trainers and auditors. She is an approved safeguarding and safer recruitment trainer for the NSPCC.
Adele regularly contributes to news, TV, and radio programmes raising awareness of safeguarding issues, as well as regular keynote conference presentations. She is the author of several articles and publications in professional journals and the co-author of Child Sexual Exploitation After Rotherham (2017); and the Online Guide to Internet Safety for Parents (2018). She has recently co-authored a chapter in the forthcoming publication, Policing Public Protection.
Adele is also the Safeguarding Trustee for Barnsley Sexual Abuse and Rape Crisis Service; Safeguarding Governors for Kleek Apprenticeships; as well as a carer for a young person placed in her care in 2021.
Adele’s aim is simple – to help those working with the vulnerable in society to be the best that they can be – from their policies and processes, their workplace culture and practice, their staff knowledge and confidence, and their success in identifying, responding to and preventing harm to children and vulnerable adults.
Jo has over 30 years’ experience working in HR. She started her career at Barnsley Council in 1994 working in all areas of HR, including as a member of the Traded team where she was the dedicated HR Business Partner for an allocation of Barnsley primary schools, providing a full range of HR and Training support, including Safer Recruitment Training. She started work for a Multi Academy Trust, which consisted of 9 primary schools, in 2018 as the Chief HR and Operations Officer.
As well as having over 30 years hands-on HR experience including at SLT level, Jo has also worked as a Data Protection Officer for 8 years. Jo has been a CIPD Member since 2000 and has been an accredited Safer Recruitment trainer since 2009.
Jo specialises in:
James holds a Master’s Degree in Social Work and has worked as a children’s social worker, a substance misuse worker, university lecturer and youth worker across roles in health and social car
James is a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT). As well being a Safer Recruitment Consortium approved trainer, James is also an NSPCC Associate and an APSCo auditor. He has trained professionals working with both children and adults for over 28 years.
He specialises in:
Sherri has over 28 years of experience working with children and families. She has worked as a youth worker, working with groups of young people around basic safety, substance misuse and promoting healthy relationships; and within residential settings supporting young people to develop their own independent skills. Sherri has worked for several years as part of a multi-agency team promoting safeguarding, including supporting children and families working alongside partner agencies on Early Help Assessments and Team Around the Family meetings (TAF)
Sherri has also delivered and promoted HENRY, bringing together support for parenting, family emotional wellbeing and behaviour change. She is experienced in designing and delivering Child Sexual Exploitation training in varied settings, as well as targeted group sessions and workshops within schools and youth settings (including healthy relationships work).
Sherri is a qualified adult community education tutor and has facilitated the Freedom Programme and Adverse Childhood Experiences training.
Dedicated and passionate about developing new and inventive training materials for children and young adults, Sherri is working with Adele and Sonia Lowe on the new On Reflection programme.
Sonia Lowe has a NNEB Qualification and has over 30 years’ experience working in mainstream and special needs schools, and children’s centres as a disability team leader developing support groups for children with disabilities in the local area.
Sonia worked as a Family Support Worker supporting children and their families, assessing their needs and leading on Team Around the Family meetings.
Sonia has also spent several years working in Derbyshire County Council’s front door safeguarding services where she triaged referrals to determine the level of support needed. She also arranged and participated in strategy discussions with police and health to see if threshold was met for child protection.
Sonia is currently supporting children with challenging needs who are currently not in education delivering a tailormade curriculum. She has previously developed and delivered programmes around improving self-esteem; as well as encouraging positive approaches and confidence within families, young women and parents. Her work with multi agency teams has included the design and delivery of Child Sexual Exploitation awareness training for professionals.
She is a qualified adult community education tutor delivering Safeguarding training to early year’s professionals and facilitates the HENRY program for families.
Committed to developing new innovative training and resources for children and young adults, Sonia is working with Adele and Sherri Cosford on the new On Reflection programme.
