Deirdre McLaughlin has over 20 years experience as a Social Worker in a range of settings including Youth Justice. In 2007 she established Sign2Music, a preschool music and signing franchise which facilitates programmes supporting communication and attachment. She also works as a part time social work lecturer. She is an Independent Trainer and C0-Founder of ‘Connected for Life.”
Lynne Peyton Independent Consultant to Children’s Services in ROI and NI. Former Senior Manager in Children’s Services in Northern Ireland and former Director of NSPCC. Regularly undertakes audits and case reviews in both jurisdictions. Has a particular interest in tackling chronic neglect and the immediate and longer term impact of lack of secure attachment in children.
Christina Enright is a Child and Family Psychotherapist, Attachment Consultant and Trainer. For over 16 years she has worked in London with extremely vulnerable children and families across a range of settings, including schools and alternative education provision.
Marie Dunne is Registered Mental Health Nurse with 36 years’ experience. She has worked in a range of settings that support individuals and families in the area of mental health. Her last role was as a mental health promotion specialist working in the health improvement department within a Health and Social Care Trust. This role involved working across all sectors including statutory, voluntary and community in the development of mental health and emotional wellbeing through education, training and partnership working. She now undertakes the latter as an Independent Trainer and Consultant.
Gail Penders is a Social Worker with twenty-five years’ experience of working with children, teens and their families. She is Centre Manager of the TUSLA Child Well Being Centre at Castleblayney. She is a panel member of the Foster Care Committee. She understands the significance of attachment disruption and the need children have for secure base.
Peter O’Toole Support Service Manager for IFCA who seeks to address the expressed need by foster carers for more understanding of attachment related issues and appropriate training to enhance practice.
Dermot O’Callaghan Senior Psychologist in Meath HSE working with children and families to promote healthy attachment and provides training in attachment.
Paul Harvey is the Model of Attachment Practice (MAP) Project Lead within a Health and Social Care Trust, having the lead role in designing and developing ‘Trauma Informed and Attachment Focussed based’ practices and interventions within the Woman and Children’s directorate for over 10 years.. Paul’s background is in social work, social care and community development. In the later he worked for a Project attached to the ‘Centre for The Study of Conflict’ at the University of Ulster s in providing training and addressing ‘Conflict Resolution and Prejudice Reduction’ within the Northern Ireland Context. He is the Co-Founder of Irish Attachment in Action, an Author, Independent Trainer and Consultant.
John (Johnnie) Gibson Independent Child Care Trainer and Consultant, has many years experience in residential care in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Specialist in therapeutic crisis intervention. Trains and supports foster carers and helping children in care form secure attachments. Faculty member, Residential Child Care Project, Bronfenbrenner for Translational Research, Cornell University New York. Trained in the Child Attachment Interview Protocol. Joint Convenor, Irish Attachment in Action.
We believe that improving the existing understanding of and attitudes towards attachment is essential for improving Ireland’s profile in terms of emotional health and in understanding socially destructive behaviors. We believe that a greater understanding of attachment theory can help to promote social cohesion and better outcomes in terms of physical and emotional health.
We believe in supporting parents and families through providing access to knowledge, training and expertise in attachment for professionals. We believe that understanding and supporting positive attachments during all stages of development will deepen our awareness of how physical and emotional health interact and will enhance and help to underpin social policy planning and health strategies that will help individuals and families.
To this end we aim to inform government and non-governmental agencies of the benefits of attachment theory as a fundamental theoretical base for social policy. We aim to help government and non-governmental agencies gain a greater awareness of attachment in the context of their work and in terms of policy and planning.
Attachment is the basis for all early relationships. It is what shapes, forms and influences who we are and how we are with others. It is where we hurt and heal and learn how to manage. Human relationships across society are also the foundations for positive growth and wellbeing; those we have with our parents, children and partners.
IAIA seeks to help support individuals and organisations to gain a greater understanding of this ‘Attachment World’ so as to make positive contributions to our families, work places and the communities we live in. Creating a greater awareness of the importance of relationship is one of our key objectives in IAIA.
We are committed to promoting more positive experiences of attachment to enhance our relationships between parents and children, within families and in society generally. We believe that improving the existing understanding of and attitudes towards attachment is essential for influencing the positive development of Ireland’s child and adult health and well-being.
We are committed to promoting better experiences of attachment in the Irish population in order to effect positive changes in policy and practice in education, care and health. We believe that it is important that our way of working is both connected and collaborative, reflecting the vision and values we cherish. In working alongside partner organisations, our intentions are to place attachment onto the political agenda and contribute to fundamental policy and legislative changes.