This lunchtime webinar is part of the collaborative CPD series by the National Practice Teaching in Social Work Initiative (NPTSWI) & the IASW.

Participants at this event will hear from Colletta Dalikeni and Deirdre Jacob of the IASW Anti-Racism Advisory Group and Shantel Thomas, BASW UK Anti Racism Lead. 

Shantel Thomas

Shantel Thomas is the course lead for the MA in Social Work at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust and the UK Anti-Racism Lead at the British Association of Social Workers (BASW). She is a qualified social worker and prior to academia worked in direct safeguarding practice, with a particular interest in work with vulnerable children and those from black and global majority communities. In her BASW role, Shantel works to support the delivery of the equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) plan, in particular how anti-racist practice can be developed and implemented across and within the social work sector. Shantel has co-written a chapter entitled ‘Risk and Safety: a strength-based perspective in working with black families when there are safeguarding concerns’ in Social Work in a Diverse Society: Transformative practice with black and ethnic minority individual and communities and contributed her practice knowledge to a book entitled - Safeguarding Black Children by Dr. Claudia Bernard. She also co-developed a short course – Becoming an Anti-racist Practitioner/Leader from which this workshop will be based. Shantel is a senior academic and doctoral researcher, who’s thesis is asking ‘What can an auto ethnographic study contribute to the understanding of issues of race and leadership in white led organisations?’. She uses her position, passion, personal and professional ‘living’ experience of racism and intersectional oppression to be the voice for the ‘unheard’ and to represent the needs of global majority communities using a strength-based and compassionate lens. Connect with her on twitter @ShantelThomas77 or email: Shantel.thomas@basw.co.uk 

Deirdre Jacob

Deirdre Jacob is a Graduate of Trinity College where she attended as a Mature Student. A CORU Registered Social Worker, she has worked in Community since 2008. With a Masters in Applied Social Research she has a keen interest in evidence-based practice and has a passion for Social Justice Issues and Politics. She is one of the founder members of the Tallaght Roma Integration Project and has advocated for the needs of the Roma Community at the European Parliament in 2015. She has lectured on the BSS Undergraduate Social Work Degree Programme in Trinity and lectures in Community Development and Macro Social Work Practice on the Trinity Master's in Social Work Programme. She has been a guest lecturer in TU Dublin and UCD discussing the Social Determinants of Health. She is currently working with the IASW Anti Racism Advisory Group and is the IASW HSCP Representative for the HSE ICCMS Project. Deirdre also has a number of publications in both the area of Community Development, Primary Care Social Work and Integrated Care from a Social Work Perspective.

Dr. Colletta Dalikeni

Dr. Colletta Dalikeni is a CORU Registered African- Irish Social worker, Educator, and researcher, currently based at Dundalk Institute of Technology. She is Board member of the Irish Association of Social Workers, Editorial committee member, reviewer for reputable international journals as well as an active member of the IASW Anti-Racism Advisory group. Colletta’ s local and international social work academic and practice experience encompass various areas that include but are not limited to chid protection/welfare, medical social work and intellectual disability. Her research and teaching interests have a bias towards culturally competent social work practice with various ethnic minority categories such as immigrants, asylum seeker and refugees. Her particular focus is on how the intersecting discourse of race, racism, culture, come to bear on their human rights in the context of social citizenship entitlements. Colletta’s emancipatory activist research and scholarship is evidenced through her ongoing active involvement in several community social inclusion and diversity projects. Some of her current work in relation to social work is focussed on creating safe spaces and conducive conditions for addressing race-based issues in both social work practice and education through asking difficult questions about Racism. Her other current preoccupations involve leading collaborative Erasmus Plus funded EU projects that are also aimed at challenging Racism and other injustices to promote successful social inclusion and integration at national and EU levels.