Eileen Murphy Consultants: The Solution Focused Team
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Eileen Murphy:
Eileen Murphy leads the Consultancy and has, since 1993, devised specialist frameworks for Local Authorities and related agencies including the Prevention & Intervention Programme, The Solution Focused School and Solution Focused Secure & Residential Unit training programmes.Eileen’s specialism within the Consultancy is training staff to work with children, young people and families to prevent family breakdown, school exclusion and youth offending – with the focus on the safety of the child as being paramount.
Eileen also leads in our work within the Drug & Alcohol field: currently instigating new ways of working within Mental Health.
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Mawuli Amesu:
An experienced Social Work Manager working in a variety of settings including Primary Care Trusts; Residential Care; Education and Children & Families. Mawuli has played a lead role in the Behaviour Improvement Programme, providing leadership and management for multi-agency teams and engaging headteachers in collaborative working.Mawuli has lead specialism within the Consultancy on Solution Focused Motivational Interviewing and Supervision for Managers.
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Kevin Foley, BA (Hons) Econ. PGCE, MA Autism:
Author of Asperger Solution. Kevin, whose lead specialism is Solution Focused Approach to Working with Aspergers, has twenty two years of teaching experience in inner city schools. Kevin developed and headed an inclusion unit in a Manchester school serving the most socio-economically disadvantaged ward in England and works across UK and Ireland as practitioner and trainer with schools and SEN teams for better outcomes for staff and pupils.
Kevin has also managed an autism unit attached to a primary school and co-ordinated support for students with ASDs at Nottingham Trent University. -
Sean Foley:
Joining our Consultancy in 2012, at aged 28, Sean provides his unique workshops and presentations Aspergers Solutions to professionals and parents across the UK and Ireland. Having been diagnosed at age 12 with Aspergers Syndrome, Sean is a great example of utilising strengths and inner resources and how works with parents and professionals to advise on providing support in real and practical ways “No two people with Aspergers are the same” Sean maintains “My main goal is that by telling my own story and how I got where I am today from where I was previously, parents and professionals can gain a better understanding of Aspergers from the view of someone living with it every day. The outcomes for delegates is a greater knowledge on how to work with it – not against it and how it can be harnessed as a positive aspect of life rather than a negative one”.We are delighted to welcome Sean as our new Consultant and look forward to learning a great deal from him. As Dr Tony Attwood, the world’s leading expert on Aspergers maintains:
“I think the main advances have come not from the research literature but from conversations and discussions with those who have Aspergers Syndrome, by reading not the scientific textbooks but their autobiographies. My greatest knowledge of Asperger Syndrome has come from those who have it.”
About Us and Our Training Courses
“The trainers were the best deliverers of training I have seen and made the course interesting and relevant. It was never dull or “preachy”
Jamie Greenwood, Skills Development Advisor, E2E, Barnsley.
With over 25 years experience of working with adults, families and young people, Eileen Murphy Consultants train staff and volunteers within Children & Families, Criminal Justice, Education, NHS Healthcare and Mental Health in the Solution Focused Brief Therapy Model (deShazer ’75).
The specialists frameworks include our unique resources such as The Change Balloon (Murphy ’93) and The Silent Session (Murphy ’06), from the Examine, Repair & Move On Approach (Murphy ‘93) and Optima Communication Skills (Murphy ’06). All of the models used are non-damaging, client-centred and focus on working collaboratively to bring about change.
Children, Young People & Families
We provide 1 – 3 day training courses for staff working with families across the threshold framework in their work to help young people and families resolve conflict and strengthen as a unit in keeping with their unique family, socio-economic and ethnic culture. Utilized by local authority teams and voluntary organisations, this training equips staff to build on existing strengths of the family rather than trace the pathology of the problem. The training encourages staff to ensure that the family are encouraged to talk about “what works” and “what change and recovery will look like” in real and practical ways.
“As part of the National Troubled Families Programme known locally as Priority Families, Derby City commissioned Eileen Murphy Consultants to deliver solution focused training to Priority Families lead workers including Youth Offending Services Case Managers, Child Practitioners, Family Visitors, Intensive Family Support Workers, FIP workers and Social Workers. Following the excellent feedback from attendees, and evidence of how this has been used in practice, further training will be made available to other Priority Families lead workers in Education, Health, Probation etc.”
Liz Perfect – Priority Families Coordinator, Commissioning Division, Children & Families, Derby City Council
I would recommend this training to all in the Children & Young People’s Workforce
Rebecca Reeves – Intensive Family Support Worker, Derby City Council
Our Specialist Resources:
The Silent Session
In 2006, Eileen Murphy developed The Silent Session a non-intrusive session structure that is utilized as an “engaging” tool when working with resistance and as an empowering resource for individuals who choose not to disclose their issue.
“The training was fun, lively and useful. I found the whole style perfect for my learning style. I really enjoyed all aspects of the training and particuarly the practical tasks, i.e. The Silent Session which I have raved about to my colleagues!”
Rachel McManus, Senior Lecturer in Social Work, Sheffield University
The Prevention & Intervention Programme
In 1993, Eileen Murphy created the first Prevention & Intervention Programme, a whole-team, resource for working with families to prevent breakdown, which has been implemented by twenty four Local Authorities across the UK to reduce the numbers of Children and Young People coming into the Care System under Section 20. This Programme allowed for substantial financial savings for local authorities while attracting social care awards.
“The Prevention & Intervention Programme came highly recommended…The concepts presented, for example The Change Balloon consolidated ideas and gave a fresh perspective to solution focused techniques. The change in the team has been remarkable and for the first time in a long time they are seeing changes with families within a shorter timescale. Their morale has been lifted through enabling families to work through their diffiuclties themselves and removing the stress of workers feeling the need to try to fix things”.
Cathrine Silver, Manager, On Track Team, Rhondda Cynon Taf County Council, Wales
Our Preventing Disaffection and Exclusion training is implemented with Teachers, SENCOs, Behaviour Support Staff, TSA, and Learning Mentors nationwide in their work with pupils. Implemented as a whole-school strategy or as a classroom resource to help children build on their strengths and view themselves as “learners”.
“Within 24 hours, I was conscious of language I used with our children. We are setting up training for our Pastoral Team. It completely revolutionised the way I think and deal with our challenging pupils. I have been teaching for 27 years and this was the best training, the most energising, enlightening and inspirational 2 days I have ever spent”
Pat Lalley, Assistant Head, St Cuthberts Catholic Community College, St Helens
We have a specialist Solution Focused Mentor training programme for both Peer Mentors and Adult Mentors – this has been accessed in wider frameworks within Positive Activities Schemes as well as shorter 1-3 day training courses for Learning Mentors and Personal Advisers.
“I will look at issues from a more positive point of view. Looking forward rather than backward. Best training I have ever had – a real eye opener”
Julie Deaking, Learning Mentor Freeston Business Enterprise College
Solution Focused Supervision Skills
Designed for implementation with Managers who wish to unlock staff potential and achieve best outcomes for clients.
“Fantastic training – I would recommend to anyone supervising people”
Felix Kupay, Housing Office, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council
Working Towards Recovery in Mental Health
This training programme, utilized by mental health, drug & alcohol workers and Housing Projects allows workers to use the approach to create watersheds in the thinking of individuals who struggle with anxiety and addiction. The training was implemented with 150 of NHS Pennine Care Acute Mental Health, Ward & Outreach Staff in their work with patients who consider “recovery to be for other people but impossible for them”.
“Inspiring, clinically exciting – an excellent training experience!”
Kath Randle, CPN, Community Mental Health Team, Grimsby, NE Lincs
“Finding and identifying the “exceptions” will make all the difference to people written off by the system. Inspiration – loved it!”
Joan Marsh, Therapeutic Co-ordinator, Royal Oldham Hospital. Oldham
Our Affecting Early Years programme has been commissioned by West Midlands Police Authority and utilised in their collaborative work with primary schools in one of the most deprived ward in the UK. Details are included in our Youth Offending page.
“First class training! Practical, captivating and engaging. Eileen’s approach is direct and informative, leaving participants with the confidence to apply their learning”
Paul Thomas Chester, Young Offending Service, Birmingham
The Courses page gives a wider view of our training and development programmes and how to access them. Please contact us Tel: 0208 947 8093 or 07779 242 289 or email: info@brief-therapy-uk.com for further information
