Noreen Maguinness is a Senior Lecturer in Social Work at Edge Hill University, Ormskirk. She is a qualified and registered social worker with 20 years’ experience in children and family social work, including long term, assessment, family centre work and adoption and fostering.
Since leaving frontline practice Noreen has worked as a Multi-agency child protection trainer and in Higher Education as a social work educator for 15 years. With a keen interest in the application of law in children and family social worker, Noreen obtained a Masters in Child Care Law and Practice (with distinction) from Keele University and is soon to complete a Professional Doctorate in Social Work utilising the conceptual framework of Pierre Bourdieu and narrative inquiry to explore the Big Stories and Little Stories of children and family social work.
During her time in Higher Education, as a social work educator, Noreen has led and developed safeguarding pathways to develop inter-professional learning and multi-agency platforms. She has carried out several leadership roles including the development and delivery of one of the first Step Up to Social Work programmes in the North West.
Noreen has been commissioned by key children and family voluntary agencies to develop and deliver safeguarding and reflective practice models to support practitioners in their work with children and families. Keen to maintain links with thresholds and decision making in practice Noreen remains involved with decision making forums such as fostering and adoption panels.