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Our Team
Our leadership team is a tight-knit group of individuals with three things in common:
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a passion for the welfare and safeguarding of vulnerable children
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an outstanding record in children’s services development and improvement
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a commitment to spreading best practice and sharing the benefit of our combined experience and proven leadership
Sally Mortimore
Managing Director
Registered Social Worker
Sally has been a social worker for almost 30 years and joined Aidhour in 2014 from a local authority where she had held lead responsibility for Safeguarding and Quality Assurance for the previous 8 years. Prior to that, Sally worked as a qualified social worker and strategic manager in both local authorities and the NSPCC.
Sally’s leadership has been critical in the development of Aidhour from a company providing a small number of IRO and children’s advocacy services to the large scale, diverse children’s services consultancy it is now. Shortlisted as Leader of the Year by the Guardian Newspaper’s Small Business Showcase competition in 2016, she was runner-up in the public vote.
She holds a BA (Hons) in Social Policy & Social Work, an MA in Social Work from the University of East Anglia and an Inter-professional Postgraduate Certificate in Practice Teaching. She has a particular interest in Outcomes Based Accountability and uses these principles to ensure that Aidhour delivers best practice initiatives to achieve positive outcomes for children.
Robert Bradshaw
Operations Director
Registered Social Worker
Robert joined Aidhour in 2014, having worked for local authorities since 1990 progressing from Residential Social Work to Head of Quality Assurance and Effectiveness in a local authority children’s services department.
Robert continues to do direct work with children as an IRO and to lead on Aidhour’s expanding social work and quality assurance operations. Robert has a particular interest in safeguarding and all elements of work with looked after children, family support and child protection. He managed child protection conferencing in the first local authority to apply Signs of Safety practice and has since worked with local authorities across the UK in the application of this model.
Robert holds a CQSW, Advanced Award in Social Work from Oxford University and has an MSc in Social Care Leadership and Management from Birmingham University.
Angie Pickard
Accounts Manager
Our Accounts Manager Angie Pickard has worked in Finance and Administration for nearly 30 years after completing a Diploma in Business Studies. She has a background in Accounts and Managerial positions in a variety of large corporate organisations and smaller commercial companies.
She has worked for Aidhour on a part-time basis since 2013.
Annie Rothwell
Senior Business Administrator
Annie joined Aidhour in 2017 as the Managing Director’s PA and now also oversees the administrative smooth running of our Supervised Contact, foster carer review and looked after children services. She previously worked in London for many years as a PA/Legal Secretary to partners in the Corporate Department for an international law firm. This experience means that Annie has a good understanding of legal process and working in a time pressured environment. Annie also worked for the NHS Rheumatology Department as the Lead PA at her local hospital. Annie is our “front of house” and will help you with all your enquiries from start to finish.
Nicola De Bond
Executive Support
Nicola is the newest member of our team and joined Aidhour in March 2024, providing administrative support in the day to day administration and enquiries of the company. She is multi-lingual with a degree in Modern Languages. Having worked for many years in London as an Executive Assistant in the Investment Banking world, she understands the need for efficiency and working with sensitive information.
Nicola will be very happy to help with any enquiries you may have.
Marisa Barnard
Lead Associate - Court Led Assessments
Registered Social Worker
Marisa qualified as a Social Worker in 2000 and worked for almost 16 years at one Local Authority. During this time, she was a deputy and team manager of the Looked After Children Team and also the Court team.
Marisa joined Aidhour in 2016 as Independent Reviewing Officer and continues to take assignments in this role. In addition, she is also the lead of Aidhour’s Court led assessment service. As part of this role, she coordinates referrals, assigns work to experienced independent social workers and serves as liaison between Aidhour and the Local Authorities and legal firms that commission our services.
If you wish to commission our specialist assessment services, please contact us and ask for Marisa.
Ruby Brewer
Lead Associate - Residential Services and Regulation 44 visiting
Registered Social Worker
Ruby has been a social worker for over 20 years, working within social work education and fostering and looked after / care leavers teams within local authorities. Before joining Aidhour in 2022, Ruby was the Designated Safeguarding Officer and Head of Quality, Safety and Governance at a medium-sized not for profit organisation with responsibility for quality assurance arrangements for a range of services including Ofsted registered children's homes and schools, CQC regulated outreach and mental health residential provision, supported accommodation and family contact.
Ruby holds a BSC in Social Work Studies from Southampton University as well as postgraduate qualifications in practice education and critical practice from Portsmouth and Bournemouth Universities.
As lead associate for Residential services, Ruby has oversight of Aidhour’s Regulation 44, Regulation 25 and Supported Accommodation services. If you need any of these services, please ask for Ruby
Margaret Bailey
Lead Associate - IRO services
Registered social worker
Margaret qualified as a Social Worker in 1976 when social worker roles were generic. With the advent of the Children Act in 1989, she specialised in working with Children and Families and before specialising further to work with Children who were looked after as a social worker and later as a senior manager. Margaret 'retired' in 2011 and joined Aidhour in 2013 as an Independent Reviewing Officer. Margaret says "I really enjoy the challenges and diversity the IRO role presents and suspect that this will be my last Social Work role. I have enjoyed being a Social Worker and there is not another job I wish I had tried!"
As lead associate for IRO services, Margaret oversees one of our largest local authority contracts and provides advice and consultation to our other IRO contracts.
