“If you want to build a ship, don't drum up men to gather wood, give orders and divide the work. Rather, teach them to yearn for the far and endless sea.”

Thank you for your interest in our work. Now retired we were honoured to have spent many years supporting people to safeguard vulnerable children young people and adults. Our focus was on what was going right, what was possible, and who cared.

If you’d like to know more about our proven and enduring ideas, find out more below.

Imagine how much more we will know about keeping people safe when we’re routinely inquiring into what we do right. When we get as good at inquiring forensically into what worked well as others are at inquiring into what we did wrong, the volume of data we will be generating about successful safeguarding practice will be infinite.

'COLLABORATIVE INQUIRY' is now available for purchase on Amazon.

“This very practical book is full of approaches and tools for working within high risk situations to effect positive change. Along with acknowledging the challenges, these approaches engage people collaboratively in focusing on what is working well and the strengths they bring to these situations. It is clearly written, full of applications and grounded in theory. Make this book a part of your essential toolkit if you are searching for strategies to collaboratively effect positive change in your challenging situations.”

Jeanie Cockell

The Collaborative Inquiry [CI] approach is all about rooting out good practice when things don’t go so well, using generative questions that find out why. Sometimes this means finding solutions to large challenges, but often it is about discovering the many small things that together really make a difference.

Instead of building our future on the more disastrous impact of our unintended errors, we invite every stakeholder to examine what worked the best, fast forwarding valuable hindsight to centre stage to co-construct new insights and real change.

Collaborative Inquiry Amazon Ad

Replacing blame of a minority with understanding and ownership by the majority, Collaborative Inquiry strengthens safeguarding practice with everyone working in high risk environments.

We warmly invite you to try it and see.

“It has made me feel privileged and humble.” CI Participant