Joanne Baillie is the founder of Action4Families C.I.C. and has over 30 years of experience working with children, families, schools, and communities.

With a background in education, counselling, play therapy, and safeguarding, Joanne is passionate about helping people feel heard, supported, and understood. She is a BACP Registered Counsellor, a qualified play therapist, and has delivered hundreds of therapeutic sessions with children and families across Derbyshire schools and community settings.

Joanne uses a warm, trauma-informed, and relationship-based approach, drawing on psychology, neuroscience, attachment theory, and child development. Her work focuses on helping children, adults, and families make sense of their experiences, strengthen relationships, and move towards lasting positive change.

Alongside direct therapeutic work, Joanne also provides professional training, supervision, safeguarding support, and placements for therapists and counsellors working with children and families.

Her vision for Action4Families is to create stronger, more connected, and trauma-informed communities where people can heal, grow, and thrive.

Ruth began her career in education, working as a teacher in both London and Northern Ireland before completing a degree in psychology. She then worked for a national mental health charity in community crisis intervention, supporting individuals experiencing significant emotional distress and complex life circumstances. Ruth later completed a postgraduate diploma in Integrative Coaching and Counselling, further developing her therapeutic and relational approach.

Alongside her practice, Ruth undertook research within the NHS which was subsequently published, contributing to her achieving a distinction in her MSc.

Ruth is deeply committed to ongoing professional development and has undertaken further specialist training in a number of areas relevant to the work of Action4Families, particularly in supporting children, young people, and those affected by complex trauma. She has a particular passion for psychoeducation and believes strongly in helping individuals and groups to better understand themselves, their experiences, and the pathways towards healing, resilience, hope, and purpose.

Her training style is practical, collaborative, and engaging. Ruth is known for creating safe, reflective learning environments which combine warmth, humour, insight, and real-world application. She has extensive experience delivering training, therapeutic support, and supervision across educational, community, and mental health settings.

Ruth is a Graduate Member of the British Psychological Society, an accredited member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, and a qualified clinical supervisor.

Sally Greenbank has over 30 years of experience working in education, safeguarding, child protection and leadership across schools and community settings.

With a background as a Headteacher, School Safeguarding Manager, Educational Advisor and Trainer, Sally is passionate about helping professionals respond to safeguarding concerns with confidence, reflection and care. She has extensive experience leading on child protection matters, managing complex safeguarding concerns and working alongside multi-agency teams to support children and families.

Sally uses a thoughtful, relationship-based and ethically grounded approach, drawing on her extensive leadership and frontline safeguarding experience. Her work focuses on helping schools, professionals and organisations strengthen safeguarding culture, improve decision-making and respond effectively to risk, vulnerability and uncertainty.

Alongside her safeguarding leadership role, Sally provides bespoke safeguarding training, reflective supervision and consultancy for schools, therapists, charities and non-profit organisations. She has also delivered training to Local Safeguarding Boards on child exploitation and wider safeguarding themes.

Her vision is to help create safer, stronger and more trauma-informed communities where children, young people and families are protected, supported and able to thrive.