Witness Seminar and Open Forum Series (No 4)

The Medical Social Workers in Scotland: the Development of a Profession - Panel Profiles

Joan Baraclough 

Joan qualified as an Almoner in 1960 at the University of Edinburgh.  After practising at Ealing and Westminster Hospitals she became Assistant General Secretary of BASW, moving to CCETSW and later to the Social Services Inspectorate of the Department of Health.  She was a Trustee of the Social Workers Educational Trust, of the Marylebone Centre Trust, and the Welwyn Hatfield Crossroads Scheme.  Joan was a member of the BASW Centenary Planning Group which, among other events organised a dinner which was attended by 505 members of the profession, both serving and retired. She was one of the authors of 100 Years of Health Related Social Work, 1895-1995, published by BASW in 1996. Since her retirement she has successfully pursued postgraduate studies at the University of Warwick and maintained active connections with the profession.

Kay Carmichael

Kay qualified and practiced as a Psychiatric Social Worker before becoming a Lecturer and later Senior Lecturer in the Department of Social Administration in the University of Glasgow.  She served as a member of the Supplementary Benefits Commission 1969 and as its Deputy Chairman 1975-80.  Kay has published widely in the field of social welfare and is well known as a public campaigner on issues of poverty.

Norma Christie 

Norma qualified in Medical Social Work in 1950 from Edinburgh University and the Institute of Almoners.  She spent a total of 19 years in hospital social work in Glasgow, Aberdeen and Australia, ten years in local authorities in Midlothian and Tayside and was five years in the Social Work Services Group 1966-1970.   Her final post was in the Student Unit at the Western Infirmary Glasgow.

David Colvin

David firstly took a Diploma in Social Sciences at the University of Glasgow and in 1954-5 joined the Glasgow City Probation Service.  After completing a Psychiatric Social Work Diploma at the University of Edinburgh in 1961, he joined the Prison Service and worked at Crichton Royal as a Social Worker in the Children’s Unit, later becoming Principal Social Worker for the Hospital.  In 1965 he moved to Paisley as Director of the Family Coursework Unit.  In 1966 David joined the Department of Home and Health at the Scottish Office where he was, among much else, responsible for Judith Hart’s white paper Social Work and the Community which became the basis for the Social Work Scotland Act.  He was later responsible for the Development Plan for Social Work Services in 1969-1970.  David served as Depute Social Work Adviser, then Chief Adviser from 1981-1991.  Subsequent to his ‘retirement’ he has among other things served as secretary of BASW in Scotland and as Director of Social Work in Shetland and as Chair of SACRO and on the Scottish Consortium for Crime and Criminal Justice.

Fred Edwards

Fred Edwards is a full time voluntary worker.  He is widely involved in a range of organisations involving ecological and conservation issues, and social justice matters.  A former President of Volunteer Development Scotland, he is a member of the Board of Friends of the Earth Scotland, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, Capability Scotland and Hanover Housing Association.  He is also a Trustee of the New Lanark World Heritage Centre and President elect of Scottish Environment Link.  Fred was for twenty four years a Director of Social Work in Scotland which included service in Moray and Nairn, Grampian and Strathclyde.  He has held a wide variety of advisory posts in both the statutory and voluntary sectors and has been a visiting Professor of Social Policy and Administration at the University of Glasgow and an Honorary Fellow in the Divinity Faculty of Edinburgh University.  He has post graduate qualifications in ecology, global development and social work.  He is a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute.    Born and educated in Liverpool, Fred started his working life at sea as an officer in both the Merchant and Royal Navies.  Subsequently he served in industry as a management trainee with the Morgan Crucible Group.  After serving in the Royal and Merchant Navies and working in industry, he entered social work in 1960 as a Probation Officer.

Marjorie McInnes

After taking a Social Science Diploma at Glasgow University, Marjorie trained at the Institute of Almoners in London with placements in London, Ayr and Aberdeen, qualifying in 1940.  She held appointments as Almoner in the Southport Infirmary, Hairmyres Hospital, The Victoria Infirmary and The Western Infirmary. During her time in the Western she served as a part time lecturer at Glasgow University in the Department of Public Health.  In 1957 she moved to the Scottish Office Department of Health serving first as Welfare Officer then Senior Welfare Officer and finally as Deputy Chief Social Work Adviser.  She retired in 1978.  She served on the Cope Committee 1950-51 on the organisation of Medical Auxiliaries co-authoring an important section which resisted the idea that the profession of Almoner should be regarded as an ‘auxiliary’ occupation and come under the control and discipline of the medical profession.  She served on the Standing Advisory Committee on Hospitals and Specialist Services which proved very influential in shaping the development of the Almoner profession in Scotland.  Marjorie continues to campaign for the recognition of the importance of social factors in the field of health through such organisations as CAIPE.

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Last Updated: 20 July, 2007
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