The Biology of Belonging
Crowne PlazaHuman beings flourish when they feel a sense of belonging. But why is belonging so important?
£25.00 – £275.00
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Human beings flourish when they feel a sense of belonging. But why is belonging so important?
Unit 4, Huntershill Village
5 Auchinairn Road
Bishopbriggs
Glasgow
G64 1RX
0141 771 5200
Unit 4, Huntershill Village
5 Auchinairn Road
Bishopbriggs
Glasgow
G64 1RX
0141 771 5200
© 2026 Tigers Limited
Fiona Dyer
Director of The Children’s and Young People’s Centre for Justice
About Fiona
As Director, Fiona leads CYCJ towards its ambition of ensuring that Scotland’s approach to children and young people in conflict with the law is rights-respecting, contributing to better outcomes for children, young people and communities. This involves supporting professionals from all disciplines who work with children and young people on the cusp of or involved in offending by promoting best practice based on up-to-date evidence and research.
Prior to and since joining CYCJ in 2013, Fiona has been committed to ensuring the rights of children in conflict with the law are upheld. She aims to provide leadership across all sectors where children are involved to ensure children are treated as children. Her work to date includes the Expert Group on Preventing Sexual Offending Involving Children and Young People, Expert Review on Mental Health and Young Offenders, Age of Criminal Responsibility, Restorative Justice, Children’s Rights and supporting the work of the Youth Justice Improvement Board. Fiona currently chairs the Age of Criminal Responsibility Data and Research Group and Children’s Rights Group.
Before joining CYCJ Fiona was seconded to the Scottish Government youth justice team for three years as a professional social work advisor to lead on the Scottish Government policy of the Whole System Approach, which was implemented across Scotland. Prior to this, she worked for ten years as a social worker and social work manager within the fields of youth and criminal justice within rural and urban areas of Scotland. Fiona is a member of Social Work Scotland.
SallyAnn Kelly
Chief executive of Aberlour
About SallyAnn
SallyAnn has over 30 years of experience working in Children’s Services, having qualified as a social worker in 1990. She was promoted to her first management post in 1996 and has worked in several Scottish local authorities in middle and senior management positions until 2008.
Prior to joining Aberlour as CEO in 2014, SallyAnn worked for Barnardo’s Scotland, first as Head of Operations, then as Acting Director of Barnardo’s Scotland.
SallyAnn has a keen interest in strengthening and improving practice with an emphasis on taking rights based approaches. She has a particular interest in improving the experiences of children and young people who have experience of the wider care system in Scotland. She has enabled Aberlour to put in place ambitious plans for improvement in how the organisation works alongside children and families – not being afraid to be led by the views of children and young people and their families.
She is a member of the Scottish Government Leadership Group on Child Protection and the Perinatal Programme Board.
SallyAnn has a commitment to challenging and reducing poverty and inequality and she has worked with colleagues within Aberlour and across Scotland over a number of years to ensure that reducing child poverty is at the heart of the political agenda.
SallyAnn has supported colleagues in Aberlour to focus on digital transformation and the organisation is currently involved in a number of initiatives to take change forward.
SallyAnn is currently the Chair of STAF (Scottish Throughcare and Aftercare Forum).
SallyAnn was awarded an OBE in 2022.
Iain Smith
Criminal Defence Lawyer
About Iain
Iain Smith is a Criminal Defence Lawyer based in Livingston, Scotland. He has been in practise for 32 years. For the first 25 years he was blissfully ignorant about the biological impact of trauma on the developing brain. In March 2018 he was educated on this little understood topic and it turned his legal career upside down. Without planning he decided to try and turn the justice system inside out. Overnight he realised that the ghosts who float around the justice system were self soothing pain with drugs & alcohol and that for most they were more sad than bad. He will share some of his curious journey with you on becoming trauma informed.
In 2020 Iain won the Scottish Lawyer of the Year award. His firm was awarded Scottish Criminal Law firm of the Year on 2021 & 2022. In 2024 the Law Society of Scotland bestowed the title, Legal Pioneer on him to celebrate the Society’s 75th anniversary.
His aim is to make this ACEs knowledge mundane and to prevent (or reduce) trauma & harms for all children.
James Docherty
Scottish Violence Reduction Unit
About James
James has worked in Violence Prevention for 15 years and is currently a Project Manager within the Scottish Violence Reduction Unit (SVRU). He leads on assessment, formulation and interventions that contribute to all (SVRU) activity using a public health approach to reduce violence. Role deliverables include developing and delivering projects, ensuring interventions are rights respecting, trauma informed and inclusive of lived experience voice. He has helped set up and worked on various innovative award winning SVRU projects that enable the process of desistance and prevention of violence in all its forms.
James advocates strongly for change and awareness of how we address the cost of Adverse Childhood Experiences and untreated trauma in our society. Previously he has worked with a leading Children’s charity on diversion programmes with young people on the cusp of organised crime. James is also a member of Trauma Aware Law who work to improve the justice system in order to prevent further victims.
Additionally, James is also an Advisor at Community Justice Scotland. A cross team functional post that aims to ensure all work is fully aligned to Community Justice Scotland values. He is also a resident trainer at Tigers early years academy which aims to educate and imbed relationships, trauma responsive principles, children’s rights, play and attachment at the heart of care and early years practice.
Kezia Dugdale
Associate Director of Centre for Public Policy
About Kezia
Kezia is the Associate Director of the Centre for Public Policy. Having served as an MSP, Leader of Scottish Labour and more recently as Director of the John Smith Centre, Kezia brings with her a wealth of experience in law-making and public policy. She leads the Centre’s external engagement activity, providing an important bridge between the University, policy makers and the communities they serve.
Beyond her working life, Kezia is a trustee of Shelter where she chairs Shelter Scotland, a member of the Oversight Board of “The Promise” and a Director of the Electoral Reform Society.
Kezia is a Professor of Practice at the University of Glasgow and Director of the John Smith Centre, a non-partisan organisation which exists to make the positive through the promotion of civilised debate and high-quality research. It also seeks to support people with the talent – but not the means – to access politics and public life.
Before joining the Centre, Kezia was a Member of the Scottish Parliament for the Lothians region for eight years, during which she led her party through four national elections and the EU referendum. Beyond her working life, she is on the board of the housing charity Shelter UK, The Electoral Reform Society and the Oversight Board of The Promise, an organisation driving change for care-experienced young people in Scotland.
Aid & Abet Workshop
The workshop will showcase the transformative power of personal childhood trauma, taking you on a journey of survival from near-death experiences due to drug addiction and prison. Kevin’s story, from negative school experiences to working alongside the very organisations he once opposed, is a testament to the potential for change and the importance of relationships. His journey, driven by a single thought and concept, has led to a significant shift towards early intervention and prevention.
Kevin will candidly share his personal experiences, from negative school experiences to police and prison, to now working alongside the organisations he once opposed. His journey is a powerful testament to the importance of relationships in bringing about change. The workshop will be followed by a Q&A session, providing an opportunity for further discussion and connection.
About Martin
Martin I work alongside Fraser the Head of Operations and the rest of staff at Men Matter Scotland to provide peer to peer support to improve men’s mental health and wellbeing. I work on arranging a schedule of classes and activities and organise counselling for our members.
The Magic is Within you
This workshop will be an informative and fun way to befriend your nervous system through relatable science.
Connectere
In keeping with the theme of belonging, Epione Training and Consultancy’s founders, Alex O’Donnell and Dr. Dawn Harris, will present an unmissable, interactive and experiential workshop on their pioneering trauma specific therapeutic group work programme, Connectere.
Drawing on the latest research and employing a compassion-focused therapeutic approach, the Connectere Programme is a neurophysiological and neurobiologically informed, trauma-responsive group work intervention designed to restore a sense of connection.
This interactive workshop will explore how the Connectere programme helps individuals within a groupwork setting restore safety, trust, and connection after trauma. We will provide participants with hands-on learning, real-world applications and results of the programme so far.
Join us at Epione Training and Consultancy and experience the transformative power of connection—because belonging isn’t an option, it’s a biological imperative!
Routine Enquiry about Childhood Adversity – A Key Pillar of Trauma-Informed Care – What It Is, What It Isn’t, and Dispelling the ‘Can of Worms’ Myth.
The sentiment of Trauma-Informed Practice has been summed up as the shift away from asking, ‘what’s wrong with you?’ to asking, ‘What’s happened to you?’
This is ironic when research indicates that routine enquiry about adverse childhood experiences is rare and inconsistent. Asking a help–seeking person about the things that might be contributing to their problems should be a feature of any assessment process. However, the evidence suggests that this is far from the case, with practitioners receiving little or no training about how to ask, when to ask, or how to respond to a disclosure.
Not surprisingly practitioners worry about getting it wrong, saying the wrong thing or ‘opening a can of worms.’ In contrast, studies of survivors tell us that they can spend decades in services where they receive ineffective or even harmful treatments designed to manage their symptoms, but ultimately, ignoring the cause. Studies have demonstrated that the human and economic cost of delayed disclosure and inappropriate care is enormous.
The solution is simple: offer routine or targeted enquiry about past and current trauma and respond therapeutically. In this workshop we will explore the research evidence and case for change, survivor, and professional perspectives on the barriers to disclosure, and why the fear of opening a ‘Can of Worms’ is more myth than reality.
Attendees will take away knowledge and practical insights about what constitutes best practice and consider the process of implementing routine or targeted enquiry in services.
Dr. Gordon Neufeld
Developmental Psychologist
Dr. Gordon Neufeld is a Vancouver-based developmental psychologist with over 50 years of experience with children and youth and those responsible for them. A foremost authority on child development, Dr. Neufeld is an international speaker, a bestselling author (Hold On To Your Kids) and a leading interpreter of the developmental paradigm. Dr. Neufeld has a widespread reputation for making sense of complex problems and for opening doors for change. While formerly involved in university teaching and private practice, he now devotes his time to teaching and training others, including educators and helping professionals. His Neufeld Institute is now a world-wide charitable organisation devoted to applying developmental science to the task of raising children. He is a father of five and a grandfather to seven.
Gordon’s Presentation: ACEs — fresh insights reveal a surprising way through
Viewing the ACE phenomenon simultaneously through the lenses of the sciences of attachment, emotion and development, enable the dots to be joined like never before. What is revealed is a picture that is profoundly informing for both prevention and intervention. When it comes to wellness, adverse childhood experiences are like a perfect storm, creating a triple threat to wellbeing that is insidiously camouflaged by society’s prevailing concerns, a lack of supportive language, and even the personality traits that are formed in defense. In distilling the dynamics to their essence, Dr. Neufeld uncovers a way through for all involved.
Kevin Neary
co-founders of the charity Aid&Abet
About Kevin
Kevin Neary has 30 years of lived experience of the Criminal Justice system and addiction
Kevin is one of the co-founders of the charity Aid&Abet, which helps and supports people leaving prison for the first 72 hours from the gate on the day of release, helping them integrate back into society.
Kevin’s passion is in prevention, knowing that he, through his experience, can prevent young people from having his past nightmare in supporting young people on to more positive destinations, rather than treating the problem later in life with CJS, prisons, Addiction, and mental health that all stem from childhood trauma.
Kevin is very passionate about childhood trauma and the healing of trauma, and he also has vast knowledge and experience on the preventative side through education, building positive relationships and penetrating Hope into young people who have felt hopeless through their childhood through no fault of their own.
Kevin believes that not everyone who experiences Trauma as a child becomes addicted or ends up in the criminal justice system.
Most, if not all, who are in the criminal Justice system, young offenders and suffering from addiction, have experienced Childhood Trauma.
Kevin is qualified in Health and social care, has attended many training programs over the years, and gained much knowledge and experience that he wishes to share as he continues to work within Aid & Abet on early intervention, prevention of young people entering the Criminal justice system, mental health, addiction and premature death.
In addition, Kevin has toured the country sharing his experience in Schools and universities, and he has also shared his story through the mediums of television and radio. Kevin has presented at the Scottish Parliament and has spoken at various conferences, not only has. Four authors used Kevin’s lived experience in their publications.
Kevin is the co-author of the book The Good Prison Officer!
Kevin’s Workshop:
The workshop will showcase the transformative power of personal childhood trauma, taking you on a journey of survival from near-death experiences due to drug addiction and prison. Kevin’s story, from negative school experiences to working alongside the very organizations he once opposed, is a testament to the potential for change and the importance of relationships. His journey, driven by a single thought and concept, has led to a significant shift towards early intervention and prevention.
Kevin will candidly share his personal experiences, from negative school experiences to police and prison, to now working alongside the organizations he once opposed. His journey is a powerful testament to the importance of relationships in bringing about change. The workshop will be followed by a Q&A session, providing an opportunity for further discussion and connection.
Darren Burns
Director of Diversity & Inclusion
About Darren
Darren is the Director of Diversity and Inclusion for the Timpson Group, as well as being the head of the Timpson Foundation. He specialises in both the recruitment and retention of ex-offenders and others who face barriers to employment. Darren also fosters relationships with many UK prisons and organisations such a police and probation services. He also manages the Timpson prison training academies, and has responsibility for overseeing the transition from custody and into the workplace. He is passionate about diversity and inclusion and also provides consultancy services for forward thinking businesses, as well as helping to educate others on the benefit of employing ex-offenders and other marginalised groups. As a former Police Officer, his experience of working in some of the most challenging parts of the UK enables him to help break the offending cycle and ensure marginalised groups can find employment.
Darren’s Workshop: Inclusive Recruitment – The transformative power of employment
I will discuss the Timpson Group’s approach to employing marginalsed groups who face barriers to employment. The societal benefits of employing this particular cohort, as well as the commercial advantages. Also, the importance of having a strong organisational culture based on kindness and compassion and how this has played a vital role in the success of our business.
Warren Larkin
Consultant Clinical Psychologist
About Warren
Prior to founding Warren Larkin Associates in 2017, Warren spent 24 years in the NHS, working predominantly with individuals and families experiencing serious mental health difficulties. Working first as an assistant working on the long-stay psychiatric wards at Prestwich Hospital, and then as Clinical Psychologist in Manchester in a service created to provide and research the impact of CBT and Family Interventions for people experiencing psychosis.
Warren went on to lead one of the two national centres of excellence in psychological care for psychosis – chosen to share and disseminate innovative practice in first episode psychosis services (FEP). This initiative contributed to a case for change which led to increased funding, and the introduction of the two-week referral to treatment time in FEP services in England.
Warren then spent 5 years as Network Clinical Director, responsible for Children and Families Services across Lancashire. Warren was responsible for the quality and safety of care and for research and innovation. This experience led to Warren’s passion for public health and prevention work.
Warren is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist and in addition to his clinical work with people experiencing psychosis and trauma, he has remained an active lecturer and researcher holding many honorary academic positions, including for the last 6 years a Visiting Professor position at the University of Sunderland.
He has a long-standing interest in the relationships between childhood adversity and outcomes later in life and has published numerous research articles on the topics of adverse childhood experiences and trauma and psychosis, and published an edited book in 2006 exploring this theme.
Warren completed a 2-year tenure as the Clinical Lead for the Department of Health Adverse Childhood Experiences programme, and has also worked with the Scottish Government and NHS HealthScotland to implement routine ACE enquiry in GP practices in some of the most deprived areas in Scotland.
Warren developed the routine enquiry about adversity in childhood (REACh) approach as a way of assisting organisations to become more trauma-informed and to train professionals to ask routinely about adversity in their everyday practice.
Warren has also been involved in policy development and has acted as an advisor to a number of UK and foreign government agencies. He was a member of the Children and Young People’s Mental Health Services National Task Force, the NICE expert reference group on first episode psychosis, the ‘Tackling Child Sexual Exploitation’ advisory group and was a contributing author of the Personality ‘Disorder’ Consensus Statement. He has also been supporting UNICEF in the Western Balkans to develop trauma-informed policy and practice.
Warren is currently co-leading the implementation of trauma informed approaches in 100 secondary schools in England, which is being evaluated by means of a randomised controlled trial funded by the Youth Endowment Fund and the Home Office.
Having left school with two O-Levels, very low expectations, and what turns out were the prerequisites for intractable imposter syndrome, he feels strongly about applying trauma sensitive and relational approaches to educational settings.
Warren Larkin’s workshop: Routine Enquiry about Childhood Adversity – A Key Pillar of Trauma-Informed Care – What It Is, What It Isn’t, and Dispelling the ‘Can of Worms’ Myth.
The sentiment of Trauma-Informed Practice has been summed up as the shift away from asking, ‘what’s wrong with you?’ to asking, ‘What’s happened to you?’
This is ironic when research indicates that routine enquiry about adverse childhood experiences is rare and inconsistent. Asking a help–seeking person about the things that might be contributing to their problems should be a feature of any assessment process. However, the evidence suggests that this is far from the case, with practitioners receiving little or no training about how to ask, when to ask, or how to respond to a disclosure.
Not surprisingly practitioners worry about getting it wrong, saying the wrong thing or ‘opening a can of worms.’ In contrast, studies of survivors tell us that they can spend decades in services where they receive ineffective or even harmful treatments designed to manage their symptoms, but ultimately, ignoring the cause. Studies have demonstrated that the human and economic cost of delayed disclosure and inappropriate care is enormous.
The solution is simple: offer routine or targeted enquiry about past and current trauma and respond therapeutically. In this workshop we will explore the research evidence and case for change, survivor, and professional perspectives on the barriers to disclosure, and why the fear of opening a ‘Can of Worms’ is more myth than reality.
Attendees will take away knowledge and practical insights about what constitutes best practice and consider the process of implementing routine or targeted enquiry in services.
Claudia M. Gold, MD
Paediatrician & Writer
About Claudia
Claudia M. Gold, MD is a pediatrician and writer who practiced general and behavioral pediatrics for over 20 years and now specializes in early relational health. While working on the front lines in a busy rural pediatrics practice, she “discovered” the world of research and knowledge in the field of infant mental health through her studies with the Berkshire Psychoanalytic Institute in the early 2000’s. The experience led to a profound transformation of her clinical work with families. She has devoted her professional life to spreading this knowledge through writing, teaching, and public speaking. She is on the faculty of the Early Relational Health fellowship at UMass Chan Medical School and the Brazelton Institute at Boston Children’s Hospital.
Dr. Gold has extensive experience with families hard hit by the opioid crisis in her community in rural Western Massachusetts, and currently works as a clinician with Volunteers in Medicine, Berkshires serving a primarily immigrant population.
Dr. Gold’s most recent book is Getting to Know You: Lessons in Early Relational Health from Infants and Caregivers ( Teachers College Press Spring 2025) She co-authored The Power of Discord: Why the Ups and downs of Relationships are the Secret to Building Intimacy, Resilience and Trust with infant researcher and psychologist Ed Tronick (Little, Brown Spark 2020) Her other books include The Developmental Science of Early Childhood (2017), The Silenced Child (2016), and Keeping Your Child in Mind (2011) Dr. Gold speaks frequently to a broad variety of audiences including both parents and professionals in the United States and around the world. She received her BA from the University of Chicago and MD from U of C Pritzker School of Medicine.
Claudia’s Presentation: The Developmental Roots of Belonging — Lessons in relational health from infants and caregivers
A newborn human infant arrives in the world completely helpless yet highly social. In a microscopic moment-by-moment process of interaction with their community of caregivers they learn “this is how we do things.” In other words, they learn to belong to the variety of cultures into which they are born or adopted. In this presentation, drawing on core principles of early relational health, I will take a deep dive into this developmental process to reveal both what goes right, and how the process may become derailed. Throughout the lifespan, our sense of belonging may falter, bringing a deeply painful sense of disconnection and loneliness. Our earliest relationships teach us what needs to happen to reconnect and restore a sense of hope and connection.
Vivian McKinnon
Trauma Therapist
About Vivian
Vivian is Irelands first floatation specialist and the owner/founder of Hydro-ease, NI’s premier dedicated floatation centre. Vivian has taken to stages globally to share her passion and enthusiasm for this deeply profound way of healing and her wisdom around human experience.
But its Vivian’s back story that really sets her apart, from abuse to empowerment, from benefits to entrepreneur and from the streets to a TED talk, Vivian’s vulnerability, authenticity and life’s lessons leaves you wanting more.
As a highly skilled and experienced trauma therapist Vivian uses her lived experience, research and endless training and education to guide and support others to discover their truth.
Her engaging and inspirational presence draws audiences inside their own skin to recognise and release the magic within.
Vivian’s Presentation: The Magic is Within You
This talk will be based on the lived experience of going from “Fitting in” to “Belonging” and the friends you collect along the way.
Workshop: The Magic is Within you
This workshop will be an informative and fun way to befriend your nervous system through relatable science.
Darcia Narvaez
Professor of psychology
About Darcia
Darcia Narvaez is Professor Emerita of Psychology at the University of Notre Dame, and Fellow of the American Psychological Association, American Educational Research Association, Association for Psychological Science, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Born in Minnesota (USA), she grew up living around the world as a bilingual/bicultural Puerto Rican-German American but calls Earth her home. Her earlier careers include professional musician, business owner, classroom music teacher, classroom Spanish teacher, and seminarian, among other endeavors. She uses an interdisciplinary approach to studying evolved morality, child development and human flourishing. Her most recent books include Restoring the Kinship Worldview, and The Evolved Nest: Nature’s Way of Raising Children and Creating Connected Communities. Her book, Neurobiology and the Development of Human Morality: Evolution, Culture and Wisdom won the 2015 William James Book Award from the American Psychological Association and the 2017 Expanded Reason Award. Her recent short films are Breaking the Cycle, The Evolved Nest, and Reimagining Humanity. She hosts the webpage EvolvedNest.org and serves as president of KindredWorld.org.
Darcia’s Presentation: The Evolved Nest — Our Wellness Pathway
The wellness-informed pathway focuses on meeting basic needs. Our species’ developmental nest evolved to meet the basic needs of babies and children. Evolved nest components include soothing perinatal experience, extensive on-request breastfeeding and affectionate touch, allo-mothers who provide responsive care and a welcoming climate, self-directed social play in the natural world which develops nature connection, and routine healing practices. Evolved Nest components are particularly important in the first few years of life when a child’s neurobiology is being shaped towards a wellness-promoting trajectory of health and sociality, or trauma-inducing trajectory of ill health and self-absorption. Evolved Nest provision is an ethical imperative.
Daniel J. Siegel, M.D.
Clinical Professor of Psychiatry
About Daniel
Dan Siegel is the executive director of the Mindsight Institute and founding co-director of the Mindful Awareness Research Center at UCLA, where he was also Co-Principal Investigator of the Center for Culture, Brain and Development and Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the School of Medicine.
An award-winning educator, Dan is the author of five New York Times bestsellers and over fifteen other books which have been translated into over forty languages. As the founding editor of the Norton Professional Series on Interpersonal Neurobiology (“IPNB”), Dan has overseen the publication of one hundred books in the transdisciplinary IPNB framework which focuses on the mind and mental health.
A graduate of Harvard Medical School, Dan completed his postgraduate training at UCLA specializing in paediatrics, and adult, adolescent, and child psychiatry. He was trained in attachment research and narrative analysis through a National Institute of Mental Health research training fellowship focusing on how relationships shape our autobiographical ways of making sense of our lives and influence our development across the lifespan.
Learn more about Dr. Siegel at: www.drdansiegel.com | www.mindsightinstitute.com
Daniel’s presentation: The Neurobiology of Belonging — Integrating Mind, Relationships, and the Embodied Brain
What does it really mean to belong? Science reveals that belonging is not just a social construct—it is an embodied experience that arises from the integration of mind, brain, and relationships. When we feel connected to ourselves and others, our nervous system finds balance, our sense of identity becomes more flexible, and we develop greater resilience in the face of life’s challenges.
In this presentation, Dr. Dan Siegel will explore how the principles of Interpersonal Neurobiology (IPNB) illuminate the ways in which belonging is shaped by both our internal world and our relationships with others and with nature. He will introduce the concept of IntraConnection, the integration of consciousness, inner-compassion, and embodied presence, as a key foundation for developing deeper interpersonal bonds. Through the Patterns of Developmental Pathways (PDP) framework, Dr. Siegel will also discuss how early relational experiences shape our nervous system and how we can cultivate integration at multiple levels—within our own minds, in our relationships, and across communities. He will explore the integrated identity of Me plus We as MWe as a simple but powerful way to envision and enact this deep sense of integrative belonging in daily life.
By weaving together findings from neuroscience, attachment research, and contemplative science, this talk will offer a roadmap for fostering a more compassionate and connected world. Participants will gain insights into how awareness and integration can support healing, cultivate resilience, and create environments where people feel truly seen and valued. Whether you are a clinician, educator, or simply someone interested in the science of connection, this session will provide practical tools to support a life of greater meaning and belonging.
Richard C. Schwartz, PhD
Family Therapist & Academic
About Richard
Richard C. Schwartz, PhD, is the creator of Internal Family Systems, a highly effective, evidence-based therapeutic model that de-pathologizes the multi-part personality. His IFS Institute offers training for professionals and the general public. He is currently on the faculty of Harvard Medical School, and has published five books, including No Bad Parts: Healing Trauma and Restoring Wholeness with the Internal Family Systems Model. Dick lives with his wife Jeanne near Chicago, close to his three daughters and his growing number of grandchildren.
Richard Presentation : Coming Home to Ourselves — Healing Trauma and Cultivating Belonging through Internal Family Systems
Belonging is a fundamental human need, yet trauma can fracture our sense of internal and external connectedness, leaving us feeling isolated and fragmented. Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy offers a compassionate framework for understanding how trauma impacts our inner landscape by conceptualizing the mind as composed of various “parts,” each carrying distinct roles, emotions, and memories. Within this model, traumatic experiences often lead parts of ourselves—particularly vulnerable “exiled” parts—to become disconnected, hidden, or suppressed. This keynote explores how trauma disrupts our innate ability to belong and how IFS therapy provides a transformative path toward healing by compassionately reconnecting with these wounded parts. Through the integration of exiles and protectors, individuals can regain a profound sense of internal harmony, self-compassion, and authentic belonging—both within themselves and in their relationships with others. Attendees will gain insights into the powerful interplay between trauma, belonging, and the internal family system, learning practical strategies to foster emotional resilience, self-acceptance, and meaningful connection.
Alex O’Donnell
co-founder of Epione
About Alex
Alex O’Donnell is co-founder of Epione. After working together with Dr Dawn Harris on the development and delivery of a nationally accredited intervention programme from a trauma enhanced lens, they established Epione in 2018 to support the government vision: to create a trauma informed and responsive Scotland. They have delivered their British Psychological Society accredited trauma training to many thousands of professionals across Scotland, as well as collaborating with senior leaders to support their trauma informed strategic vision. Alex is a SSSC registered social worker with over 20 years’ experience in the Justice sector. Grounded in practice, he began his career specialising and working therapeutically with vulnerable young persons, before transitioning to adult Justice. He went on to manage and lead all services across justice social work. As a senior leader, he is an associate inspector with the Care Inspectorate. In 2018, his leadership interests saw him complete a postgraduate master’s degree with distinction on strategic leadership. Alex is also a qualified teacher of social work practice and has an extensive teacher – trainer portfolio, regularly providing university lecturer inputs. He was the 2019 winner of the Scottish Social Service Award for utilising current research to develop a multi-agency collaborative approach to addressing domestic abuse and enhancing family safety.
Workshop: Connectere
In keeping with the theme of belonging, Epione Training and Consultancy’s founders, Alex O’Donnell and Dr. Dawn Harris, will present an unmissable, interactive and experiential workshop on their pioneering trauma specific therapeutic group work programme, Connectere.
Drawing on the latest research and employing a compassion-focused therapeutic approach, the Connectere Programme is a neurophysiological and neurobiologically informed, trauma-responsive group work intervention designed to restore a sense of connection.
This interactive workshop will explore how the Connectere programme helps individuals within a groupwork setting restore safety, trust, and connection after trauma. We will provide participants with hands-on learning, real-world applications and results of the programme so far.
Join us at Epione Training and Consultancy and experience the transformative power of connection—because belonging isn’t an option, it’s a biological imperative!
Dr Dawn Harris
Clinical Psychologist and an Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society
About Dawn
Dr Dawn Harris is co-founder of Epione. She is a clinical and forensic psychologist and an Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society. She has worked in both the public and private sectors for over 25 years where she gained extensive experience of working with people who have experienced psychological trauma. Within the Justice sector, she has served on the Parole Board in Ireland and has significant experience of working within the prison setting and has designed trauma informed rehabilitative interventions for forensic settings, including a national treatment programme commissioned by the Scottish Government. She regularly completes psychological risk assessment reports for the High Court and other statutory bodies. More recently Dawn and Alex co-authored a trauma informed rehabilitative programme for men which draws upon the science of neurobiology and neurophysiology to understand the sequalae of their trauma. Dawn remains grounded in her own private clinical practice, which offers a range of psychotherapies for a range of people experiencing trauma and mental health problems. Dawn is a firm believer in the relational aspect of healing, with a focus on working within a blended framework of neuroscience and somatic-cognitive connection.
Workshop: Connectere
In keeping with the theme of belonging, Epione Training and Consultancy’s founders, Alex O’Donnell and Dr. Dawn Harris, will present an unmissable, interactive and experiential workshop on their pioneering trauma specific therapeutic group work programme, Connectere.
Drawing on the latest research and employing a compassion-focused therapeutic approach, the Connectere Programme is a neurophysiological and neurobiologically informed, trauma-responsive group work intervention designed to restore a sense of connection.
This interactive workshop will explore how the Connectere programme helps individuals within a groupwork setting restore safety, trust, and connection after trauma. We will provide participants with hands-on learning, real-world applications and results of the programme so far.
Join us at Epione Training and Consultancy and experience the transformative power of connection—because belonging isn’t an option, it’s a biological imperative!
Martin Melly
Operations Manager at Men Matter Scotland
About Martin
Martin I work alongside Fraser the Head of Operations and the rest of staff at Men Matter Scotland to provide peer to peer support to improve men’s mental health and wellbeing. I work on arranging a schedule of classes and activities and organise counselling for our members.
Kate Silverton
Author, Journalist & Child Therapist
About Kate
A much-loved and trusted broadcaster and journalist, Kate’s covered conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, rubbed shoulders with Hollywood’s finest at the Oscars, and shone brightly as one of the stars on Strictly Come Dancing. Now, with a bold career change and a return to her first passion, she’s a qualified child therapist and highly-celebrated best-selling author.
A qualified child counsellor, Kate now spends her time supporting her family, volunteering in clinical practice to support children with complex needs and working privately to help parents find their joy and harmony at home. She feels fortunate to have received support from her own therapists and has learned much from the world’s leading psychiatrists, psychotherapists, psychologists and neuroscientists in their fields.
Kate was compelled to write her two books, There’s No Such Thing as ‘Naughty’ and There’s STILL No Such Thing As ‘Naughty’, to share what she’s learned and help as many families as possible. Both Sunday Times best-sellers, she takes great joy in hearing from the families who share that their lives and the lives of their children have been transformed simply by feeling more understood and finding more harmony at home