Rowena McIntosh

Rowena has practiced as a social worker for over a decade, primarily with women involved with the justice system. She is extremely passionate about working with clients in a trauma-informed manner which is holistic, empowering and underpinned by understandings of neurobiology and therapeutic models. Rowena has undertaken extensive professional development in working with complex trauma, including completion of basic Mentalization Based Therapy training with the Anna Freud Centre and accreditation as a facilitator of NHS Education Scotland’s safety and stabilization psychoeducational course Survive and Thrive. As an experienced facilitator of learning, Rowena has delivered training in trauma-informed approaches and in supporting those impacted by gender-based violence for a number of years and she derives great enjoyment from coaching and mentoring others, as well as working closely with colleagues across disciplines, particularly within psychological therapy services.

Rowena’s drive to contribute to a more trauma-responsive society has led her to pursue a number of opportunities out with frontline social work practice. Between 2018 and 2022 she served as a member of the Board of Directors at Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre where she held responsibility for scrutiny of the governance, operations and functioning of the organisation through a trauma-informed lens. From 2021 to 2023 Rowena also spent some time seconded to the improvement Service where in the role of Trauma Project Manager she worked closely with the Scottish Government, NHS Education for Scotland and COSLA to support local authorities in implementing trauma-responsive approaches across their systems, processes and workforces. Rowena believes passionately in the role of trauma-informed systems and the importance of organisational values, structures and leadership in being foundational to achieving optimum trauma-informed knowledge and skills of individuals. This perspective and contextualisation of what it means to be truly trauma-responsive is one Rowena aspires to bring to her facilitation of trauma learning and training in order to best empower and support individuals, teams and organisations in their development journey.