header

Lloyd owen Phd – social worker and consultant in social welfare practice, policy and education

EARLY YEARS Lloyd grew up in East Kew, Melbourne, Australia. Youngest child of World War I veteran of the Western Front, Stan Owen MM and Celia Owen. Educated at Deepdene Primary, East Kew Central, Melbourne High School and Taylors College. Later completed degrees and other postgraduate qualifications at University of Melbourne, Monash University, RMIT and La Trobe University   Considerable involvement with youth and social welfare activities much of which was associated with the Presbyterian Church and its youth arm the PFA. Conscripted into National Service in 1959-60 20 National Service Training Battalion and subsequently served in the Citizen Military Forces until May 1966 in 2 Field Regiment Royal Australian Artillery. He was employed also at this time in claims management roles in the Colonial Mutual Fire and the Royal Insurance Companies leaving eventually in 1968 to pursue university studies to qualify in Social Work.

YOUTH WELFARE AND SOCIAL WELFARE Involvement in youth activities led to connection with the Social Welfare field initially through Presbyterian Social Services and Harrison House. With his wife Faye and emerging family some time was spent in a Kildonan family group home at Syndal caring for two teenagers.  While studying, employment shifted to the Victorian Public Service and continued for 24 years in the various incarnations of the Social Welfare Department (now Department of Human Services). Initial employment in the Youth Welfare Division led to a sequence of management posts in the institutions for children and young people then administered by the Department Allambie, Baltara, Turana, Winlaton, Malmsbury, Langi Kal Kal and the associated non government Bayswater Youth Training Centre. These Institutions had statewide responsibilities catering for children in need of care and protection, wards of the State and young offenders up to the age of 21. Work also included some overarching responsibilities for the institutions and community based services, some head office roles and some experience in adult corrections. From 1985 until 1990 a shift occurred to Regional Services with CEO positions in the Outer Eastern and North Eastern Metropolitan Regions. This included responsibility for a wide range of primary, secondary and tertiary welfare services covering all age groups and portfolio roles in relation to disability services. It also included acting in advisory roles to the Youth Parole Board, the Victorian Government White Paper on Social Welfare, the Premier’s Working Party on the Drug Problem in Victoria, the Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges Planning Authority and in the Plenty Valley Corridor Development Planning, chairing a committee  concerned with the coordination of planning for health, education and welfare services.

COMMUNITY WORK AND CSO ACTIVITY In parallel and subsequent to the above, a variety of voluntary roles were undertaken including Professional support to a detached youth outreach worker in South Port Melbourne, President of the Nunawading Youth Adult Bureau a drop in centre in Forest Hill Shopping Centre, guest lecturer at various universities, institutes of higher education and training courses for youth and child care officers, An association began in the late 1980s with the publications committee of the National Children’s Bureau of Australia and its quarterly journal Australian Child and Family Welfare. It had a national focus for the child, youth and family welfare field. The NCBA later became part of OZ Child and the journal renamed Children Australia  www.ozchild.org.au . Lloyd remained as Editor from 1989 until 2005. Other community related activities include some years on the Board of Kildonan Child and Family Services, member of organizing committees for a number of conferences  on child protection, foster care and out of home care, community representative on the City of Boroondara Community Development Plan, member Take Two Research Advisory Committee, Member of the Statewide reference group for the Looking After Children Project, Selection Panel Member for Victorian Therapeutic Residential Care  Program.There has also been a return to the field working with youth homelessness in Geelong and some work in relation to child protection, out of home care and youth justice. He is currently a Board Member for Barwon Child, Youth & Family (BCYF) and BAYSA Housing. He has had considerable involvement in the development of an early intervention program for young people at risk of homelessnes and leaving school early. Titled The Geelong Project the operating model is now seen as a community of schools and services and a collective impact approach. With evidence of success the model is being picked up interstate and internationally.

TEACHING AND RESEARCH IN SOCIAL WORK An academic career commenced in 1990 first as a visiting lecturer at La Trobe University Bundoora Campus Victoria and then a series of senior lecturer contracts until 2003. Teaching included Program Design and Evaluation, Juvenile Justice and Youth Welfare, Social Policy, Social Policy in Developing Countries, .Research and Information Management, Individual and Social Contexts of Social Work Practice. Considerable consul;tancy and contract research included substantial disability projects, some drug and alcohol programs, staff support and supervision in relationship counselling and international; work in addition to a variety of projects in child youth and family welfare. Some casual teaching and field work education and liaison has been undertaken since with La Trobe University, Deakin University and Charles Sturt University.  PhD studies in relation to good practice and services for young people who challenge the service system has been completed with La Trobe University. There has been a five year appointment as Adjunct Senior Lecturer in the School of Social Work and Social Policy at La Trobe University in 2011 followed by appointment as an Honorary Fellow in the School of Health and Social Development at Deakin University Waterfront Campus Geelong.