We did lots and lots of different exercises to help me think it all through. Sarah was amazing”
“I no longer dream of the past and what could have been”
Martin, 16 Years old
“What I enjoy most is working alongside children and/or their parents who are on their own, often challenging, journeys through the adoption landscape.”
Sarah Merrick
Sarah has worked in Scotland with care experienced children and young people since the 1990s, firstly with those living in residential schools and children’s homes. In 2000 Sarah completed her Masters and Diploma in Social Work and started working in local authorities. For the last 18 years Sarah has worked in fostering and adoption, increasingly specialising in adoption and undertaking therapeutic work with children and their families.
Sarah has completed qualifications in Counselling, Therapeutic Life Story Work, and Dan Hughes’ Dyadic Developmental Practice/ Parenting (Level one and two).
Alongside her adoption work Sarah has been a Practice Educator for university students and delivered training to students, adoptive parents and foster carers. More recently, Sarah has been providing reflective supervision for a number of teachers in Scotland who work with children and young people affected by trauma.
Sarah is a registered social worker with the Scottish Social Services Council, has an enhanced police check in place and is fully insured. Sarah receives regular clinical supervision.
Hi, I’m Sarah
As you might well be interested in thinking about and sharing your own life stories, I wanted to share a little about me and my journey. My story began in Wales. Like many people who migrate, my parents moved for work which led me to grow up with London on my doorstep. I found myself returning to my own roots in Wales to study languages and started working with children. With Welsh roots, rugby and singing made up an essential part of my upbringing!
My journey then took me across the world for many years, volunteering with street children in Central America and roaming our beautiful planet with a rucksack on my back. By accident, I found myself in Scotland whose beauty and people led to me finding my home for the last thirty years. The adventure started in Edinburgh, landing in Glasgow a few years later.
Having arrived with a rucksack all those years ago, I now have a home full of stuff, a career as an adoption social worker and life story worker, my two amazing teenage daughters and close friends at my side. Home, for me, is Scotland although frequent visits to Wales and London keep those parts alive. The travel bug has been passed on and my daughters and I are often exploring interesting parts of the globe. Such wonderings also allow me to keep up with my French and Spanish language skills.
These days, when not working, I can usually be found wondering around the countryside north of Glasgow where I live, sometimes on a bike other times swimming the lochs (well, in the 8 weeks that pass as our summer!). If not, continuing to explore our great cities and hunting out the Scottish folk music scene. Music is part of me, and something I often bring in to working with children.
“My life story journey took a long time and it was hard at times learning about my past. We did lots and lots of different exercises to help me think it all through. Sarah was amazing; we visited streets I had lived in, met my old foster parents and bit by bit it made sense. We drew a giant family tree together with pictures..I no longer dream of the past and what could have been, I see how great my Mum and Dad are!”
Martin, 16 year old
“It was a long process, and at times I felt it wouldn’t end! However, whenever Martin was upset when learning something new about his family, Sarah was there at the end of the phone to talk it through and help me know what to say. She was also in touch with the school and really helped Martin’s teacher to understand why he was behaving in the way he did. Now, it is amazing, we are 12 months on from when we started the process and Martin and I are so so close. He is focusing on college and wants to become a social worker! We still talk about his birth family and he is sometimes a little sad, but it no longer causes him upset. He has all the answers.”
Martin’s Mum
“My sessions with Sarah have been so thought provoking and insightful. They have made think the reasons why Aisha (5) might well be behaving as she is which then led me change how I respond to her. Most of all, Sarah has helped me see that none of this is my fault, I always blamed myself. I thought I was a ‘bad’ parent and should never have adopted Aisha, I thought I had let her down. Nor is it Aisha’s fault and together we are moving forward. It’s amazing really as Sarah didn’t even meet with Aisha, just spent time with me. She was always just there to help and stuck with us. I can’t thank her enough.”
Raahima, Aisha’s adoptive Mum.
Services Include
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Life Story Support
Supporting children and young people with their life stories is a journey throughout their childhood.
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Therapeutic Life Story Work
For some children, young people and adults, their life story might impact on their day-to-day life.
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Adoption & Family Assessments & Support
With Sarah’s knowledge of attachment, trauma and 30 years of working within childcare services in Scotland she is well placed to assess and plan the right support.
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Training & Reflective Supervision, Independent Social Worker Services
Training can be provided for carers, adoptive parents, and professionals. This could be individually tailored around the needs of the group.
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