Course Director - Moving and Handling

Norma Findlay

A highly skilled health care professional, Norma has many years’ experience working as a Specialist Occupational Therapist, Manual Handling Consultant, Risk Assessor and Expert Witness. She has expertise in complex care needs working with infants, children through to adulthood and old age; She has worked as a Moving and Handling trainer with Training for Care since 2009 taking on the role of course director in 2015.

Norma works with children and adults who have an acquired brain injury, spinal injury, complex orthopaedic injury and other complex neurological conditions including Functional Neurological Disorders. She has many years’ experience working as a case manager arranging care packages working with care teams and problem solving in complex moving and handling situations. She has a specialist interest in postural care and proportionate handling. Norma has a passion for improving care by designing and developing training relevant to delegates area of practice and facilitating compliance with legislation.

Moving and Handling Trainer

Marian Barry

An experienced Allied Health Professional since 1999, Marian has over two decades of working in the community field as an Occupational Therapist (OT) in a range of roles. Marian was a senior manager of a busy integrated community care team from 2004 until 2021. She gained an excellent knowledge base in assessing the needs of adults with complex care needs and has expert skills in equipment provision, major housing adaptations, manual handling and care at home provision. She has worked with clients who have a number of clinical conditions over the years. Marian has also undertaken competency assessing in relation to moving an handling and has a passion for moving for this. She has been part of the team at TFC since 2016. She looks forward to sharing her passion and experience with participants that join her courses!

Moving and Handling Trainer

Katie Magennis

Katie BHSc (Hons) Occupational Therapy; member of the Health and Care Professions Council and Royal College of Occupational Therapists. Katie has been a practising occupational therapist for 24 years specialising in working with people who have complex physical needs. She currently works part-time as a manual handling advisor for NHS Lothian, predominantly providing training for students at Edinburgh Napier University. Latterly Katie worked as a Community Occupational Therapist for 13 years within The City of Edinburgh Council. She also has experience of working in community and hospital roles throughout other parts of the UK and Australia

Moving and Handling Trainer

Barnes Young

An experienced care professional, Barnes has many years of experience working as an Occupational Therapist and a Manual Handling Assessor. His expertise includes coordinating therapies, managing care packages, and overseeing major adaptations and equipment needs. He specialises in complex care requirements, including manual handling and postural care assessment and training.

He works with adults in their own homes who have various physical disabilities resulting from medical conditions, progressive illnesses, and life-changing injuries. Additionally, he has experience supporting individuals with enduring mental health challenges and cognitive impairments.

Barnes collaborates closely with care providers, offering advice and guidance to carers on the safe handling of individuals in home environments.

Moving and Handling Trainer

Kym Taylor

Coming Soon!

Course Director - Epilepsy & Administration of Medication

John Foley

RMN, RGN, RNMH, Dip Comm H, Member of ESNA, Member of the Epilepsy Task Force, Founder Member of Scottish Professionals Epilepsy Network.

John was a Lead Nurse Specialist for people who have epilepsy and a learning disability in the Lothian Health Area. He played a leading part in the development of the Lothian Health training standards in the administration of rectal diazepam and remains closely involved in developing training programmes in Epilepsy Care and Rescue Medication Administration for all staff involved in the care of people with epilepsy.

He was also a visiting lecturer in Community Health and Epilepsy Care in universities throughout Great Britain..

First Aid Trainer

Susie Ledson

After studying learning and development at Edinburgh College, Susie worked with individuals to help them develop life skills, customer service, and sales skills across various professions.

This was followed by delivering Moving & Handling and other care-related training for Bupa in their care homes. Since 2016, she has been conducting First Aid training within the care and hospitality industries.

Dementia Trainer

Natasha Hamilton

HNC Counselling, currently studying towards her HND Counselling and is a student member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy. Natasha is a Dementia Awareness Trainer with the professional skills of a counsellor and lived experience of caring for dementia. Her mother was diagnosed with dementia at the age of 56 in 2014 and Natasha has tirelessly campaigned for better awareness and support ever since. She is currently the lead campaigner on the proposed law, Annes Law (named after her mother) and a core member of the group Care Home Relatives Scotland. The group campaign to ensure care home residents have the legal right to have access to family, safely during any future lockdowns. Natasha regularly shares her knowledge and experience on this topic at conferences and events. Natasha also has SVQ Level 3 in Management.

Adult Support and Protection Training Facilitato

Graham Chesters

I am an experienced facilitator specialising in providing training on Adult Support and Protection guidance and legislation to the Voluntary Sector, Third Sector, public sector, private sector and the NHS.

I have worked in statutory social work for over 30 years within criminal justice, youth justice, childcare, learning disabilities, older adult care and mental health services. This has brought me into contact with the full range of agencies working within the statutory, voluntary and private sector that provide care and support to the vulnerable.

I am a qualified Mental Health Officer, responsible for the care, support and detention of people with significant mental health issues.

As a mental Health Officer I have worked as lead council officer with responsibility for managing and implementing adult support and protection policies and legislation across a number of local authorities.

My wide experience and understanding of Adult Support and Protection legislation means that I am able to adapt Adult Support and Protection training to the specific needs of any client group within the care sector.

First Aid for Mental Health Trainer

Ann Jack

‘I am a dedicated Mental Health First Aid Instructor and Workplace Wellbeing Consultant with over five years experience delivering impactful training across a range of sectors. My journey into mental health education was shaped by personal lived experience and a deep understanding of the stigma that often surrounds mental illness, especially in professional environments.

My approach is to combine deep personal insight with recognised frameworks to create meaningful learning experiences. I bring empathy, authenticity, and a wealth of knowledge to my training sessions, empowering individuals and organisations to create healthier, more supportive workplaces. Driven by a strong passion for both mental health awareness and workplace wellbeing, I am committed to helping teams build cultures where mental health is a priority and people feel safe to thrive.’

Child Protection Awareness Training

Debbie Reilly-Davidson

Debbie has a MSc Post Grad Certificate in Child Welfare and Protection, BA Hons in Social Sciences/Psychology, obtained a Diploma in Social Work in 2004 and a Diploma in Management in 2009.

Debbie has worked as a Social Worker with Children, Young People, and Families from 2004 to 2016 as well as within the Out of Hours Social Work Service from 2012 to 2019 as a Social Worker and more recently from 2023 as a Co-Ordinator, in the Child Care, Adult Care, Mental Health, and Criminal Justice services. She has worked as a Senior Practitioner within Children and Families Social Work team.

Debbie is currently a Team Leader in a Child Protection team for a Local Authority, an independent consultant on Social Care and a Social Work Practice Teacher, working in universities supporting students.