Norma Brier

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Biographical Information

"Norma Brier was Chief Executive of Norwood from 1996-2011. As Chief Executive Norma was Norwood’s most senior member of staff. Norma led the merger of Norwood and Ravenswood Foundation, of which she was previously Executive Director. Her background includes work as a psychiatric social worker, lecturer and community service development.

"She has sat on several important representative and consultative bodies, including the Learning Disability Advisory Group (comprising of representatives from the field of learning disability) which established a strategy for learning disability on behalf of the Department of Health and the Minister of Health and led to the publication of the White Paper ‘Valuing People’ in 2002. She was also a member of the National Required Standards Advisory Group (also for the Department of Health) which established the new National Standards for Care for the inspection and regulation of services for disabled adults and young people. In 2000-1 Norma sat as a panel member of the Independent Inquiry into Paediatric Cardiac Services at the Royal Brompton and Harefied Hospitals.

"Norma was a trustee of Sense, the national organisation for sensory impairment in children and adults and in 2005 she was appointed a Trustee of NCVCCO (National Council for Voluntary Childcare Organisations). Norma is a member of the VODG (Voluntary Organisations Disability Group) a national umbrella body for all disability organisations which she chaired for 3 years.

"Since 2001, Norma has been instrumental in developing services for children with learning disabilities in Belarus where Norwood’s partnership venture with World Jewish Relief led to the opening of Novi Dom in 2006. This is a pioneering service providing special education and respite care for children aged 11-19 with learning disabilities who previously would have remained at home or in institutions. The Belarusian Government has used Novi Dom as a beacon service for future special educational developments."