Meet The Team

Sarah Lonbay Professor of Social Sciences and Social Care at the University of Sunderland and a Research Fellow in the multimorbidity, ageing and frailty theme of the NIHR Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) for North East and North Cumbria (NENC), based at the Helen McArdle Nursing and Care Research Institute.
Her research interests are related to engagement and participation, adult abuse and safeguarding, trauma, older people and ageing, mental health, adult social care, empowerment, and vulnerability.

Carole Southall is a qualified Social Worker and spent 20 years in practice as a social worker in adult services, an Approved Social Worker under the Mental Health Act 1983 and a team manager in Community Mental Health Services.

Carole has a long standing interest in mental health , mental capacity and adult safeguarding and teaches in these areas at Northumbria University, with a strong focus on the rights of the individual.

Carole is published in children’s mental Health and adult social care and her research interests include mental capacity, mental health and adult safeguarding. Carole has been a core member of the SAFE research team since the very beginning of the project and provides support and advice on many aspects of the research.

As CEO of Made By Mortals (MBM), Paul has supported hundreds of people with a broad range of lived experience to bring their experience to life through participatory arts practice, producing films, audio stories, theatre, music, and interactive workshops. Under Paul’s leadership and using Made By Mortals approach, MBM has won numerous awards.
Paul is currently co-lead and PPI lead on multiple health and social care research projects and Made By Mortals are delivering their creative approach across the research and health and social care sector.
For more information on MBM: Home – made by mortals

Jamie has been part of the SAFE team from its beginnings and has a particular interest in adult law for social workers and mental health. His engagement with the University of Sunderland started in 2001 when he enrolled as a student on a social work course. He has worked in various social work teams over the years and enjoys opportunities to develop his professional skills and knowledge. He qualified as an Approved Mental Health professional in 2012 and a Best Interest Assessor in 2014. He became a Lecturer at the University in 2020.

Keith joined the SAFE team in April 2024 from his role as Lived Experience Insight Lead at Victim Support where he sought to help the voices of victims of crime be heard in the criminal justice system. He has a background in sociology and has previously been involved in projects in education, the sociology of religious groups, and with child abuse survivors. Keith is also currently William Leech fellow and lead researcher on a related project examining safety and safeguarding of older people in Christian communities.
In addition to his research work at Sunderland he also continues to work in conflict resolution as a mediator.

After 30+ years in the corporate video sector Martin is now semi-retired, but with a rewarding new career, as part of Sunderland University’s Patient, Carer & Public Involvement team and has been a member of the SAFE team from the beginning.

Martin says: “I believe my title is an; ‘Expert by Experience’. However, I see it more as; ‘committed’ because of experience. That commitment was borne out of my own ‘journey’ as an advocate for both parents (and other relatives) to safely navigate the good, and less good, of health and social care. So I’m excited to see where the research leads us, and what we achieve as a team.”

Martin demonstrates his disregard for the odds by being a faithful supporter of Sunderland AFC and is deeply passionate about his new career as a grandparent, having 4 grandchildren under the age of 3 years.

Following roles with Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service and Bury Safeguarding Partnership, James joined the Oldham Safeguarding Adults Board (OSAB) Business Unit in April 2020.

OSAB is a statutory multi-agency partnership responsible for leading strategic and operational safeguarding adults work within Oldham to make sure adults at risk are cared for somewhere free from abuse and harassment, in their daily lives. James is responsible for strategic business planning processes and the legal operations of the Board and facilitating links with services and multi-agency partnerships across Oldham to promote and embed adult safeguarding practice. James is also the main point of contact for the Board’s business programme and strategy, data, and service user engagement mechanisms.

James contributes adult safeguarding expertise to the SAFE Project research team and facilitates the involvement of Oldham’s partner agencies and residents.