Pene Turnell
Pene’s 11 years as a child protection practitioner coincided with the Western Australian child protection department’s state-wide implementation of the Signs of Safety. After leaving the department, Pene took on the role of International Executive Director of Signs of Safety practice for Elia International. In this role, Pene led the continual development of the Signs of Safety practice approach and the implementation and learning methods that support it. Pene now works alongside Andrew Turnell in their own consultancy business Turnell Plus.
Since 2016 Pene has led or been involved in the most significant Signs of Safety innovations including:
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Developing an advanced Words and Pictures training programme
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Developing the Harm Analysis Matrix
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Refining the Whole System Learning Case method
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Developing Practice Intensive methodologies to close the gap between training and applying the approach in everyday agency practice and workflow
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Involvement in developing the Signs of Safety Information Recording system.


The focus of Pene’s work has always centered on bringing parents, children and safety networks into the centre of the safety planning work. Pene is passionate about creating Words and Pictures explanations and rigorous safety planning with parents and naturally connected support networks. and applying this work in the most challenging cases, most particularly domestic violence and coercive control cases. Pene has learnt many of her skills from Susie Essex the Systemic Family Therapist who created the safety planning methods she teaches. Pene has been at the centre of whole system implementations in Ireland, the Northern Territory, Cambodia and York and continues to offer training and consultancy internationally in North America, Europe, UK, Asia and Australia.

