Andrew Keefe
Dipsw, MA (econ) Crime, Law & Society, MBA
Andrew is a Registered Social Worker and a Principal Consultant with us. His career in health and social care began in the mid 1980’s when he moved to the then West Germany to establish and run an independent sector ‘drop in’ centre for homeless young people. Since returning to the UK he has worked in a range of statutory Health and Social Care environments including both community and inpatient facilities as both a practitioner and a manager.
After completing his social work training in 1995 he went on to complete his ASW training whilst working within Tameside’s joint Mental Health Services – working in their Ethno-sensitive Mental Health Unit. In 1998 he moved to work at Ashworth High Secure Hospital, initially as a Senior Social Worker within the Personality Disorder Service, working with some of the UK’s most challenging and high profile cases, before moving in 2000 to work exclusively within Ashworth’s Women’s Service as a senior manager. In both roles he was closely involved in and led many Quality, Risk and Governance Forums and Serious Untoward Incident Case Reviews. As the Clinical Manager of the Women’s Service he was also closely involved in the re-provision of care away from High Secure Services and the closure of the Women’s Service at Ashworth.
In 2003 joined NIMHE North West (later CSIP) as the Service Improvement Lead for the region with specific responsibility for the Access, Booking and Choice agenda as well as being the NIMHE NW’s Substance Misuse Lead for the Region and the Client Manager for two mental health provider trusts. Andrew joined Mental Health Strategies in the spring of 2005 and since then – as well as completing his MBA – he has led a wide range of projects spanning the domains of: mental health and wellbeing; learning disabilities; alcohol and substance misuse services; and employment services.
These projects include:
• numerous commissioning strategies across each of the above domains – including complex care/dual diagnosis strategies
• whole system, service, and care pathways reviews across the health and social care spectrum
many service improvement and service redesign projects
• stakeholder engagement and formal public consultation projects
• complex option appraisals all completed in an inclusive manner whilst achieving decisive outcomes
• fulfilling the role of commissioner on an interim basis for a City PCT
• providing bespoke client focused projects include the development of a joint communication strategy, a joint workforce plan, market assessments, business cases and marketing plans (for both statutory and independent sector providers), and many team and organisational development projects
Andrew also contributes to the teaching on postgraduate mental health programmes at the University of Manchester (School of Nursing, Midwifery and Social Work). He has an engaging and inclusive manner with a strong emphasis on improving services from the service user and their carer’s viewpoint. From this value base he brings his creative and critical mind to engaging commissioners and service providers in improving their performance and outcomes.
He is married, lives in Stalybridge, and has two adult children.
