Mike Ward
Mike is Senior Consultant at Alcohol Change UK. He comes from a social work background and was working in alcohol outreach in the 1980s in London. He founded and led Surrey Alcohol and Drug Advisory Service which still exists 31 years later and has worked for Cranstoun and Kent Council on Addiction. He was formerly Commissioning Manager (Mental Health & Substance Misuse) for Surrey Social Services. He is now a full-time consultant and trainer. Mike has worked in the substance misuse/mental health field for over thirty-five years. He wrote the Department of Health/NTA guidelines on running drug death review systems and is one of the two key drivers behind the Blue Light project. He is the author of two safeguarding adult reviews and co-wrote Learning from tragedies.
James Upton
James has worked with adults and children in substance use treatment, children in care, youth offending and in social care. He has provided substance misuse training across young people’s services. James completed his master’s degree in social work and worked as a Children’s Social Worker in Derby and Derbyshire.
James is a member of MINT (Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers) and has delivered across a range of services and areas including Substance Misuse, Children’s Services (Social Care and Multi-agency Teams) and Youth Offending Teams.
James lectured in Health and Social Care before setting up as a Freelance Motivational Interviewing and Safeguarding Consultant and Trainer. His 22 years working with Children, Young People and their families across five Local Authorities, has given him a wealth of knowledge and experience which he now brings to life in training.
At the heart of his approach to training is his compassionate approach and the belief that a collaborative approach to working with people to affect change in their lives works best.
Lauren Booker
Lauren has worked for over 18 years in the alcohol sector. She is an experienced Alcohol Change UK consultant, working with the charity since 2009. Lauren specialises in supporting the private sector to reduce alcohol-related harm and promote employee wellbeing. Her clients include British Telecom, Allianz Global, the Royal Navy and Eversheds Sutherland.
Lauren also regularly advises firms on the development and implementation of effective alcohol policies and supporting employees with alcohol problems. She is a qualified alcohol treatment practitioner and has extensive experience as an addiction counsellor. She is also a passionate advocate for recovery coaching and wellbeing promotion and helps businesses of all sizes to minimise the impact of alcohol on their workforce.
She has advised the government on the development of a model alcohol policy for employers and is an experienced speaker at national wellbeing events. Lauren is also a highly effective trainer, delivering courses on all aspects of alcohol, health and wellbeing.
Lauren is also one of the founders of the Dry January® movement and author of Try Dry®: The Official Guide to a Month Off Booze. She is a prolific blogger and spokesperson on alcohol.
