Why Newberyl Exists

Our Story & Foundation

Newberyl Practice Support was founded on direct, lived experience of the care system and the front lines of social work.

Our founder grew up in the care system from the age of nine, later leaving as a care leaver to complete a first-class BA in Social Work and qualifying into children's services and adult mental health.

Across years of practice, working alongside some of the most compassionate people in the sector, a distinct pattern emerged. Practitioners who cared deeply about the families they served were not being cared for themselves. Quietly, behind closed doors, professionals would share the reality: the anxiety, the uncertainty, and the immense weight carried home. Yet there was a clear absence of safe, independent spaces to process this impact without fear of professional perception.

This reality intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic. While managing safeguarding duties, visiting high-risk homes, and navigating family breakdowns under unprecedented conditions, practitioners lacked external, psychologically safe environments to unpack the emotional toll without it appearing as an inability to cope with the job they loved.

Newberyl was established to bridge this exact gap.

We did not build Newberyl as a theoretical response to a documented problem, but as an independent practice infrastructure built entirely from the inside. We understand what it means to be both the child in the system and the professional carrying the case home.

Today, Newberyl designs services to address the systemic workforce challenges the sector faces year after year. While we are encouraged by modern developments like the Family Help model and practice pods, independent support remains vital. Social care professionals deserve an external space to process, grow, and build their identities — entirely protected from professional consequence.

Anita D
Founder & Principal Lead, Newberyl Practice Support