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Imagine a world where we don’t just pull kids out of the river but walk upstream to stop them falling in. That’s the shift we make with Professor Julie Taylor, a leading nurse scientist whose work bridges health, social care, and the lived realities of families under pressure. Together we unpack child maltreatment as a public health challenge, not only a forensic problem, and explore what actually moves the needle on safety and wellbeing.

We dig into the socioecological model to map the layers that shape risk and protection: personal histories, family systems, schools, neighbourhoods, services, and policy. Julie reintroduces salutogenesis, the science of what creates health, to rebalance a field that can lean too hard on deficits. Instead of glorifying grit, we ask which supports make resilience possible: stable adults, predictable routines, inclusive classrooms, accessible care, and communities that offer belonging. From universal home visiting to parenting support embedded in trusted relationships, we look at why sustained, long-term help outperforms short, intensive bursts.

The conversation also takes on the “shiny program” problem and the evidence gap. We talk practical evaluation, data linkage, and why frontline teams need smaller caseloads, reflective supervision, and time to think. Then we zoom out to big levers. While poverty doesn’t cause abuse, it magnifies stress and chaos; reducing poverty, expanding paid parental leave, improving affordable childcare, and stabilising housing can lower risk at scale. No magic bullet exists, but a public health approach—paired with realistic investment in people and systems—can build social capital across generations.

If you care about prevention, policy, and the everyday craft of helping families, this conversation offers clarity and momentum. Follow the show, share it with a colleague, and leave a review with the one upstream change you’d fund first. Your insight might spark the next step forward.

Julie’s Bio:

Professor Julie Taylor is Head of the School of Nursing and Midwifery at the University of Birmingham, UK.

Julie is a nurse scientist specialising in child maltreatment and has extensive research experience with vulnerable populations using a wide range of qualitative and participative methods. Her research programme is concentrated at the interface between health and social care and is largely underpinned by the discourse of cumulative harm and the exponential effects of living with multiple adversities. In particular her work has concentrated on child neglect. 

Professor Taylor has given evidence at a number of inquiries and parliamentary groups and has served frequently on both funding and editorial boards.  She has authored ten books and over 150 academic articles on child abuse and neglect.

Disclaimer

Information reported by guests of this podcast is assumed to be accurate as stated. Podcast owner Colby Pearce is not responsible for any error of facts presented by podcast guests. In addition, unless otherwise specified, opinions expressed by guests of this podcast may not reflect those of the podcast owner, Colby Pearce.

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