John Harrison Thurlbeck's Page

Where do you live and work (City)?

Sunderland, Tyne and Wear

What are your top professional skills?

Leadership and Management Development
Performance Management
Facilitation
Coaching and Training
Change Management

What kinds of management education and development services are you involved in?

Enabling professional teams to work more collaboratively and effectively

What is your main interest in the AMED network?

education, inspiration, personal development

Please share your favourite management development insight or quote.

"Leadership is doing the thing right; management is doing the right thing!"

What kind of person are you?

24-7

More about you (Short Bio or any other details you’d like people to know)

John H Thurlbeck, FRSA is Managing Director of Wear Consulting Limited, an organisation and management development consultancy based in the North East. He has traded since September 2003 and has worked extensively with a range of local authority youth services, voluntary and community sector organisations and Connexions services.

John’s passionate commitment to working with and for young people has been evident since becoming a part-time volunteer in 1972. Following full-time qualification as a teacher and youth and community worker in 1978, he worked for Kent, Sandwell, Hereford and Worcester and, during the seven years 1996-2003, as Head of Youth, Community Development, Adult Education and Play Services in his hometown of Sunderland, where he is now based.

In his professional career in local government work, John has chaired a number of regional and sub-regional bodies, including the North East Regional Youth and Community Committee and the North-east regional association of Principal Youth and Community Officers; and also served as a member of the National Youth Agency’s advisory council.

In the past six years, besides working for a number of local authorities and agencies, John has also been contracted to work with FPM, as their lead consultant on the 13-19 agenda; the Government Office North East; various regional youth work units; The National Youth Agency (NYA); and, for several months, John was the Youth Matters strategic policy advisor for the Children’s Workforce Development Council (CWDC). He is also a member of the preferred consultancy panels for both The NYA and The CWDC; as well as an associate of CMEurope and Cameron Consulting organisations; and a member of the IDeA group on Outcomes-Based Accountability.

John is currently engaged part-time as the interim Head of Service for Manchester City Council Youth Service, leading their move towards delivering effective integrated working through an Integrated Youth Support Service model. Further details can be viewed via John’s profile on the Skillfair website – www.skillfair.co.uk – and he can be contacted on wearconsulting@gmail.com or on 07958-765972 or 0191-415-9573.

What I’d like from the AMED network is…

The opportunity to hear about the work of colleagues and other interesting developments in our field.

What do you do for your own development?

I regularly invest in my personal CPD - either through attendance at relevant courses, seminars and workshops or by reading or by 'on-the'job' experiences.

I am currently reading 'Presence - exploring profound change in people, organisations and societies' by Peter Senge et al.