The Implementing Recovery project team - biographies

Professor Geoff Shepherd

Professor Geoff Shepherd trained originally as a clinical psychologist. He has worked most of his professional career in mental health services in the NHS as a practitioner, manager and researcher, working mainly with people who have long-term and complex conditions.

He has also worked outside the NHS. From 1994-1997, he was Head of Research for the Sainsbury Centre in London (now Centre for Mental Health) and from 1997-2002, Chief Executive of the Health Advisory Service. In 1996, he was made visiting Professor of Mental Health Rehabilitation in the Health Service and Population Research Department at the Institute of Psychiatry. His last job in the NHS (2002-2006) was as Director of Partnerships & Service Development for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Mental Health Foundation trust.

He has a longstanding interest in work and employment issues for people with mental health problems and is now co-leading a project based at the Centre for Mental Health exploring the problems of implementing more recovery-oriented services. He also works one day a week providing technical support and advice to mental health inreach teams in local prisons and undertakes other consultancy work.

Dr Rachel Perkins

With a background in clinical psychology, Rachel Perkins worked in mental health services for 30 years in a range of positions including Clinical Director of Adult Mental Health Services and, latterly, Director of Quality Assurance and User Experience at South West London & St. George's Mental Health NHS Trust. She is now a freelance consultant and a member of the Supporting Recovery through organisational change project team. She is also a long term user of mental health services and has had a number of national advisory roles. Currently she is a member of the UK Government Office for Disability issues advisory group (Equality 2025) and Mind's Commission of Enquiry into Acute and Crisis Care.

In 2009, Rachel was commissioned by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions to lead an independent review into how Government might better support people with mental health problems to gain work and prosper in employment (Realising ambitions: Better employment support for people with a mental health condition, December 2009).

She has written and spoken widely about recovery and social inclusion for people with mental health conditions and has pioneered the UK development of programmes to help people with mental health difficulties to access employment and education based on the Individual Placement with Support approach, including one designed increase employment opportunities within mental health services for people who have themselves experienced mental health problems.

In 2010, she was awarded an OBE for services to mental health and voted Mind Champion of the Year. Her latest book, written with Julie Repper, is Social Inclusion and Recovery: A Model for Mental Health Practice (2003) Edinburgh: Bailliere Tindall.

Miles Rinaldi

Miles Rinaldi is the Head of Recovery and Social Inclusion at South West London & St George's Mental Health NHS Trust. Since working within mental health he has established employment services to help people with mental health problems gain and retain employment which have been recognised as models of good practice. More recently he has been working to implement recovery-focused practice across the Trust. In a previous role, Miles co-ordinated and evaluated a self-management training programme for people with bipolar disorder across London.

Miles has worked on mental health policy in the Social Exclusion Unit (Office of the Deputy Prime Minister), the Department of Health, the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit (Cabinet Office) and more recently in the Department for Work and Pensions. He has also conducted service evaluations and research with over 15 peer reviewed publications.

Miles has worked in various mental health settings within the voluntary sector, a local authority and the NHS. He has also worked as a volunteer on a national mental health telephone helpline and as a co-ordinator for the welfare unit at the Glastonbury Music Festival.

Dr Julie Repper

Dr Julie Repper is currently Recovery Lead in Nottinghamshire Healthcare Trust, Associate Professor of Recovery and Social Inclusion at University of Nottingham, User and Carer Engagement Fellow for CLAHRC-NDL and Director of two service user-led voluntary sector groups.

Julie works collaboratively with people who have lived experience to develop innovative training, research and service developments to facilitate Recovery. She is currently leading the development of Peer Support Workers' training and employment in her local services. Julie has written widely, of most relevance is the book she co-authored with Rachel Perkins: Social Inclusion and Recovery: A Model for Mental Health Practice (2003) Edinburgh: Bailliere Tindall.

Dr Jed Boardman

Dr Jed Boardman is a Senior Policy Adviser at the Centre for Mental Health. He works as a Consultant Psychiatrist and Senior Lecturer in Social Psychiatry at South London and Maudsley Trust and the Institute of Psychiatry and was Clinical Advisor to the Healthcare Commission.

He was Chair of the General and Community Faculty of the Royal College of Psychiatrists and is now lead for Social Inclusion at the Royal College of Psychiatrists where he advises on employment and welfare benefit matters. He chaired the Royal College of Psychiatrists Social Inclusion Scoping Group and in 2010 published a book on Social Inclusion and Mental Health.

He has published widely on Social and Community Psychiatry. His research interests include the Epidemiology of Mental Disorders, Psychological Disorders in General Practice, Evaluation of Psychiatric Services, Recovery and Employment. He undertakes work on mental disorders in Uganda.