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Sandra Garner is a Life Story Social Worker with the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Here, she shares some of the Creative Life Story Work activities and tools she’s found useful in her day-to-day work.
As a Life Story Social Worker for the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, no two days are the same and curiosity, creativity, connection, and collaboration are central to what I do.
My core focus is always on helping care-experienced children and young people make sense of their journeys and feel more connected to their personal stories.
A large part of my role involves offering consultation, guidance, advice, and training to the adults who support these children – social workers, students, foster carers, adopters, independent reviewing officers, and others with an interest in life story work.
On a typical day, I may be supporting colleagues in developing thoughtful life story books, or collaborating with key people in a child’s life to create life story books myself, particularly books for younger children; working on complex life stories with colleagues; or undertaking therapeutic life story work sessions directly with children and their carers.
Much of my time is spent tailoring approaches to meet the unique needs of each child, ensuring their identity remains central throughout the process.
I’m also actively working to raise awareness of life story work across the borough – championing it as more than just a task to complete, but a vital, empowering process that helps children feel seen, heard, and truly understood.
It brings together a wealth of life story work ideas, tools, and inspiration in one accessible place – whether through blogs, podcasts, or direct work resources.
I particularly value the way the resources are grounded in a deep understanding of the emotional needs of care experienced children. I regularly draw on the membership in both my training delivery and one-to-one sessions with children, carers, and professionals. The materials are practical, thoughtful, and really bring the work to life.
What I appreciate most is their flexibility – you can use the resources in structured, therapeutic contexts or incorporate them into everyday conversations. They promote safety, connection, and creativity, which strongly aligns with my approach to this work.
I really like how the resources are broken down into small, manageable activities, each with clear guidance. This makes it much easier to engage with, especially for workers who may feel unsure or overwhelmed.
Some of the bitesize activities I’ve found particularly useful include ‘My Shoes’, and those on the themes of ‘People in My Life’, and ‘This Is Me’. These are fantastic for early sessions when trust is still being established. They help children open up gently and playfully, while also giving them choice and control. When used thoughtfully, they also create space for workers to share parts of themselves, which helps build meaningful relationships.
We’re still in the early stages of embedding life story work into everyday practice across the borough, and time pressures can be a challenge. But I’ve seen firsthand how even simple, well-chosen activities can be powerful.
Now, I’m focusing on promoting the All About Me direct work toolkit and linking it with the bitesize resources. It’s an accessible and meaningful way to spark child-focused conversations that can be revisited and deepened over time.
Another key part of my role is supporting social workers to embed life story work into their routine practice, during visits, in care planning, or in direct work, rather than seeing it as a separate task. The Creative Life Story Work activities support this nicely because they are trauma-informed, easy to use, and adaptable to different contexts.
I also enjoy the podcast and blogs. They offer honest insights from a range of perspectives, including social workers, carers, and care-experienced adults, which is both grounding and inspiring. One blog that resonated with me focused on the role of foster carers in life story work. It was a strong reminder that carers are often the holders of everyday moments that help children understand who they are. Their involvement is crucial, and it’s vital they feel confident and included in this work.
I’ve attended several Live Classrooms and always find them valuable. Even when the topics are familiar, the opportunity to reflect with others who are equally passionate about life story work is beneficial.
The sessions are short and manageable (online and half a day), which makes them easier to fit into a busy week. They’re reflective, trauma-informed, and rooted in real-life experience and practice. I always leave with something I can apply in my work or share with colleagues.
In a busy work environment, it’s easy for life story work to slip down the priority list, but attending Live Classrooms helps keep it visible and energised.
If I had one message, it would be this: life story work doesn’t have to be done all at once. It’s about taking small, consistent, meaningful steps that can build connection and understanding over time.
When done well, life story work can help children feel truly seen, heard, and valued, and I feel privileged to play a part in supporting that.Being part of the Creative Life Story Work community helps me stay connected and motivated. It reinforces that while the work can be complex and challenging, it has real potential to make a difference.
Thank you Sandra!
Organisations and individuals can join as a Creative Life Story Work member to access 12 Live Classrooms a year, plus all our life story work resources. Find out more here.
