About Us
I'm Matt, a Registered Social Worker with over 25 years of experience specialising in work with unaccompanied asylum-seeking children. After 9 years managing a multidisciplinary Children's Asylum Team at West Sussex County Council, I established Independent Migrant Services to provide specialist age assessment services, training, and consultancy to legal firms and local authorities across the UK.
My Specialist Expertise:
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Age Assessment Services – Extensive experience conducting Merton-compliant age assessments for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children, trusted by several renowned legal firms across the UK
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Age Assessment Training – Delivering comprehensive training for social workers and local authorities, based on 15+ years of frontline practice with child asylum teams
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Child Asylum & Trafficking – Specialist knowledge of the asylum system, safeguarding procedures, and Home Office partnerships
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Court-Ready Documentation – Experience preparing detailed assessments for judicial review proceedings and legal challenges
Working with Associate Consultants
For larger projects or specialist requirements, I work with a trusted network of experienced professionals including qualified social workers and psychological therapists, bringing together over 65 years of combined expertise in child protection, looked-after children, EMDR, and cognitive behavioural therapy.
My evidence-based approach combines extensive frontline experience, academic teaching, and close collaboration with legal services to achieve the best outcomes for vulnerable children and young people.
Testimonials
"The half day training was very good and it is clear the trainers have a lot of hands on knowledge, it has really supported my knowledge as a foster carer"- Sue F (agency foster carer)
"The age assessment was thorough and excellent throughout which really supported my client to receive the ongoing support he now has, thank you for the quick turnaround with the tight deadlines set " -Solicitor- RT
"my team all enjoyed the training on working with unaccompanied minors and my staff who now work with this client group in the 2 homes felt it has enhanced there understanding, particularly around impact of trauma" (Farzin r- UASC Home Manager)
"I have experience in age assessment training sessions where the trainers came from a disbelieving viewpoint, this training was excellent and showed a clear knowledge and empathy towards young people" (Sy- Local authority Social Worker)