Sarah began her professional career in social work, before working in probation, practicing in the public, private, and voluntary sectors in the UK and internationally in North America, and Australia. Settling in the UK, she was the founder and director for 19 years of an award-winning training and consultancy company, specialising in safeguarding children and adults-at-risk.

She holds a diploma and degree in Social Work, and a PhD in Sociology - in which she studied the use of new creative technologies for child protection (Lancaster University, UK), as well as an MA in Arts-Health (University of Central Lancashire).

Sarah has always sought ways to apply her academic background to rigorous, demonstrable, evidenced-based practice; and she continues be a leading voice for the adoption of a more robust and universal definition of digital safeguarding.

Sarah’s work promotes radical innovation in social care, social work, and across multi-agency child protective services; and her infectiously positive outlook and strategic approach has made her a respected disruptor in this space. She remains a relentless advocate for the agency and equal status of children and young people as partners in the co-design of digital safeguarding initiatives.

Bold, committed, and deeply collaborative, Sarah often acts as a bridge between young people, academic institutions, research organisations, and public sector agencies, such as local authorities and Government departments. She specialises in conducting co-design workshops with multi-stakeholders to progress digital child protection systems, and positively impacts the very landscape of safeguarding.

Her Work With MeSafe

MeSafe is a consultancy service, founded in 2018 by Dr Sarah Carlick, that supports innovative ways for children and young people to self-refer, and to share their information securely with multi-agency professionals - digitally and safely.  This approach harness both digital and traditional early help and support, to reduce the risk of harm to children and young people.

Children's safeguarding co-design is a new method of design which promotes a child-centred, child-friendly, user-led approach: recognising children and young people as digital natives in increasingly fast-changing technological environments.

Co-design’s key methods include repositioning children and young people as equal partners in the process, for example in co-design ideation, usability, and product development.

MeSafe’s consultancy solutions work across virtual and in-person spaces - flexibly - around the world and across time zones. Their aim is to support clients efficiently, and with safety and protection of vulnerable people at its core.