Di O'Neil

Di studied social work at Melbourne University in the 1960s. She has had 38 years experience as a social worker. Most of that time has been spent in the child and family welfare field with more recent involvement in mental health recovery and community capacity building. She has a strong commitment to strengths based work and an unshakable belief that clients are their own best experts. She has significantly influenced the development of the Strengths Approach in Australia as a framework for social justice and capacity building in case work, in communities, and in management. 

Di believes her greatest contribution has been through her capacity to take learnings from client-worker interactions through to policy and practice development at state and national level. 

Di's current role at St. Luke's is Executive Officer, Professional and Program Development. She is a co-author of two books Beyond Child Rescue and Promoting Family Change and contributed a chapter to Making a Difference. She was the lead writer for a Commonwealth funded project called Shaping the Future, a practice framework and training package for professionals working with children living with domestic violence. Di has had many journal articles published.

Di has sat on many state wide practice and policy committees in Victoria, including the Victorian Child Death Review Committee. Di has presented at many conferences, and provides training and facilitation across Australia. 

In 2001 she was awarded the Lingren Strengthening Families Award from the University of Nebraska, USA, for her contribution to strengths based practices with families. 

In 2006 Di was awarded an OAM for services to social work, particularly in the field of child and family services.

Di has been associated with St Luke’s Anglicare for 26 years. Prior to that she was employed by the Mission of St James and St John, The Children’s Protection Society and Kildonan Children’s Services. She has also worked as a counsellor and researcher in the TAFE system and lectured at TAFE and University level.

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