In this week’s episode of the HJ Talks About Abuse Podcast, Kathleen interviews one of her heroes, Ian Ackley. Ian is a survivor of abuse in football which happened over40 years ago when he was 13 years old. HeFirst disclosed his experiences of abuse back in 1994, and since then has been telling his story for over two decades. Ian currently works as a survivor support advocate within the PFA Wellbeing Department, where he offers bespoke support, interventions to survivors and helps them through the reporting process.
Kathleen has worked closely with Ian throughout her career, and has referred many of her abuse clients to Ian for signposting and support services. Ian talks about the value of different types of lived experiences and how it creates a safer environment to openly discuss abuse without judgement. He discusses the importance providing civil support as well as support from the ISFAs during the criminal process. They also discuss how Ian has created a prototype in his role that could be used in other settings to help survivors come forward and disclose their abuse.