Ms Sian Burgess

Sian is a highly experienced clinical psychologist, with extensive expertise across practice, leadership, workforce development, teaching, and consultancy. Her primary areas of focus include child protection, out-of-home care, trauma-informed practice, and service system improvement, underpinned by more than 17 years of experience working across government, non-government, and private sectors.

Sian brings deep clinical expertise to her work, having provided assessment, treatment, and consultancy to children, young people, adults, and families impacted by complex trauma, family separation, child abuse, and out-of-home care. She has held senior management roles within both government and not-for-profit organisations, including nine years coordinating two specialist Child Sexual Abuse Therapy Services. This has given her hands-on leadership experience in managing multidisciplinary teams, embedding evidence-informed practice, and driving service improvements in highly sensitive practice areas.

Since joining the Australian Centre for Child Protection (ACCP) at UniSA in 2021, Sian has played a senior role within the Practice team, contributing to the strategic delivery of national and state-based industry projects. She has provider leadership within complex, multi-stakeholder projects, working closely with government and sector partners to translate research into actionable policy and practice guidance. Within her dual role as Lecturer, Sian also contributes to the development and delivery of postgraduate coursework for the Graduate Certificate in Childhood Trauma, serving to enhance workforce capability across Australia’s child facing workforce.

Member of the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA); Registered to Psychology Board of Australia; Endorsed to practice in the area of Clinical Psychology; Endorsed as a Board-approved supervisor

Member of the Australian Psychological Society (APS)

Member of the APS Group – College of Clinical Psychologists

Qualifications

• Master of Applied Psychology Murdoch University

• Bachelor of Arts with Second Class Honours in Psychology The University of Western Australia