Professor Andrew Rowland
OBE JP CF BMedSci(Hons) BMBS(Hons) PhD HonMFPH SFFMLM FAcadMEd FRCEM FRCPCH FRSA
Officer for Child Protection at the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
OVERVIEW
Andrew has a portfolio career as a Lead Employer Medical Director, Consultant Paediatrician (with expertise in Children's Emergency Medicine), Honorary Professor (Children’s Rights, Law, and Advocacy), Board Member of an international non-governmental organisation in Cambodia (M'Lop Tapang), and Chair of the Board of Trustees of a registered charity in England and Wales (SicKids). He has over two decades of national, and over 14 years of international, clinical and leadership experience and expertise. This includes over nine years in non-executive board level director roles in multi-million Euro and multi-million Dollar organisations.
In 2023 Andrew was appointed as the Officer for Child Protection at the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.
Andrew's Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree was in children’s rights, law, and advocacy and explored "building child safe communities with children and young people at their hearts".
ACADEMIC
In 2014 Andrew was appointed as Honorary Professor at the University of Salford. His research portfolio includes having been the Principal Investigator for an NIHR RfPB study into children’s emergency department early warning systems and scores, and directing a national project for NHS England (North) to co-design a communication model with children and young people to better identify those at risk of exploitation, and those with personal experience of mental health problems, alcohol use, drug use and family or school difficulties. Andrew has led national and international colleagues to recommend legislative changes in the United Kingdom (UK), USA and Australia, to better safeguard the health and wellbeing of children and young people living in those countries.
INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S ADVOCACY
Andrew has provided advice to two governments in Southeast Asia about establishing a countrywide child protection training strategy and launching improved multi-agency partnerships and investigations of potential cases of child abuse. He has delivered internationally-orientated training on the recognition of, and response to, potential cases of child abuse, which he has delivered to representatives of the UNHCR, UNICEF, overseas Diplomatic Missions, overseas High Commissions, and the UK National Crime Agency. Further, as part of a small, invited group of senior professionals Andrew contributed to advice given to a government in Central America about the potential evaluation of new proposals designed to improve childhood morbidity and mortality in the country. Andrew has contributed to the development of recommendations at the International Federation for Emergency Medicine to introduce safeguarding (child protection) standards into emergency departments around the world. He has been a member of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Pro-bono Medical Panel since 2013.
MEDICO-POLITICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Andrew is a former appointed Head of the UK delegation to the Union Européenne des Médecins Spécialistes (UEMS). In 2018 he led a team to secure the continued full membership of the UK within UEMS, regardless of the outcome of the Brexit negotiations between the UK government and the remaining EU27 States. Within the UEMS Andrew initiated a project to include safeguarding competencies within pan-European medical specialty training curricula.
HUMANITARIANISM
Andrew is the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the SicKids charity he founded in 2015. SicKids (registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales: 1164131) operates internationally between the North West of England and Cambodia. SicKids has contributed to improved outcomes for disabled children and those living with asthma in South West Cambodia; and it has launched a unique collaboration between the UK and Cambodia to install state-of-the-art children’s Sensory Spaces in both countries. From 2013 to 2020 Andrew was a member of the British Medical Association International Committee and was Deputy Chair of the committee from 2016 to 2019.
MEDICINE IN THE NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE
Since January 2019 Andrew has been Lead Employer Medical Director at Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (MWL) [formerly St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust]: an organisation employing 13,000 doctors and dentists and public health trainees throughout the UK. MWL is the largest single employer of doctors in the National Health Service (NHS) in England. Andrew has oversight of the development and management of processes surrounding doctors and dentists in difficulty, including the disciplinary procedure and full multi-agency liaison with partners, for example the police, local authorities, defence organisations, regulators and NHS Resolution. Andrew has completed advanced media training and advanced negotiation skills training.
Clinically, Andrew has been a Consultant Paediatrician since 2009, registered as a subspecialist with the UK General Medical Council (registration: 4715636). He also holds full international registration with the Medical Council of Cambodia (registration: 30). Andrew has clinical and academic interests in children’s rights, law, and advocacy; and child health research with a focus on safeguarding vulnerable people.
AWARDS
In 2014 Andrew was awarded a prestigious Fellowship (for life) by The Churchill Fellowship and in 2016 he won the Pol Roger Prize for his Fellowship: Living on a Railway Line. In 2017 Andrew was awarded the Association Medal by the British Medical Association in recognition of his distinguished service to the Association and his contribution to medicine. In 2019 Andrew was awarded the Gold Decoration of Honour by the European Union of Medical Specialists to recognise his dedicated work for European Medical Specialists. In 2021 Andrew was awarded Senior Fellowship of the Faculty of Medical Leadership and Management. In 2023 Andrew was one of ten people to receive a University of Nottingham Alumni Award. In 2024 Andrew was awarded Honorary Membership of the Faculty of Public Health (HonMFPH) to recognise his work in children's public health and in 2025 Andrew was awarded an OBE [Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire] on HM King Charles III Birthday Honours list, for services to Safeguarding and the Protection of Children's Rights.
Research Interests
Children's Advocacy
Safeguarding vulnerable people
Children's Rights Laws
Children's Rights
Humanitarian paediatrics | global child health
ResearcherID
rid53797
Scopus Author ID
35276156200
PhD Supervision Availability
Yes
PhD Topics
Equal protection (from assault) for children
Safeguarding vulnerable children
Early warning scores in children's emergency medicine
Children's rights
Children's health and social care and safeguarding in Cambodia
Heath assessments of unaccompanied asylum seeking children
Health assessments of Our Children (Looked After Children)
Determining the optimal bereavement support for families following the sudden and unexpected death of a child (SUDC)
Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
Reduce inequality within and among countries
Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development
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