Rate My Professor Sian Burgess

Sian Burgess, MPsych(Applied), is a Lecturer at the Australian Centre for Child Protection within the College of Education, Behavioural and Social Sciences at Adelaide University. As a highly experienced clinical psychologist, she possesses more than 17 years of expertise across practice, leadership, workforce development, teaching, and consultancy, with primary focus areas including child protection, out-of-home care, trauma-informed practice, and service system improvement. Having worked across government, non-government, and private sectors, Burgess has delivered clinical 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 government and not-for-profit organisations, including nine years coordinating two specialist Child Sexual Abuse Therapy Services. In these positions, she managed multidisciplinary teams, embedded evidence-informed practice, and drove service improvements in highly sensitive areas.

Since joining the Australian Centre for Child Protection at the University of South Australia in 2021—which is now part of Adelaide University—Sian Burgess has contributed significantly to the strategic delivery of national and state-based industry projects within the Practice team. She provides leadership in complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives, collaborating with government and sector partners to translate research into actionable policy and practice guidance. In her role as Lecturer, Burgess develops and delivers postgraduate coursework for the Graduate Certificate in Childhood Trauma, including courses such as WELF 5114 UO Assessing Childhood Trauma and WELF 5118 UO Therapeutic Responses to Childhood Trauma. She is currently co-leading the development of National Child Safety Training for the early childhood education and care sector, to be rolled out as mandatory training across Australia in 2026. Her key publications include Paton, A., & Burgess, S. (2025). Practice guide: layered therapeutic assessment and treatment mapping approach for harmful sexual behaviours; Horch, G., Paton, A., Burgess, S., Cox, S., & Bromfield Smith, L. (2024). Harmful sexual behaviour assessment tools for use in Australian out-of-home care contexts: a scoping review; Paton, A., Burgess, S., Perfect, D., Thain, E., Winslade, K., & Bromfield, L. (2024). Evidence based review of therapeutic residential care models; and Paton, A., Parsons, V., Pitts, C., Adamson, K., Bromfield, L., Horch, G., et al. (2023). Minimum practice standards: specialist and community support services responding to child sexual abuse, among others. Through these efforts, Burgess enhances workforce capability and creates safer environments for children nationwide.