Sheila Hollins, Baroness Hollins

Emeritus Professor
The Baroness Hollins
Official portrait, 2024
Member of the House of Lords
Lord Temporal
Incumbent
Assumed office
15 November 2010
Life Peerage
Personal details
Born (1946-06-22) 22 June 1946 (age 78)
SpouseMartin Hollins
ChildrenAbigail Witchalls
OccupationEmeritus Professor of the psychiatry of learning disability at St George's, University of London

Sheila Clare Hollins, Baroness Hollins (born 22 June 1946),[1] is Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry of Learning Disability at St George's, University of London, and was created a crossbench life peer in the House of Lords on 15 November 2010 taking the title Baroness Hollins, of Wimbledon in the London Borough of Merton and of Grenoside in the County of South Yorkshire.[2][3]

Baroness Hollins founded the visual literacy charity Books Beyond Words in 1989 to produce word free books for people with learning disabilities.[4] She is chair and series editor for Beyond Words.[5]

Baroness Hollins has published extensively on the topic of learning disabilities.[6]

She was President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists from 2005 to 2008, succeeded by Dinesh Bhugra.[7] From 2012 to 2013 she was president of the British Medical Association and was on the BMA Board of Science from 2013 to 2016.[8] In 2014 Pope Francis appointed her a member of the newly created Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors.[9] The Baroness chaired the Scientific Advisory Board of the Centre for Child ProtectionCentre for Child Protectionat the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome for 8 years and she was President of the Royal Medical Benevolent Fund from 2020 to 2024.[10] Baroness Hollins was President of the Royal College of Occupational Therapists from 2018-2024 [11] and she became President of the Catholic Union of Great Britain in November 2023.[12]

Baroness Hollins successfully tabled an amendment to the Health and Care Act in 2012 which introduced parity for mental and physical health and mental and physical illness.

In 2011 she gave evidence to the Leveson Inquiry about the harassment and intrusion into family life caused by members of the media following her daughter’s serious injury in 2005.

On 17 March 2022, Baroness Hollins put forward an amendment to the Health and Care Bill in the House of Lords to pass The Oliver McGowan mandatory training into law.[13] The Health and Care Act 2022 introduced a statutory requirement that regulated service providers must ensure their staff receive learning disability and autism training appropriate to their role.

In 2019 Baroness Hollins was appointed by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to chair the Oversight Panel to oversee Independent Care, Education and Treatment Reviews of people placed in Long Term Segregation. On 8th November 2023 Baroness Hollins published her final report “My heart breaks – solitary confinement in hospital has no therapeutic benefit for people with a learning disability and autistic people”.[14] The report highlights people with a learning disability and/or autistic people who experience enforced isolation in mental health and specialist learning disability hospitals.

  1. ^ "Democracy live". BBC. 15 January 2011. Retrieved 15 January 2011.[permanent dead link]
  2. ^ "No. 59608". The London Gazette. 18 November 2010. p. 22229.
  3. ^ "Professor Sheila Hollins appointed to the House of Lords". St George’s, University of London. 5 October 2010. Archived from the original on 15 October 2010. Retrieved 1 December 2010.
  4. ^ Salman, Saba (4 June 2019). "People with Learning Disabilities must be put at the centre". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  5. ^ "Sheila Hollins". Beyond Words. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  6. ^ "Research Gate Baroness Sheila Hollins". Retrieved 29 May 2024.
  7. ^ "Update from the President: Professor Sheila Hollins". RCPsych News. Royal College of Psychiatrists. July 2008. Archived from the original on 24 November 2011. Retrieved 1 December 2010.
  8. ^ "Profile: Sheila Hollins". British Medical Association. Archived from the original on 22 July 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2014.
  9. ^ "Pope Names Members of Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors". Zenit News Agency. 24 March 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2014.
  10. ^ "Who's who at the RMBF". Retrieved 8 October 2020.
  11. ^ "Royal College of Occupational Therapists". RCOT news. Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  12. ^ "Catholic Union News". catholicunion.org.uk. 28 November 2023. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
  13. ^ "The Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism". NHS England. 23 February 2023. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
  14. ^ Hollins, Sheila. "Baroness Hollins' final report: My heart breaks – solitary confinement in hospital has no therapeutic benefit for people with a learning disability and autistic people". gov.uk. Retrieved 14 May 2024.