Internet Watch Foundation

Tink was appointed to her first three-year term of office as a Non-Industry IWF Board Member in January 2004.

 

Tink left her position as Director of Stop it Now! UK & Ireland at the end of November, 2008. In January 2009 she established the Marie Collins Foundation, the purpose of which is to raise awareness regarding the abuse of children and young people via the internet and mobile phones. The foundation offers services to children and their families where abuse of this nature has occurred and also offers training and consultancy as well as engaging with the media and influencing national and international policy makers.

 

Tink has been in social work practice since 1973 and has, for the past 25 years, specialised in the issue of child sexual abuse. She is an experienced clinical and forensic practitioner, manager, trainer, policymaker, strategist and a court witness within the criminal justice and care systems. Between 2000 and 2004, Tink was the lead officer within Barnardo’s for child sexual exploitation and was the national spokesperson for this area of work.

 

Tink began working with children abused via new technology in 1999 and has developed a professional expertise in this area. She is widely published on issues regarding the sexual abuse of children and continues to speak widely on these topics.

 

Tink is a Board Member and Trustee of Childnet International; Chair of the Board of Trustees of ECPAT UK; a specialist advisor to the Department of Health’s Victims of Violence and Abuse Programme and a member of the following bodies: UK Council for Child Internet Safety; Government’s Sexual Violence and Abuse Stakeholder Advisory Group, Crown Prosecution Service Disability Hate Crime Panel; Home Office Steering Group for Vulnerable and Intimidated Witnesses, including Children.