I feel very privileged to work with older children and young people and have 14 yrs experience of working with this client group. As a counsellor I have worked in secondary schools, higher education and private practice, prior to this I taught art in secondary schools and further education.
I call myself an Integrative Counsellor, my practice is informed by different counselling approaches and I work flexibly to meet the needs of each client. I believe that one of the most important aspects of counselling is the relationship between the counsellor and client. In order to establish and develop that relationship, I try to be non-judgemental, empathic and genuine. I aim to see the client’s feelings, circumstances and issues from their point of view and feel it is extremely important to carefully listen to the young person. I have found that we rarely fully listen to one another and the affirmation of having been listened to cannot be underestimated. I work collaboratively with whatever the client wishes to talk about. I try to help the client gain an understanding of their feelings, the reasons they came to see me and explore possible ways forward.
I appreciate that not all clients find it easy to express themselves using words and I believe in working flexibly to meet the needs of my clients. I have a degree in Fine Art and believe that creative forms of communication such as drawing, music, writing, photography can help people to express their feelings.
I am a registered member of the BACP I work within the BACP Ethical Framework for the Counselling Professions. I regularly attend supervision and Continuing Professional Development events and training. Before committing to a counselling session I am happy to do a half hours telephone consultation to discuss your child’s and your needs.
Qualifications
- BA (Hons) Fine Art
- PGCE
- Advanced Diploma in Humanistic/Existential Counselling
- MBACP
- Registered Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy
