Experience
- I have over 30 year’s experience working in health and social care settings.
- I began my career working in NHS administration and management before joining the voluntary sector, working for charities providing adoption support, bereavement support and advocacy. I began my counselling training at the University of Birmingham in 1992.
- As a counsellor & psychotherapist I have experience working in general practice, adoption support, palliative and life threatening illness support. My experience includes the management of a Family Support Service in palliative care and the setting up of a specific service to work with children and young people.
- Until 2014 I worked part-time in palliative care, life threatening and life limiting illness support, where I managed and held the clinical responsibility for a BACP Accredited Counselling Service. The service was, at the time, the only BACP Accredited Counselling Service situated in a hospice in the UK.
- I am a Registered Senior Accredited Member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy. I am also a BACP Senior Accredited Practitioner in Supervision. I gained my initial BACP Accreditation as a Counsellor/Psychotherapist in 2007 and my Senior Accreditation in 2011.
- I have an Enhanced Certificate from the Disclosure and Barring Service (this replaced the CRB) and am registered with the Information Commissioners Office.
Qualifications
University of Worcester
- Master of Science in Counselling (MSc) – passed with Merit
University of Birmingham
- Certificate in Counselling Skills
- Certificate in Counselling Studies
- Diploma of Higher Education in Integrative Counselling
Awarding Board Consortium (ABC)
- Post Qualifying Diploma in Counselling Children and Young People
Sherwood Institute
- Diploma in Supervision
Association for Family Therapy & Systemic Practice
- Certificate in Family Therapy & Systemic Practice
Further Training
In order to maintain my accredited status with BACP, I am required to undertake and evidence a minimum of 30 hours continuing professional development each year.
Examples of training undertaken includes:
- Elder Abuse
- Working with Spirituality in Counselling & Psychotherapy
- Psychosis Awareness Training
- The Adoption & Children Act 2002 Implementation Workshop for Managers & Practitioners
- Child Protection Level 1 & Level 2
- Working with Children’s Grief
- Mental Health Capacity Act 2005 – Awareness Training
- Brief Focal Therapy
- Understanding, Living & Working with Eating Disorders
- The Development of Gender Identity
- Carers Awareness Training
- Teaching Mindfulness Skills to Clients
- Say the unsayable – Talking about Death and Dying
- Creating Supportive Environments for People on the Autistic Spectrum
- Equality and Diversity
- Working with People who Lack Motivation
- Extensive training in adoption issues, attachment and the impact of early life trauma
- Focus Group – Integrative Counsellor Training – Working with Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Clients