Just get in touch and we can arrange an initial conversation where you can get a feel for me and I can get an idea of what support you are looking for.  You can also decide if you’d like to progress to a first session together.

Please contact me by phone or email (I will give you a call back) and let me know the kind of support you are looking for. If I do not feel I am best placed to support you and it’s an area outside of my expertise I will try my best to refer you on to someone more suitable.

For young people

Once I have an understanding of what you are looking for support with I will make an appointment with the parent (s) or carer to explore in detail the milestones of the young person’s development to understand any development issues, what risks the young person faces, how best to support them and to gain further understanding of the problem

On our first meeting we can explore if the relationship feels right for you and begin to build more of a picture of the support you want.You may be unclear about exactly what’s wrong or what you want from counselling, just a sense that things are not quite right.  That is also OK, we can explore that together.

Before we begin I will outline how confidentiality works in the counselling relationship, how to contact each other if need be between sessions, the time notice required to cancel a session and any other considerations & questions you have.  We can then explore exactly what support you need to make the changes you want. 

This will include your expectations, changes you want to make or goals you would like to achieve. We can explore the style of support that would best fit and also give you  an opportunity to decide if you think I am the right counsellor for you. 

The relationship between us needs to feel so safe that you can allow yourself to be completely open with yourself and with me.

By listening openly and without judgement, sometimes gently challenging your views or presenting  evidence  of another perspective I can help you find your own answers to problems. It’s in the act of really being listened to and experiencing unconditional positive regard that we can start bringing down our barriers and allow ourselves to be vulnerable in a safe place. We can often begin to be kinder to ourselves and have greater self awareness whilst perhaps letting go of things that have held us back.

During this process we will regularly review how you feel about the counselling and if it is meeting your needs. We can agree on a number of sessions or to complete once an identified area has been fully explored, either way we will work towards an ending together that feels right and review the process and what was experienced.

Experiencing a trusted relationship can help us to become more open and able to talk about how we feel at a deeper level. Talking about a problem or a trauma doesn’t make it go away, but it can be easier to cope with or help offer some acceptance which will allow us to feel a bit more balanced and move on – even if it’s just a little step forward for now.