Qualifications
I began my career working in the corporate and academic worlds in clinical research and drug development, and I worked extensively in the UK and worldwide in diverse medical and pharmaceutical research roles. My passion and interest in people and the human condition led me to change careers in 2010 and retrain and qualify as a counsellor at Warwick University where I gained a First Class BA honours degree in Person-Centred Counselling and Psychotherapy.
Since then, I have continued to train and develop my therapeutic skills and experience to include Person-Centred Experiential Counselling for Depression (PCE-CfD) at The Metanoia Institute, and Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), completing my foundation teacher training at The Oxford Mindfulness Centre (a not-for-profit organisation working in a collaborative partnership with the University of Oxford).
Both of these therapeutic approaches are approved by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for use in the UK.
I have also completed training in using Mindfulness (MBCT) effectively in the workplace.
Experience
I have worked in a variety of counselling settings:
- for three different NHS Trusts (Glos., Berks., Oxon.) as a Therapeutic Counsellor
- for various counselling agencies
- in private practice, and
- for the Myton Hospice, where I trained in Complex Grief and Bereavement Counselling.
I have been in clinical practice for over 12 years, and have worked with many people who have gone forward to make a positive change in their lives.
I am also a sessional visiting lecturer at Warwick University, teaching Year 2 students on the Counselling and Psychotherapy degree course.
Professional conduct
I am registered and accredited by my professional body, The British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP).
I appreciate that confidentiality is very important for you. I therefore place great emphasis on ensuring this in the way I practice, from your initial contact through to after we finish our sessions together. We will discuss this during our first session, but if you’d like to know more in advance, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
I work in compliance with the BACP Ethical Framework, and thus have regular clinical supervision and pursue ongoing professional development.
I have professional indemnity and public liability insurance in place and I am also DBS checked and registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).