Beginning therapy can involve uncertainty about what happens next. This page explains the process from making an initial enquiry through to assessment and, where appropriate, beginning regular sessions.
Making an initial enquiry
You can contact me by email or through the contact form, briefly outlining who the enquiry concerns and what has prompted you to seek support. Please avoid including highly sensitive information at this stage.
I will respond to arrange a brief conversation and consider whether an initial consultation would be appropriate. If I am not the right person to help, I may suggest another service or source of support.
Initial consultation
The initial consultation provides time to discuss the current concerns, relevant history and circumstances, and what you hope may change.
For work involving a child or younger adolescent, I will usually begin by meeting with their parent or carer. Depending on the young person’s age and circumstances, I may then meet with them separately.
Attending an initial consultation does not commit you to ongoing therapy.
Assessment and recommendations
Assessment may take place over more than one meeting. Sessions with children and young people are adapted to their age, developmental needs and preferred ways of communicating, and may involve talking, play, drawing or other forms of expression. I may also arrange further meetings with parents or carers.
At the end of the assessment, I will discuss my understanding of the difficulties and make recommendations. These might include psychoanalytic psychotherapy, EMDR, consultation with parents or carers, a combination of approaches, or referral to another service.
Any proposed way forward will be discussed and agreed together.
Starting therapy
If ongoing work is agreed, we will discuss its aims, frequency, format and likely duration. Psychotherapy sessions usually take place at the same time each week; some work may be offered more frequently where clinically indicated. Sessions may take place in person or online where suitable.
Children and young people can have mixed feelings about beginning therapy, and their response may change over time. The work is reviewed regularly, and meetings with parents or carers may form part of the agreed treatment.
Fees and cancellations
Fees will be discussed before the first appointment and confirmed in writing. This will include the fee for consultations and ongoing sessions, payment arrangements and the cancellation policy.
Appointments cancelled with less than 48 hours notice are normally charged in full. Sessions that I cancel, and agreed planned breaks, are not charged. Any different arrangement will be discussed in advance.
Confidentiality
I treat the work as confidential and will explain how information is handled at the beginning. When working with a child or young person, we will agree what may be shared with parents or carers so that the young person has appropriate privacy while those responsible for their care remain involved.
I discuss clinical work in professional supervision and do so without unnecessary identifying information. I may need to share information if I have serious concerns about someone’s safety or welfare, or where disclosure is required by law. Wherever possible, I would discuss this with you first.
Urgent support
My practice is not an emergency or crisis service, and I cannot provide an immediate response.
If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 999 or go to A&E. If urgent mental-health help is needed but there is no immediate danger, call NHS 111 and select the mental-health option, or contact your GP or existing care team.
Samaritans can be contacted free, day or night, on 116 123.