Frequently Asked Questions

For psychological therapy, I typically do not offer a waiting list, mainly as it is arguably unethical to have an individual waiting for therapy when they should access this in a timely fashion. However, where individuals express a particular preference for working with me I am willing to place them on a small waiting list which would be no longer than a month or so. There is currently no waiting list for ADHD, Autism, or medicolegal assessments as this is a new service that I now offer.

In short, No. It is incredibly important that individuals are awarded a diagnosis where there is comprehensive evidence from multiple sources that this is warranted. However, it is also important that other causes of difficulties are explored as an ADHD or Autism is typically a lifelong diagnosis and can come with negative consequences if an incorrect diagnosis is made.

You will be provided with details of local service provisions if awarded a diagnosis. However, it is important to manage expectations as often there are a limited number of services or interventions available via statutory or voluntary sector services.

Please contact your insurance provider to find out if your policy with them covers ADHD or Autism under any circumstances. Some policies may offer this if supported by a psychiatric report or by school concerns.

Unfortunately, the only exception we make on the sessional rates is through charities that are funding client care. These will be agreed on a case-by-case basis.

Sessions are typically 50 minutes long. Briefer 30-minute sessions are available but may not be covered by insurance i.e. the full fee is still likely to apply. ADHD and Autism initial assessments are 1 hour long.

Generally no, as travel will have to be factored into the costs of the sessions. The exception to this is if phobia work is being undertaken as it is most effective when direct exposure work is undertaken together. The other exception to home visits is for medicolegal report writing purposes, where it can be beneficial for me to see the claimant in their home environment.

No. There are very high standards required for the training in Clinical Psychology in the UK, and whilst there are many legitimate Counselling Psychologists that have extensive training, the title psychologist is not protected unfortunately, meaning there it is hard to distinguish between legitimate experts and those posing as such. I am registered with the relevant professional bodies, and I am regulated by the HCPC, meaning you can check my status as a legitimate practitioner psychologist.

I work from a home office, with nobody else having access to this. Furthermore, I use WriteUpp which is a GDPR compliant electronic patient records system requiring two-factor authentication. In plain terms, you would need both my password, my phone, and my fingerprint in order to possibly access my clients data.

Generally, between 6-12 sessions is typical both in my experience, and most evidence-based protocols for therapy recommend this number of sessions. However, this depends on the type of therapy being used and the nature of the difficulties. For example, Cognitive Processing Therapy is a trauma-focused therapy which includes a 12-session protocol. That said, many clients feel better before the 12 sessions have been completed and other clients may find they need a few more than 12 sessions to resolve their difficulties.

It is really important that you feel able to communicate this. I genuinely want me clients to be honest if things are not working for them. Even evidence-based approaches do not fit for everyone if they are adhered to too rigidly, and need to be tweaked or personalised in order to make them effective for each individual. If you tell me what is not working for you we can adapt out approach so that the remaining time we have with one another is positively impactful.

We need to carefully plan the end of therapy and I generally start to have more detailed discussions about this 3-4 sessions before these come to an end so that this feels as comfortable as possible for clients. However, clients are welcome to self-fund additional sessions and I have generally found insurers to be sympathetic to requests for additional sessions where a clear rationale exists for this.

As per the Terms and Conditions, I reserve the right to charge sessions at the full rate if less than 48 hours notice is given. Mitigating circumstances will always be taken into consideration.

Only under exceptional circumstances. I will only share information with other agencies if I believe you or someone else is at risk of harm and will endeavour to discuss this with you so that this process feels as collaborative as possible. The only other exception is if there is a court subpoena which is exceptionally rare.