I was originally trained in Person-Centred Therapy but have since developed pluralist ways of understanding therapeutic work and helping relationships, which was the focus of my Doctoral studies at the University of Strathclyde Counselling Unit.
I now describe myself as a pluralist therapist/counsellor, researcher and supervisor. This means I draw on different approaches to therapy, according to what you or your clients will find most helpful. I seek to keep the theoretical approaches in positive dialogic tension with one another to work towards the best outcomes. Sometimes this means trying different ways of doing things before finding what fits best. The different approaches are held in a structured dialogue with one another, all the while keeping the focus on the specific needs of the particular work being discussed.
In addition to Person-Centred practice, therapy models I draw on include Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Transactional Analysis, Psychodynamics and other specialist aspects of therapy (such as working via technology or suicide prevention), integrated pluralistically.
In addition to review sessions created for reflexively processing and understanding our work together, the work is designed to be continuously reflective, meaning we will regularly think together about how our work is going and what is most useful for you going forward.
The way sessions are held affects how we express ourselves and so how our working relationship will develop. It is usually worth spending some time working out the best method for you and your practice, taking your circumstances into account. I offer sessions by telephone, video, email, text-chat (SMS), in-person or as “house calls” at your home or workplace. “House calls” are priced differently to account for my travelling time.
Unless we make a different arrangement, which is not uncommon, supervision sessions are typically:
· 60 to 90 minutes in length
· Weekly, fortnightly or monthly
· Comprise at least the minimum requirement for supervision laid down by your professional body (eg 1.5hrs/month for qualified members of BACP; or 1hr per 8hrs client contact time while in training; or as set by your College or Institution for members of UKCP).
Frequency will be decided on the basis of your current caseload and professional needs and should be reviewed from time to time.
It remains your responsibility to adjust session length or frequency as your practice needs change. I may suggest such changes too, if appropriate.
Group Supervision is also available. Groups usually comprise 4 to 7 members and meet for between 1 and 3 hours, with breaks, according to context requirements. With up to 4 members, 50% of the time can be counted towards formal requirements, while larger groups divide the time by the number of participants. Groups are usually convened on request, with membership recruited by participants.
Our first session will be a kind of “prospective review” of your work and how we might work together to support your needs. It is a chance for us both to decide if working together will be a good fit and feels right. In that first session we will probably discuss:
· Your training and professional background/experience
· Your personality and background: what makes you “tick”
· Your current practice and clients
· What you would like from supervision and your expectations
· How you like to make supervision work for you
· Whether we are a good fit
The first session is only charged for if we decide to proceed. If either of us decides not to go ahead for any reason at all, there is no charge.
Returning supervisees will usually also be asked to attend a review session to help us reconnect and to ensure we are still well aligned.
Ongoing work also benefits from regular reviews. Our work will be continuously reflexively reflective, meaning that we can discuss how supervision is going at any time.
Preparation: Supervision works best when you come prepared. You may like to make notes prior to our sessions, or have a list of topics you wish to discuss. However, it is important that we are flexible and exploratory during our sessions, seeking depth and quality of understanding, rather than trying to tick off items on an agenda.
I also encourage my supervisees to make reflexive notes regarding our sessions to facilitate follow up of specific topics. This may be work with particular clients or more general matters. Because counselling, therapy and mental health care often interact with who and how you are as a person, we may also discuss aspects of your personal life. Where appropriate, I may signpost you to personal therapy for more in-depth personal work.
Time: If the time we agreed is not enough to support your full caseload, we can schedule additional sessions, or you may need additional supervision from elsewhere. It is your responsibility to manage this effectively.
The quality of your work: I am not able to function like any kind of Therapy Police. I cannot give advice on the basis of the brief vignettes of case work that can be described in a typical supervision session sufficiently reliably that you could apply it without carefully checking its fit with the reality you are dealing with. Case vignettes can provide a good start, but the nature of the work is always exploratory, not prescriptive; it is supportive, not managerial. It is important that you remain entirely responsible for your practice and its quality. My input is thus entirely separate from any line management or other professional oversight, and it is important that this be maintained.
Specific responsibilities for you include ensuring proper training and preparation for work with specific client groups (ie working within your abilities) and:
· maintaining appropriate professional indemnity insurance
· meeting your professional body’s requirements (CPD, ethical practice etc)
· engaging in personal therapy or professional support as necessary or helpful for your work
· making all decisions about your client work.
I do not usually require that I see evidence of insurance or qualifications, but this may become necessary.
I rely on you to ensure that these and all other practice requirements are met.
Our contract:
Please note that all the information on this website forms part of our on-going supervisory contract and review the other pages, particularly regarding cancellation, fees, confidentiality etc, as applicable to you. I will seek to let you know if significant changes are made during our work together.
What if the technology goes wrong?
Douglas Adams used to be fond of quoting the computer scientist Bran Ferren on this subject. The argument goes that technology is only called technology because sometimes it doesn't work. If it always worked, we wouldn't call it technology. We would call it what it is. Chairs were once a new technology, but we are very used to them now. One day, we will be just as used to using communications tech, and it will be as user-friendly as a couch. Until then, we need to take some care that problems don't arise, or we can deal with them if they do.
Primarily, that means
we both need to make sure that the technology we are using is operating as expected. That may mean switching on your computer and testing your video connection/camera/sound etc before our session is due to start and
we will usually have a back-up means of communication in place. For example, where sessions are held by video link, but the connection is poor or fails at the start of our session, we may re-convene by telephone (see the Contact page of this website).
I will usually call you if it is a case of technical breakdown, rather than the other way around, unless we have arranged otherwise.
If you want to end our supervision work, you can do so at any time. It is helpful for us both if you can give notice so we can have a closing conversation, but you are not obligated to continue if it is not working for you.
If I need to end our supervision work, I will endeavour to tell you as early as I can, seeking to maintain a minimum of 4 weeks' notice (except in exceptional circumstances).
Professional Will - If, for some reason, I am incapacitated and am unable to keep our sessions my colleague, who will be bound by the same rules of confidentiality etc, will contact you with information and referral sources. They have no access to your information in any other circumstance.
If this sounds like the right kind of supervision for you, email me:
Tell me a bit about your practice, what you're looking for in supervision, and we'll arrange an initial conversation to see if we're a good match.