Rachel Blake
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This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
Are you looking to find someone to talk to about a personal issue which is causing you concern or distress?
Maybe you have previous experience of counselling, or maybe not. It doesn’t matter. It would seem you have decided that whatever is disturbing you is not something which you can resolve on your own. Family and friends can sometimes help but there are situations when it is beneficial to discuss your problems with someone who is impartial and who doesn’t know anything about you except what you tell them. This is one reason why counselling works.
I am a fully qualified, experienced counsellor and specialist trained in working both face-to-face and online. If you live in Edinburgh you may wish to make an appointment with me in Craiglockhart or, especially if you do not live nearby you may prefer to meet me online via VSee (a similar but more secure alternative to Skype) or on Zoom. Online counselling is also conducted via Hushmail encrypted emails at www.hushmail.com, an encrypted service which ensures confidentiality in email exchanges and allows you to keep our messages in a secure place, safe from anyone who uses the same computer.
Whatever issue is affecting you, you may wish to discuss it in complete confidence with a professional listener. As a counsellor I believe each of us has the answers we are seeking within ourself - we may just need someone who is not emotionally involved and who knows nothing about us to help discover them.
I originally trained in the dialogue between the person centred approach and psychodynamic perspective, both of which strongly informs my way of working therapeutically. By this I mean my training affords us the possibility of looking at and considering how the past may be impacting the present, in order to allow you the opportunity to chose an alternative and more fulfilling way of being in the future. I am available to work either on a short or long term basis, depending on what suits your personal needs. I am also a member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (MBACP) and the Association for Counselling and Therapy Online (ACTO), and fully adhere to their ethical codes of practice. I also have full professional indemnity insurance for my work.
Training, qualifications & experience
- Specialist Certificate in the Therapeutic Use of Technology (2013) - The Online Therapy Institute
- Postgraduate Diploma in Counselling (2011) - University of Edinburgh
- Master of Science in Counselling Studies (2009) - University of Edinburgh
- Specialist Certificate in Bereavement Counselling (2009) - Cruse Bereavement Care (Edinburgh)
I have worked at PF Counselling Service in Edinburgh as a counsellor and assessment counsellor for 13 years, and with Health in Mind for 9 years, Edinburgh where I offer telephone and face to face counselling to adult survivors of trauma including childhood sexual abuse and neglect. I have also provided telephone advice and guidance for those considering attending the National Confidential Forum. The NCF is about understanding and acknowledging individuals experiences as a child in institutional care in Scotland, whatever they were. It is completely up to individuals whether they want to contact the helpline service, and offers an impartial space where the focus is for people to be able to talk confidentially, about what coming to the Forum could mean for them. I am also qualified, experienced and interested in gender identity and sexuality, and welcome working with LGBTIQQA+ issues and clients.
I volunteered as an Associate Counsellor at Hope Park Counselling Centre in Edinburgh for 14 months, and also provided short term email counselling within a generic agency setting at Insight Counselling in Dundee, and am very experienced in working with adults living with degenerative and/or terminal illness, disability, depression, anxiety, relationship difficulties, abuse, self harm and adult survivors of boarding school.
Member organisations
BACP is one of the UK’s leading professional bodies for counselling and psychotherapy with around 60,000 members. The Association has several different categories of membership, including Student Member, Individual Member, Registered Member MBACP, Registered Accredited Member MBACP (Accred) and Senior Registered Accredited Member MBACP (Snr Acccred).
Registered and accredited members are listed on the BACP Register, which shows that they have demonstrated BACP’s recommended standards for training, proficiency and ethical practice. The BACP Register was the first register of psychological therapists to be accredited by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA).
Accredited and senior accredited membership are voluntary categories for members who choose to undertake a rigorous application and assessment process to demonstrate additional standards around practice, training and supervision.
Individual members will have completed an appropriate counselling or psychotherapy course and started to practise, but they won’t appear on the BACP Register until they've demonstrated that they meet the standards for registration. Student members are still in the process of completing their training.
All members are bound by the BACP Ethical Framework and a Professional Conduct Procedure.
The Association for Counselling and Therapy Online
Accredited register membership
The Accredited Register Scheme was set up in 2013 by the Department of Health (DoH) as a way to recognise organisations that hold voluntary registers which meet certain standards. These standards are set by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA).
This therapist has indicated that they belong to an Accredited Register.
Areas of counselling I deal with
Other areas of counselling I deal with
Boarding School Syndrome
Gender, Sexuality, Relationship Diversity
Therapies offered
Fees
£65.00 per session
Free initial telephone or online session
Additional information
Individual sessions cost £65 for 1 hour. I offer a complimentary 25 minute introduction either online or face to face.
Payments are to be made by either bank transfer or cash at the end of each face to face session, and by bank transfer before sessions are delivered online.
The full cost of the session applies for cancellations made with less than 24 hours notice.
When I work
Weekday mornings and afternoons, Saturday afternoon. Evening appointments available.
Further information
I work from home in Craiglockhart where my practice room is located on the first floor.
BACP Membership Number : 703910
