Patsy Bolton Senior Accredited Counsellor

Training, qualifications & experience

BA Arts Degree University Of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Msc. Psychological Counselling, Surrey University.

Certificate in Life Coaching, Newcastle College, England.

Thought Field Therapy Diagnostic Level and Parts Field Therapy (UK training) Accreditation: Callahan Techniques, USA.

Certificate Qualification in Social Work, London.
Advanced Programme for Social Workers, Tavistock Clinic, London.

One year specialist adoption training for work with individuals, couples and families.
I work for PAC-UK as a freelance counsellor in permanency and adoption issues and as a trainer for PAC-UK offering workshops to several London Boroughs. I continue to update my skills regularly in this field of work.

I have enjoyed being in private practice in Teddington since 1998, having worked in NHS settings for several years in the community prior to that.
I can if appropriate integrate life coaching into my practice and have taught life coaching skills at Kingston College, Surrey.

In addition to my work with adults and adolescents, I've had extensive experience as a member of a multidisciplinary child and adolescent mental health team "CAHMS" .
In my previous role as a mental health social worker, I'd previously been part of an adult community mental health team. I have first hand experience of the more severe psychological and psychiatric issues. I have also worked in a post per ance service assisting families and adults who have been placed for adoption or in other permanent places.
as an expatriate of many years standing - having lived in Canada and parts of Africa I understand the issues relevant to living somewhere far from home, even if that was years ago.

Other areas of counselling I deal with

Talking therapy is generally beneficial in order to address established patterns that we have all needed to defend against but are now neither functional nor healthy now.

If people agree to my integrating alternative methods, I've found the interventions offered by Thought Field or Parts Therapy can offer rapid relief. Both are "energy therapies" that allow individuals to learn self help skills they can continue to use as needed.

Further information

I work with individuals; adults, adolescents and offer couples work. I have undertaken pre and post-adoption counselling with couples when referred through agencies such as their local authority. I'm currently in training and seeing families as a Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapist (see DDP website under practitioners).

I can see people for brief interventions as well as longer term options. Many individuals looking to understand more indepth issues prefer open ended contracts. I am flexible when considering  how often to see a client as long as clinically I feel the counselling will be beneficial in this way.

I frequently deliver training on attachment and permanency issues for the voluntary organisation I do freelance permanence/adoption counselling for.