David Smart
Every professional displayed on Counselling Directory has been independently verified by our team to ensure they have suitable credentials to practise.
This professional is currently not accepting new clients and may not respond to general enquiries at this time.
This professional is currently not accepting new clients and may not respond to general enquiries at this time.
About me
Exploring feelings in a safe and supportive setting with a trained counsellor who listens without judging can help get clear what is important in your life.
Bereavement, redundancy, break-ups and other losses can lead you to take stock. The passage of time may bring unhappiness, dissatisfaction and uncertainty. For some the past has left a painful legacy that is hard to come to terms with on your own. As a parent, step-parent or carer you may be concerned about teenage or adult children; you may feel concern about family members who are growing older.
I offer a range of therapeutic help. Eight to twelve sessions of counselling can bring insight and change in relation to a specific issue. Wider-ranging exploration calls for a longer period of work. I offer weekly and in some cases twice-weekly appointments.
Training, qualifications & experience
I originally trained in counselling with the Minster Centre and subsequently with WPF Therapy. I have continued my professional development through courses with, for example, the Tavistock Clinic, the Foundation for Psychotherapy and Counselling and the British Psychotherapy Federation.
My background is in work with adolescents and their families. I have worked with young people and adults experiencing physical and educational as well as emotional and social difficulties in the public and voluntary sectors.
I have senior accredited status as a counsellor/psychotherapist with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy. I am registered as a psychotherapist with the Foundation for Psychotherapy and Counselling (FPC) and the British Psychoanalytic Council (BPC).
I aim to develop my sensitivity to all individuals, bearing in mind issues of difference in class, culture, ethnicity, gender, physical constitution and sexual orientation. I work to the BACP, FPC and BPC codes of ethics.
Member organisations
school Registered / Accredited
Being registered/accredited with a professional body means an individual must have achieved a substantial level of training and experience approved by their member organisation.
The British Psychoanalytic Council (BPC) is a professional association, representing the profession of psychoanalytic psychotherapy.
The organisation is itself made up of fourteen member organisations and BPC accredits the trainings of its member organisations. An individual who qualifies from one of these trainings is then eligible for entry into the BPC's register.
BPC registrants are governed by a code of ethics, a policy of continuing professional development, a statement on confidentiality and a complaints procedure. The BPC is a Member Society of the European Federation for Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy in the Public Sector (EFPP). Accredited by the Professional Standards Authority.
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.
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.
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
coming to terms with disability and ageing in yourself and others important to you
Fees
£65.00 - £90.00
Concessions offered for
Additional information
Reduced fee places become available from time to time.
Further information
My practice is readily accessible by public transport, car and bike. During the current pandemic I am holding sessions by video and phone.