About me
To find out more, contact me to arrange a free consultation.
Hi, my name's A.J., a counsellor for adults and children, based in Bingley, Saltaire and Baildon; or you can choose video call sessions via Zoom. I've been a therapist in schools, a domestic abuse service, and a college for autistic students; I'm trained in pre-trial therapy for victims of crime.
What is effective, trusted therapy? It's where you can talk about what’s happened to you and how that affects you. You begin to have faith in your own voice, so your mind becomes open to new insights and (crucially) new ways to reconnect with your world.
Everyone communicates differently: so I listen to what you want to say, in the way you want to say it. You might just want me to listen; or you might prefer the to and fro of a dialogue. It may be that, when you’re with other people, this causes you anxiety… so you’ll be looking for a counsellor who gets this, and who can see from your perspective... but can also interact with your perspective.
When I’m working with younger children, they are invited to use play or drawing to process overwhelming thoughts and feelings. For any clients aged under 18, I will propose a discussion with their parent or carer, to work out how counselling can be offered as a choice to the young person. I have procedures in place that are rooted in children’s safety.
Counselling comes in all shapes and sizes, but ultimately a therapist is someone who’s trained to be attentive, and who gets what you’re going through. Perhaps you’re tired of people not understanding you, or telling you what’s wrong with you, or providing you with solutions that don’t connect with your actual experience… and you’d just like someone to be interested in your story, first of all.
Contact me to arrange a free, no-obligation consultation, which lasts up to 50 minutes and can be online or in-person. You can tell me about your reasons for considering therapy, and see if I'm the right counsellor. I will provide clear, helpful answers to your questions. To find out more, message me by email, text, phone or WhatsApp – I'll be glad to help.
Training, qualifications & experience
I’m an accredited therapist, so this means I've gained high standards of knowledge, experience and development. I specialise in: surviving abuse; harmful childhood experiences; faith issues, or spiritual abuse; neurodiversity; and living with loss. As a counsellor to survivors of sexual exploitation, I’ve been trained to recognise that many kinds of trauma make it difficult to reach out for support. So if you’re curious about therapy, but aren’t sure about starting sessions just yet… feel free to contact me: I’ll be happy to hear from you, and to listen.
Counselling in the Development of Learning (2001)
Counselling Level 5 Diploma (2005)
Counselling Accreditation (2013)
Counselling Children Level 4 Certificate (2018)
Diploma in Clinical Supervision (2024)
Cruse Bereavement Care, volunteer counsellor (2008-10)
Stokesley Academy, volunteer school counsellor (2009-13)
Early Help Service, family outreach worker (2010-20)
Durham Diocese, counselling adviser (2013-15)
Place2Be, volunteer children’s counsellor (2017-18)
ESPA college for autistic adults, counsellor (2018-19)
Rotherham Rise domestic abuse service, counsellor (2020-2024)
Leeds City Academy, school counsellor (2024-25)
I have undertaken other training events over the years, e.g. about adverse childhood experiences, art in therapy, attachment theory, autism, dissociative disorders, domestic abuse, pre-trial therapy, racialised trauma, and working with suicide.
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.
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.
Areas of counselling I deal with
Therapies offered
Fees
£60.00 per session
Concessions offered for
Additional information
The first appointment is free; sessions afterwards cost £60 each.
When I work
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