Charlie Best

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she/her
MBACP, UKCP, MSc Integrative Psychotherapy and Counselling

About me

UKCP-accredited psychotherapist experienced at working with trauma, attachment, relationship issues, low self-esteem, anxiety, and depression. I offer a safe haven for you to explore your thoughts, feelings and identity and to make life-affirming changes to support your mental health and well-being.

Together, we will build a compassionate environment where you can learn to better understand yourself and how you function in the world. We might focus on immediate challenges, improve awareness of ongoing patterns of behaviour, and/or examine how your past impacts your present. We might also look more broadly at how societal and political forces have helped to shape you and your situation, and how events and patterns in your family and community history might have ripple effects today.  

We'll aim to bring mind and body more in tune with one another, and to work through internal conflicts between thoughts, feelings, and different parts of self. We will seek to process difficult life experiences and to set you up for the future you wish for. 

I work with: 

  • people experiencing relationship difficulties with partners, friends, family, colleagues and themselves.
  • those with histories of trauma and abuse, seeking to understand how difficult past experiences might be impacting them today.
  • people processing loss, whether that be of loved ones, relationships, life stages, or identity.
  • those wanting to understand all parts of themselves; their hopes, creativity, ideas and agency, as well as their darkness, shame, fears and impulses.
  • people exploring neurodiverse, bi-cultural, queer and trans identities, and those exploring relationship models such as polyamory. I am LGBTQ+ affirming and strive for anti-oppressive practice.

What sessions are like:

Sessions with me will be warm, explorative, collaborative, and challenging where helpful. We will navigate goals and expectations together, regularly checking in to make sure you are getting what you need. We will aim to build a relationship that offers a safe haven to explore all parts of your self, and for you to understand and feel deeply the impacts of your life experiences. We might explore alternative beliefs and perspectives, to increase self-awareness and to broaden your sense of what might be possible for you.

A little about me:

Having lived in both rural towns and big cities and worked in a variety of settings, from the voluntary sector to the corporate world, I bring a breadth of life experience to my practice and a deep personal understanding of what it’s like to undertake significant life changes.

Volunteering for the Samaritans during the pandemic uncovered both my passion and potential for supporting people in crisis. Years of my own personal therapy and self-examination help to equip me to be alongside others in their exploration.

I also have a deep love of art and nature and believe in the power of these to support mental health. 

Training, qualifications & experience

Training and Ethics:

My training primarily integrates psychodynamic, relational, existential and person-centred theories, though I draw on ideas and research from wider fields. I am dedicated to my own continued learning and development and use both personal therapy and clinical supervision to support me in my work.

I am have an MSc in Psychotherapy and Counselling and am a fully qualified UKCP Psychotherapist. I adhere to both the BACP and UKCP codes of ethics.

Member organisations

Registered / Accredited

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.

UKCP
UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP)

The UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP) is a leading professional body for the education, training and regulation of psychotherapists and psychotherapeutic counsellors. Its register is accredited by the government's Professional Standards Authority.

As part of its commitment to protect the public, it works to improve access to psychotherapy, to support and disseminate research, to improve standards and to respond effectively to complaints against its members.

UKCP standards cover the range of different psychotherapies. Registration is obtained by training or accrediting with one of its member organisations, or by holding a European Certificate in Psychotherapy. Accredited by the Professional Standards Authority.

BACP
British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy (BACP)

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

UK Council for Psychotherapy
Accredited Register Scheme

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.

UK Council for Psychotherapy
British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy
Accredited Register Scheme

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.

British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy

Areas of counselling I deal with

Photos & videos

Fees

£70.00 per session

Concessions offered for

  • Low income
  • OAPs
  • Students
  • Trainee counsellors
  • Unemployed
  • Refugees

Health Insurance/EAP

  • Health Assured

Additional information

I offer a free 15-minute introductory audio or video call. If we then choose to work together, sessions will last 50 minutes and cost £70. Some concessionary spaces are available for £65; ask for details. 

***Please note that I currently only have availability for clients looking for weekly therapy. All fortnightly slots are taken but please ask if you would like to be added to the waiting list.***

I always respond to enquiries within two working days. If you haven't heard back from me, please check your junk mail. 

When I work

Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
Early morning
Morning
Early afternoon
Late afternoon
Evening

Birmingham, West Midlands, B29

Type of session

In person
Online

Types of client

Young adults (18-24)
Adults (25-64)
Older Adults (65+)
Employee Assistance Programme

Key details

DBS check

In England and Wales, the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS, formerly known as CRB) carry out criminal records checks for individuals working with vulnerable groups, such as children. To find out more, visit gov.uk , or contact this professional directly

My therapy space is on the ground floor, however there are a few steps to access. Please get in touch if you would like to discuss your individual accessibility needs.

Online platforms

Google Meet
Charlie Best
Charlie Best