Claire Lock
Every professional displayed on Counselling Directory has been independently verified by our team to ensure they have suitable credentials to practise.
This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
Hello and welcome to my profile. I’m Claire, an Integrative Psychotherapist and Arts Therapist working with adults and young people.
As Brené Brown reminds us, "Courage starts with showing up and letting ourselves be seen." Therapy offers a non-judgemental, supportive, and confidential space to do just that. It is about beginning a safe conversation with our often painful thoughts and feelings with the help of a compassionate, trained professional.
Whether you’re seeking healing from trauma, exploring your identity, navigating neurodivergence, looking to strengthen your relationships, or cultivate a more fulfilling life, I am here to support you. However you arrive, I will meet you with warmth, curiosity, and a willingness to explore whatever troubles you and the change you are hoping for.
My approach is compassionate, relational, and rooted in empathy, with a holistic understanding of your needs. I will support you to explore how your past may be causing issues in the present, to gain clarity and insight and to rediscover and develop the resources you need to live a happier, fuller life. Our work is collaborative and personalised, whether through traditional talking therapy or integrating creative methods like art, visualisation, and sand-tray therapy. Together, we will ensure that therapy is as distinct as you are.
For more information about my services please visit my website.
Getting Started
Starting therapy can feel daunting, and many people hesitate to seek help. I understand the courage it takes and believe that a strong therapeutic relationship is key to unlocking meaningful change.
To help you decide if we’re a good fit, I offer a free, 30-minute telephone consultation. This allows us to explore your hopes and concerns and see if my approach feels right for you. If you choose to continue, our first session provides space to reflect on what brings you to therapy and how I might support you.
I offer both short- and long-term therapy, with sessions available face-to-face in a calm and confidential setting in Bishop's Stortford or online via Zoom.
Training, qualifications & experience
I am a registered and accredited member of the HCPC and UKCP, holding a Master’s degree (with distinction) in Integrative Arts Psychotherapy. My four years of training at the Institute for Arts and Therapy in Education (IATE), London, integrated humanistic, psychodynamic, and relational theories with specialised skills in the therapeutic use of the arts.
I have experience working with individuals managing serious mental health conditions, as well as those seeking a reflective space to explore new meanings in their lives or to unlock hidden barriers to growth and fulfillment.
I have successfully supported clients across NHS services, private practice, and charitable organizations, helping them navigate challenges such as chronic anxiety and depression, trauma, emotional, physical, and sexual abuse, grief and loss, and family or relationship difficulties. I also have a specialist interest in working with neurodivergent clients, empowering them to unlock their unique strengths and thrive in a world that often misunderstands their needs.
Alongside my private practice, I work with individuals and groups at a Cambridge-based charity. My lifelong passion for the arts enriches my therapeutic approach, drawing on my earlier career as a primary school teacher.
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 HCPC are an independent, UK-wide health regulator. They set standards of professional training, performance and conduct for 16 professions.
They keep a register of health professionals who meet their standards, and they take action if registered health professionals fall below those standards. They were created by a piece of legislation called the Health Professions Order 2001.
Registration means that a health professional meets national standards for their professional training, performance and conduct.
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 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
£80.00 - £100.00
Free initial telephone session
Concessions offered for
Additional information
Low income rate: Set to a sliding scale - please enquire
When I work
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morning | |||||||
| Afternoon | |||||||
| Evening | |||||||
| Night |
Further information
As a Member of BACP (British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy), I am bound by its Ethical Framework for Good Practice in Counselling and Psychotherapy and am subject to their professional conduct procedures. I have regular supervision with a UKCP registered supervisor and am committed to ongoing professional development.
