This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
Hello, my name is Colin.
Pressure and stress are inevitable nowadays, and you may be feeling overwhelmed and unable to cope. You may have also experienced traumatic events causing you grief or depression. I can help you explore, evaluate, and understand your feelings and help build your resilience as an individual.
I am an English man in my early 70s. I embrace and celebrate diversity and make no judgements of people based on ethnicity, age, sexual preference or any inherited belief or characteristic. I want to get to know anyone I work with as a person and understand their uniqueness as an individual.
Training, qualifications & experience
I recently studied to become a qualified counsellor (I am a registered member of the BACP) after retiring from my professional career. My interest in helping others in this way started during the Covid pandemic when, as a volunteer delivering food parcels, I met a lot of people who needed emotional support and either did not know how to or could not afford to access it.
As a student counsellor, I discovered the power of person-centred therapy and came to understand that it is possible for someone to increase their mental resilience, become better equipped to handle the pressures and stress of modern life, and so reduce their anxiety. I found that more acute depression, often related to bereavement and other traumatic events, can also be alleviated by the clarity and self-awareness that can come from working with a person-centred therapist.
During my studies, I came to understand more about myself and the reasons for my anxieties and insecurities, relating to traumatic experiences of my own.
Below are some of the types of issues that I am familiar with:
- Anxiety
- Bereavement
- Low self esteem
- Romantic, family, work or social relationship issues
- Dissociation
- Issues related to neuro-diversity
Member organisations
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
£10.00 - £40.00
Free initial in-person, telephone or online session
Concessions offered for
Additional information
My exposure to people who are vulnerable or non-privileged, together with my own life experiences have led me to believe that anyone who is ready to engage with the counselling process, regardless of their financial means, should be able to access it. Sadly the support systems offered by today’s society do not enable this, so I am prepared to do my own very small ‘bit’ by providing my services on a ‘pay as you can afford’ basis.
If we are to achieve your desired outcomes together, we will need to develop trust. I will take the first step towards building this by trusting you to choose to pay what you can afford for my services.
When I work
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Further information
I live in Shipley and can see you at my home which is conveniently located close to public transport and free parking. Alternatively I have found that on-line sessions can be very effective if you prefer this or if you are not located nearby.
If my approach appeals to you, please contact me to arrange an exploratory free of charge phone call so that we can decide together if I am the right counsellor for you. I will ask you to describe the nature of the issues which caused you to seek counselling, to ensure that my skills and approach are right for your needs. I will also give you the opportunity to ask any questions you have for me. I will not put a time limit on this call as it is important that we come to a good decision, but as a guide please allow 15-30 minutes.
If, after this call, we agree to work together, we will select a time and day to meet weekly for 50 minutes, and whether to meet remotely or in person.
During our first counselling session we will work together to create a formal agreement covering our joint expectations including the confidentiality of the information you share with me, how I will keep your personal data private, and our joint commitment to timekeeping. At the end of this session, we will finalise the terms of our financial agreement, the initial number of sessions we are committing to together and how we will regularly review your progress.
