Helen Robertson
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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
Welcome to my Counselling Directory page.
I am a Humanistic Counsellor and I offer a warm, inclusive and non-judgemental space in which to explore your life in a way that suits you, safely and confidentially.
I work relationally, which means that I will pay attention to how you and I are interacting together - our relationship - as part of the therapy. Humanistic therapy focuses on self-development and growth and is a holistic approach: we will think about the whole of your life experience including your thoughts, feelings and past experiences. I believe in clients' abilities to grow, and your ability to recognise your strengths, creativity and choice.
My training comprised of Person-Centred, Transactional Analysis and Gestalt Counselling, and I draw on these and other approaches in the work that I do.
You can read more about the Humanistic approach here: http://www.thecounsellorsguide.co.uk/humanistic-approach-counselling.html
Primarily though, my focus is on the relationship between me as a therapist and you as a client, as I believe that this is the greatest facilitator for change.
I am interested in the principles of mindfulness and sometimes integrate this into my counselling practice if this is something that you might be interested in.
Our first session
We can think of our first session together as an informal assessment for both you and me - to work out if we might be a right fit to work together, and if so what our focus might be, as well as for how long we would be working together.
I will ask some questions about what you are hoping for from Counselling and what has brought you to this point. There will also be some space for you to ask any questions you might have about Counselling in general, as well as my approach.
All sessions last 50 minutes, including this first meeting.
Contact me by phone, email or through this listing or my website directly and we'll arrange a brief, free of charge phone conversation so that we can work out a time that suits you to come and have your first session.
Professional registration and ethics
I am a Registered Member of BACP (British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy), and I subscribe to their Ethical Framework.
I am in regular supervision with an accredited supervisor who oversees my clinical work.
I work with individuals (over 18) and have an enhanced DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) certificate.
Insurance
I hold full professional liability insurance.
Where is my practice?
I work from a comfortable, private therapy space which is located in my garden office room at my home in South East London. I also offer sessions online via Zoom.
I am around five minutes' walk from either Penge East or Penge West train stations. I am also accessible from Sydenham train station (fifteen minutes' walk) or Kent House station (twenty minutes' walk). There is parking available outside my house.
To arrange an initial meeting, please contact me through this page, through my website, or by phone.
If I do not answer the phone, please leave a message or send me a text and I can call you back when I am available.
Some information about counselling
Counselling is a talking therapy, where, during sessions, the counsellor's full attention is on you, the client.
It is a confidential and safe space in which you can explore whatever issues are bothering you, and work together with your counsellor to reach further understanding or to make decisions about your life.
Counselling offers you a neutral space - sometimes talking to friends and family doesn't feel quite right, or quite enough perhaps. Talking to a trained, impartial professional who is trained to listen empathetically and non-judgmentally can feel different, and may offer you more freedom to really explore how you feel.
Quite often you may find that some of the difficulties that you are facing outside of therapy may arise in the counselling room with your therapist, and this can provide a useful opportunity to explore them further 'in the moment'.
Counselling is not about giving advice or opinions, and you will find that your counsellor may not often share information about themselves. This is to keep the focus on you and your capacity to develop and change.
Sessions last for a fixed amount of time and mostly take place at the same time each week on a weekly basis.
For more information about different kinds of therapy and approaches, you might find this a helpful webpage: http://www.counselling-directory.org.uk/counselling.html
Training, qualifications & experience
I trained in Humanistic Counselling at Metanoia Institute in Ealing, London.
Metanoia Institute, London
Diploma in Humanistic Counselling (2015) (Transactional Analysis, Person-Centred and Gestalt Therapy)
An Introduction to Transactional Analysis (‘The TA 101’) (2013)
Middlesex University
BSc (Hons) in Reflective Therapeutic Practice (2015)
Durham University
BA (Hons) in Philosophy
I began my Counselling training after having worked within the fields of education, working with children and adults with learning disabilities, family support work, as well as relationships and sexual health education.
I have worked with adults in the community, students in higher and further education settings, and have a special interest in and experience of working therapeutically with people with learning disabilities. I have experience of working with groups as well as short-term and longer-term one to one work.
I have completed placements at Waterloo Community Counselling in London (2013-2014), and the University of Bristol Student Counselling Service (2014-2016) where I was later employed.
I have worked in private practice since 2017.
I am a Primary Tutor on the Metanoia Humanistic Counselling BSc course and have also sat on the examining board for this course for many years.
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
Fees
£65.00 per session
Concessions offered for
Additional information
I charge £65 per 50 minute session. Our first introductory session is £45. I accept payment by cash or by debit or credit card.
I do have some concessionary rates available, for people training in counselling, or for those on low incomes. Please ask me for more information about this.
When I work
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I see clients on Tuesdays and Thursdays between 10am and 3pm.