Margaret Ansell

I am a qualified and experienced Child, Young Person and Family Psychodynamic Psychotherapist. I hold an MA in Psychological Therapies with Children, Young People and Families and am registered with the British Psychoanalytic Council to work with children and families. I am also a member of the Tavistock Society of Psychotherapists. 

I have been working with children and young people for over 35 years, firstly as a teacher, then as a playworker and in the last 10 years as a psychotherapist.

I work in a non-directive way with children, adolescents and young people up to the age of 25. I also work with parents; individually, together or as a part of their family. My training encompassed a number of therapeutic approaches. It had a strong grounding in psychoanalytic thinking, with a focus on the unconscious processes and emotions that can affect how someone is feeling in the present. This thinking forms the basis of my therapeutic approach.  

What does child, adolescent and family psychotherapy offer children and young people?

Working with children and young people is a specialised field. Transitions in childhood through adolescence and into adulthood can present both children and parents with challenges which can arouse powerful, complicated  and confusing feelings. These emotions can impact on relationships at home, friendships and behaviour. When everybody is confused about the problem and no one fully understands the child's or young person’s difficulty psychotherapy can help.

Psychotherapy can help them to develop an understanding of how their emotions can influence and be influenced by their experience of their world and their relationships with people in their families, social network and at school. 

The therapeutic process usually has a beneficial effect on the child or young person. As they begin to make sense of their difficult and often confusing feelings the child or young person’s relationships and behaviour can improve. Family life can become easier and many of them begin to make better use of opportunities at school and college.

What does child, adolescent and family psychotherapy offer parents and families?

Psychotherapy can support parents when their children are troubled. It can provide parents with a safe space to share their feelings about the challenges they and their children are facing. Psychotherapy can help parents and families to understand how patterns of behaviour, the presence of powerful emotions and the relationships between family members can have an impact on individuals within the family.

What issues can I help with?

Issues sometimes arise as a reaction to life events which everyone knows about. Alternatively problems may arise without any obvious cause. 

Psychotherapy can help with a range of issues including anxiety, depression, grief, shyness, behaviour difficulties, bullying, low self-esteem, self-harm, risky behaviour, depression, friendship issues and post-traumatic stress.

It may be that a child or young person would benefit from some additional support in challenging times, such as, moving house, parental separation or divorce, loss of a significant person or beloved pet, changing school, leaving school, starting work or university, exams, illness or psychological issues in the family.

What to expect  at the beginning

I usually begin with a short series of appointments. This helps to get a fuller picture of what the problem might be and to determine what kind of ongoing therapy might be indicated, if any. This also gives a young person an opportunity to discover more about the experience of therapy and to understand what future work together might be like. Decisions about what to do following this short introductory period are always made in discussion with the child or young person and the parents.

Occasionally specific issues are dealt with in the course of an initial assessment. More often than not we move on to open ended, long term therapy. Usually I would work individually with the child or young person. However, depending on the age of the child and the situation, I can see a parent and child together, or a sibling group, or the parents and not the child. 

What to expect in a typical session

I endeavour to create a safe, consistent, boundaried space where my young clients begin to feel secure enough to explore their often difficult and confusing feelings. I use age-appropriate approaches to offer children and young people a way to make sense of their feelings and thoughts. With older children, adolescents and young people I may take a more traditional ‘talking’ therapy approach, however the option to use creative mediums is always available. With younger children, feelings and experiences are more commonly explored through play and creative methods. Those who find it difficult to communicate through words or play may need me to understand the meaning of their behaviour, how they react to the session and relate to me. For those children and young people unable to verbalise their feelings and experiences I am trained to attend to and understand their non-verbal communications for example through their actions, body language and play.

How often and for how long? 

Sessions are usually weekly. Occasionally, at times of extreme distress, it may be advisable to have two sessions a week. Every effort is made to see the child or young person at the same time each week. This predictable routine supports the therapy. Individual sessions typically last 50 minutes.

Sometimes a brief period of therapy can resolve matters, however at other times longer is needed and sometimes therapy can continue for a number of years. This is often the case when the initial difficulty is resolved but the young person has to face new challenges as they get older (such as exams or moving to University) and they decide they would benefit from further support.

• Exam anxiety
• School refusal
• Childhood problems with sleep, fussy eating, anger, sibling relationships, friendship difficulties etc

£70 for a 50 minute once weekly session

Twice weekly sessions are £63 for each session

Parental reviews and family sessions are often 75 minutes long and are charged pro rata

There are some reduced fee sessions for those on low income

With extensive experience working in educational and child care settings I am able to work alongside schools to support parent groups, teachers, care workers, playworkers, support staff and groups of pupils.