About me
You don't need the right words.
If you're struggling to explain what you're going through, or even what you're feeling, I can work with that. My name is Mark, the person-centred counsellor behind Ash Roots Counselling; and with me you don't need to have everything figured out before getting in touch. Sometimes people simply know that something isn't right. If that's where you are, you're welcome to contact me for a free, no-pressure conversation to see whether I might be the right person to work with.
Although I now live and work in Leeds, I grew up in Ashington, Northumberland, in a working-class family where I learned that honesty, integrity and treating people with respect matter more than just your job title, qualifications or status. Those values still shape who I am, how I work, and how I work with people. As a counsellor, and as a person, I won't see you as broken, weak or needing to be fixed, even if that's how you happen to feel. Whatever has brought you to counselling, I'm far more interested in understanding your experience than judging it.
I'll work alongside you as you begin to make sense of what's happening in your life. Together, we can explore patterns and experiences, gain new insight, and look beneath the immediate problems to better understand what may be driving them. Sometimes the difficulty isn't the problem itself, but the deeper issue that's been hidden underneath.
Alongside my person-centred training, I have a strong interest in helping people understand the connections between their thoughts, emotions, behaviours and even physical responses. Where helpful, I may draw on these ideas to help make sense of why certain patterns develop and what they might be telling us. Having experienced counselling myself, I know how powerful it can be to better understand why we think, feel and react in the ways we do.
There will be no pressure to discuss anything before you're ready. Some experiences take time to understand and even longer to put into words. My role is not to push, persuade or tell you what to do. Instead, I aim to help you explore what matters in a meaningful and purposeful way, so that you can find your own path forward. I avoid advice giving because in my experience these rarely lead to lasting, meaningful changes.
Before training as a counsellor, I spent sixteen years working in secondary education, including roles as Head of Faculty, Head of Year, Assistant Headteacher and Designated Safeguarding Lead. While I was proud to hold those positions, I eventually realised that continuing to climb the ladder wasn't the life I wanted for myself. Stepping away from leadership allowed me to focus on counselling and build a life that felt more aligned with who I am and what matters to me. Those roles nevertheless gave me the privilege of supporting people through some of the most difficult periods they faced, and reinforced something I continue to believe today:
Every person's story makes sense when it's properly understood.
I believe lasting change rarely comes from quick fixes. More often, it comes from understanding ourselves more clearly, facing what needs to be faced, and finding our own way forward with the right support beside us. This is about your growth, rooted in acceptance.
Training, qualifications & experience
I hold qualifications in Counselling Studies (Level 2), Counselling Skills (Level 3) and Therapeutic Counselling (Level 4), providing a strong foundation in person-centred counselling theory and practice.
My professional training and experience have developed over a period of five years and included more than 100 hours of formally supervised counselling practice before qualifying. During this time, I worked with clients presenting with a wide range of issues and life experiences.
Alongside general counselling practice, I have developed extensive experience supporting people affected by bereavement, grief and loss; having supported a charity in providing accessible counselling for grief as part of my journey to qualification. My work has involved supporting individuals from a variety of backgrounds, life stages and circumstances, allowing me to work effectively with a broad range of clients and presenting concerns.
I am a Registered Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and work in accordance with the BACP Ethical Framework, which places a strong emphasis on professionalism, client wellbeing and ethical practice.
In addition to face-to-face counselling, I hold specialist certification in online and telephone counselling, having completed over 80 hours of additional training in this area. This enables me to work confidently and ethically with clients using online and remote methods of therapy.
Alongside my counselling work, I bring over sixteen years of experience in education, including senior leadership and safeguarding roles. This professional background has further developed my ability to build trusting relationships, support people through challenging circumstances and work with sensitivity, empathy and professionalism.
I am fully insured to practice privatly, and am supported with formal supervision to ensure ethical and safe practice.
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
Photos & videos
Fees
£45.00 - £55.00
Additional information
Standard Fee
Individual counselling sessions are charged at £55 per 50-minute session. Sessions are the same price for online, telephone and face to face.
Reduced-Fee Spaces
I believe counselling should be accessible while also maintaining a sustainable and professional practice. A limited number of reduced-fee spaces are therefore available at £45 per session for:
- Student counsellors undertaking counselling training (until qualified)
- Clients referred through agreed charitable organisations (for the first 10 sessions)
A reduced rate of £50 per session is available for valid Blue Light Card holders for 10 sessions, followed then by the standard fee.
Please mention your eligibility when making an enquiry and I will explain how to verify this.
Further information
I know how difficult it can be to reach out for support because I've sat on the other side of the counselling room myself. In my experience, people rarely seek counselling because everything in life has suddenly fallen apart. More often, they reach out because they're tired of carrying something on their own, feeling loike they're prestending, repeating the same patterns, or feeling stuck in ways they don't fully understand. And sometimes, they just know they're not OK, even without the words or diagnosis to explain why.
You don't need to convince me that your difficulties are important enough. If something matters to you, that's enough reason to talk about it. Whether you're looking for support with a specific issue, trying to make sense of a difficult period in life, or simply want a better understanding of yourself, I can support with that; whether that be over just a couple of sessions or much longer.
If you'd like to find out whether we might work well together, I offer a free initial conversation with no pressure and no obligation. If it turns out I don't quite fit for you, I'll happily offer some free suggestions or ideas of how you might find a therapist who does. After all, you're the person who matters most in your journey to get the right help.
