This professional is available for new clients.
This professional is available for new clients.
About me
Availability
I offer face to face/remote counselling sessions from my own home in the LS16 area of Leeds (Horsforth/Tinshill/Cookridge area), in a specially renovated room. The space is safe, warm and confidential - allowing a therapeutic sanctuary, allowing clients to focus on their needs. Personally I feel it is important to offer both a facility for face to face as well as remote counselling sessions (online video or phone) to clients.
My usual working hours for face to face and remote counselling sessions are as follows:
Monday 10am to 4pm
Thursday 10 am to 4pm
Friday 12pm to 4pm.
I can also offer some space for remote only sessions on Wed' to Fri' evenings between 7 to 8pm.
About me and my therapy practice
Thank you for considering me as your Therapist. My name is Matt. I am an experienced Person-Centred Counsellor based in Leeds, having significant experience working with those who have experienced trauma - being a Crisis Worker in Leeds for over the past decade. I truly feel you would find me approachable and genuine if you were to consider having Counselling with me. My approach to therapy is informed by the Person-Centred Approach (PCA), a very well respected model supported by a good evidence base for a range of concerns and problems.
I truly believe that ALL human beings have potential for change and healing. This can involve some challenging and intense emotional exploration through therapy. The PCA allows for deep collaborative work with clients, while also allowing individuals to feel like they are in control of their own therapeutic experience.
The aim of the counselling I offer is to build therapeutic relationships with clients, creating the safety needed to explore negative past experiences, feelings and worries. I genuinely hope in counselling with me, I would look to carefully develop and check my understanding of what matters to you, your values, culture, relationships and thoughts about yourself. In response I would look to openly reflect back what I sense from you as you talk through your experience, and giving time/space for this to process could hopefully lead to greater self-awareness, healing and mental well being.
My first session
(Prior to any first session, I offer a free 20 minute telephone discussion/video so you as client can ask any questions you may have as well as being able to see if you feel you can connect to me and what I offer as a Therapist).
An initial first session of 50 mins (whether remote or in person) would involve a sense of assessing and information gathering to gauge what you as client would like to gain from therapy, as well as allowing an open space to start to connect with each other in a safe boundaried way. The most important part of any therapeutic relationship is quite the simply, the relationship itself - allowing for trust and safety to be gently built up.
If any of this feels appealing, I can be contacted via phone at 07542408258 or via email.
What I can help with
Abuse, ADD / ADHD, Anger management, Anxiety, Autism spectrum, Bereavement, Cancer, Child related issues, Chronic fatigue syndrome / ME, Depression, Disability, Eating disorders, Health related issues, Identity issues, Infertility, LGBTQ+ counselling, Loss, Men's issues, Mood disorder, Neurodiversity, Obsessions, OCD, Personal development, Phobias, Post-traumatic stress, Pregnancy related issues, Redundancy, Relationships, Self esteem, Self-harm, Sex-related issues, Sexual identity, Sexuality, Spirituality, Stress, Trauma, Women's issues, Work related issues
Types of therapy
Brief therapy, Integrative, Person centred
Clients I work with
Adults, Children, Older adults, Trainees, Young people
How I deliver therapy
Long term sessions, Long-term face-to-face work, Online therapy, Short term sessions, Short-term face-to-face work, Telephone therapy
Training, qualifications & experience
I am a qualified Counsellor (having been so for nearly a decade), being a Registered Member of the BACP (MBACP). I have a CBCAP Level 4 Diploma in Therapeutic Counselling and a BSc (Hons) Psychology degree at an upper 2:1 level.
My previous experience in the therapeutic realm is significant. For over 10 years, I was a Counsellor at Market Place Leeds - working with children/young people from 11 to 25, though sadly the service recently lost its funding. I still work as a Crisis Specialist Worker for Leeds Survivor Led Crisis Service, specialising in working with adults who have experienced trauma/abuse. I also have recent experience working as part of the the Private Practice Team at Leeds Mind in Horsforth, now having my own Private Practice.
Practice description
I offer counselling to individuals (from the age of 11 upwards). This can be either short or long term depending on clients' needs and decisions. I would hope my counselling can be of benefit for most psychological and emotional concerns, including Anxiety, Depression, Anger, Addiction, Bereavement, Relationships, Identity, Trauma and abuse. To emphasise the Person Centred Counselling I offer is designed to work with the whole person, your unique life experiences, culture and diversity brought by each client.
The sessions I offer (both face to face and remote sessions via video) are charged at £45 per session, which are 50 mins in length. I can also offer concessionary rates to those on low incomes, on state benefits or to Counselling Students.
Even though I work from a Person Centred Approach, I also have 5 years training in Psychology and significant experience of the medical model of mental health, working closely with many clients who either have a mental health diagnosis/condition or have had time spent within the mental health system itself. I have also worked with many individuals with Autism or who would identify with being Neurodiverse, working previously as a Support Worker and later a manager in the Care Industry for over 5 years in my previous career path.
My interest in creativity means that I am able to offer creative ways of work, including using art, drawing or music to find ways to express emotions when it is hard to get to certain trapped feelings or things can be hard to verbalise. In the safe space I will be offering for face to face counselling from the start of December 24, I will have a whole range or creative and artistic materials that clients would be able to use and be tactile with. As humans, we dont just feel emotionally, so exploring or physical and somatic selves through creative work and awareness can be powerful.
Thank you for considering me as your Therapist.
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
£45.00 per session
Concessions offered for
Additional information
I would consider offering discounted fees for those on state benefits, Students, Counselling Trainees and Pensioners, which we could discuss in the free 20 min chat prior to any therapy starting.
