About me
If you have come across my profile for the first time, welcome. You may be thinking of coming to see a Counsellor for a variety of reasons. Perhaps you are struggling with anxiety and depression which is preventing you from living life to the full and is impacting on your personal relationships, or employment prospects. It may be that you have come out of a difficult relationship which has affected your confidence and self-esteem or perhaps you are going through a personal crisis such as divorce or coping with a bereavement.
Experience
I am a BACP Accredited Counsellor with 5 years experience working in private practise offering both short and long-term counselling.
I have worked for the last 7 years for a leading children's Mental Health Charity with experience providing counselling for Adults and Children. I have a particular interest in supporting Adults with their emotional wellbeing and significant experience offering support to recognise and break the unhealthy patterns of behaviour in relationships thereby providing the foundations for enhancing family relationships and raising resilient children. I offer support with a variety of issues ranging from depression, anxiety, confidence and self-esteem, self-harm, bereavement and domestic abuse.
I have specific experience in supporting with relationship issues relating to affairs, separation and divorce, co-parenting, custody issues and wider relationship issues including relationship difficulties with partners, children, extended family and within the workplace.
I also work for a variety of Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPS) offering short-term counselling and am a registered BUPA provider currently accepting referrals.
How Counselling Can Help
I am to provide a safe, confidential, impartial space for you to explore what's troubling you and to work through difficult or conflicting feelings.
This can help you to gain clarity and a different perspective.
Counselling can lead to a better understanding of self and enable you to rediscover your inner resources which can enable you to take the first positive steps towards change.
It can also help you gain insight into family dynamics including exploration of past and present relationships and lead to better understanding which is the first step to change.
My Approach
I am Integrative trained, which means that I recognise all clients have different life experiences and that one approach does not fit all. I draw on different theoretical approaches which can aid my understanding and enhance the way in which I work.
Above all I place emphasis on the importance of the relationship between the Client/Counsellor and aim to provide a warm, empathetic, non-judgmental space for you to explore what is troubling you.
I also believe that in order to understand our difficulties today it can sometimes be helpful to explore our relationships with other significant people in our past. I work in a non-directive way, at your own pace.
Whatever the reason, you feel you need support with, please do get in touch.
Getting in Touch
Free Telephone Consultation
I realise it can be really daunting choosing a Counsellor and making that first initial contact, which is why I offer a free telephone consultation. Feel free to give me a call where I will be happy to answer any queries you may have.
Do please leave a message, I may be with another client, but your call is important to me and I will get back to you as soon as I can.
Or, alternatively, email me and I will aim to get back to you within 24 hours.
I will then invite you in for an initial assessment session which will be at a reduced rate of £30. This gives you a further opportunity to ask any questions and get to know how we will work together.
I offer both short-term and long-term counselling. We will review as we go along and this is very much directed by you and your needs.
You may also find it helpful to look at my website which will give you more of a feel for how I work and my experience. (melaniehallowscounselling.co.uk)
Location
(Twickenham, West London)
My private practice takes place from a log cabin in my garden, separate from my home, in a quiet development in Twickenham, which provides a quiet, private, reflective space.
I am close to Whitton and Twickenham British Rail and the A316, with easy access to the M3 or into London and many other good transport links. There is plenty of free, easily accessible parking. Wheelchair access available - just ask.
Training, qualifications & experience
- Professional Diploma in Integrative Counselling (2004)
- Certificate In Counselling Children through Play (2012)
Training:
- Positive Outcomes for Dissociative Survivors:
- Working with Relational Trauma: Dealing with Disorganised Attachment
- Safe Lives: Domestic Abuse
- Hidden Harm: Drug/Alcohol Abuse
- BACP Online training: Self Harm
- Family Links trained parenting practitioner.
Member organisations
Registered / Accredited
Being registered/accredited with a professional body means an individual must have achieved a substantial level of training and experience approved by their member organisation.

British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy
BACP is one of the UK’s largest professional bodies for counselling and psychotherapy. Therapists registered with the Association fall into a number of different membership categories such as Individual Member, Registered Member MBACP and Registered Member MBACP (Accred), each standing for different levels of training and experience. MBACP (Accred) and MBACP (Snr Accred) members have achieved a substantial level of training and experience approved by the Association.
Registered members can be found on the BACP Register, which was the first register to achieve Accredited Voluntary Register status issued by the Professional Standards Authority. Individual Members will have completed an appropriate counselling and/or psychotherapy course and started to practise, but will not appear on the BACP Register until they've progressed to Registered Member MBACP status.
All members are bound by a Code of Ethics & Practice and a Complaints Procedure. Accredited by the Professional Standards Authority.
Accredited register membership

Accredited Register Scheme
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
Free initial telephone consultation
Assessment Session: Reduced fee of £30
Fees are £55 per session which is 50 Minutes
Concessions are available for NHS staff.