Supervision details
Supervision is a cornerstone of safe, ethical, and high-quality clinical practice. Throughout my career, I have been fortunate to experience exceptional supervision from practitioners who have played an instrumental role in shaping my clinical development, professional identity, and understanding of therapeutic practice. These experiences have profoundly influenced my own approach to supervision and reinforced my belief in its value as a space for reflection, growth, and meaningful professional development.
My name is Dr Craig Abex, and I have over a decade of clinical experience working with individuals presenting with mild, moderate, and severe mental health difficulties. I am a qualified Psychodynamic Counsellor, UKCP-registered Integrative Psychotherapist, EMDR Therapist (currently working towards accreditation), and HCPC-registered Chartered Counselling Psychologist. Alongside my clinical practice, I undertake Expert Witness work and am listed on the British Psychological Society's Register of Expert Witnesses and Register of Applied Psychology Practice Supervisors (RAPPS). To further develop my supervisory knowledge and practice, I am currently undertaking a Clinical Diploma in Supervision at the Gestalt Centre, a UKCP-recognised training programme that confers eligibility to the UKCP Supervisor Directory upon successful completion.
Alongside my clinical practice, I am an academic, research supervisor, and Director of Studies on a professional doctorate programme, where I support the academic, clinical, and professional development of doctoral-level practitioners.
My Clinical and Supervisory Approach
At the heart of my clinical practice is a relational philosophy, grounded in the belief that the therapeutic relationship is a fundamental mechanism of change. My work emphasises the clinical use of self, attention to therapeutic process, and an understanding of the conscious and unconscious dynamics that shape our relationships. These principles are informed by psychodynamic, psychoanalytic, and trauma-informed perspectives.
My approach to clinical supervision is underpinned by Hawkins and Shohet’s Seven-Eyed Model of Supervision and, consistent with my clinical practice, is conceptually informed by psychodynamic and trauma-informed perspectives. This integrative framework enables a nuanced exploration of the therapeutic and supervisory relationships, with particular attention to relational dynamics, unconscious processes, and the interplay of transference and countertransference. Central to my approach is the capacity to hold both the therapist–client and supervisor–supervisee relationships in mind, recognising how experiences and relational patterns may emerge and intersect. Alongside this, I draw upon Gary Yontef’s Gestalt principles, particularly the concepts of immediacy, phenomenological enquiry, and relational awareness. This encourages an exploration of the here-and-now experience within supervision, attending to what emerges between supervisor and supervisee as a potential source of insight into the therapeutic relationship.
I believe supervision is both a reflective and developmental process that, at its most meaningful, can deepen insight and enhance professional confidence through a supportive exploration of vulnerability, uncertainty, and complexity. Ultimately, I aim to guide supervisees into this exploration through openness, curiosity, critical reflection, and appropriate challenge.
Supervision fees are £90 per session. A reduced rate is available for counselling, psychotherapy, and psychology trainees.
The UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP) is a leading professional body for the education, training and regulation of psychotherapists and psychotherapeutic counsellors. Its register is accredited by the government's Professional Standards Authority.
As part of its commitment to protect the public, it works to improve access to psychotherapy, to support and disseminate research, to improve standards and to respond effectively to complaints against its members.
UKCP standards cover the range of different psychotherapies. Registration is obtained by training or accrediting with one of its member organisations, or by holding a European Certificate in Psychotherapy. Accredited by the Professional Standards Authority.
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.
