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Parents / Guardians
What is a "Child Psychologist"?
In the UK, the title "Child Psychologist" is not a protected title. In theory, this means anyone could call themselves a "Child Psychologist". This is a potentially very worrying situation for parents.
At Forward Thinking, we are all qualified and accredited Clinical Psychologists who have specialised in working with children, adolescents and their families. As we are qualified as Clinical Psychologists, this means that we are accredited with, and regulated by the HCPC and the BPS (see "Ensuring Quality Care " below). Being accredited and regulated in this way means parents can have peace of mind, and feel assured that we are properly qualified and adhere to a rigorous set of standards set by both the HCPC and BPS.
Whilst Clinical Psychologists are all trained to work with people across the lifespan, at Forward Thinking, we specialised in working within child and adolescent mental health and behavioural difficulties during training. In addition, since obtaining our Doctorates, we have all worked in NHS Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) and Independent Child Services for many years, gaining further experience and expertise in working with children, young people and their families.
What is a Clinical Psychologist?
In the UK, Clinical Psychologists need to have undertaken a minimum of an undergraduate degree in Psychology and an HCPC accredited Doctorate in Clinical Psychology. Most Clinical Psychologists have undertaken further postgraduate studies before completing their Doctorate. Our Doctoral Training involves working with people of all ages and ability, and we are taught to use several evidence-based therapies. We are also trained in the use of assessments that look at a person’s neuropsychological functioning, development and emotional well-being.
Clinical Psychologists are trained to combine a child and their family’s experiences with scientifically evaluated theories in order to identify the causes and maintaining factors in the problems they are experiencing. Clinical Psychologists do not give medication to help with these problems, but seek to help change some of the factors identified as keeping a problem “stuck” – and we use methods that research has found to be most likely to help with these problems.
Helping your child and family
We work with children, young people and their families who are experiencing a wide range of difficulties including: low mood, anxiety, low self-esteem, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and trauma, anger, behavioural problems, problems associated with neurodevelopmental disorders (such as Austism Spectrum Conditions, AD/HD etc), sleep disorders, bereavement, selective eating, tics and compulsive behaviours.
We work using evidence based treatments (interventions that have been well researched and found to be effective). We have been trained in approaches such as, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Behavioural Therapy, Eye-Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR), Narrative Therapy, Mindfulness-Based Therapies and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). We have had training in other approaches such as Systemic therapy and psychodynamic approaches. Due to our training, we consider ourselves to be ‘integrative’ therapists who work collaboratively with individuals and families to find the most suitable approach to meet their needs. Additionally, we offer a range of psychological and cognitive assessments and other specific psychological assessment batteries to help identify a person’s level of need and guide those around them in how best to support them.
Whilst we specialise in working with children, young people and families, we can also offer assessment and treatment for adults. Please contact us to ask about the services we can provide for adults.
The first steps
Usually the first step is to meet for an initial consultation or assessment, which lasts up to an hour and a half. At this session you will usually meet with two of us, and we will use the time to get to know you and your child, find out what you would like help with, and gather relevant background information. Where appropriate we will spend part of the session all together and part of the session where your child is seen on their own. This gives you both an opportunity to speak openly about how things have been.
During this consultation we discuss what we consider would be the most effective way forward and the reasons behind our thinking. Where we could provide the ongoing help, we will also give an idea of likely duration and cost. We will only recommend further sessions with us if we believe it to be appropriate and in your family’s best interests. We will always discuss other options available that could help you, such as your local NHS services. When people see us for ongoing therapy, they will only meet with one of us for the subsequent sessions.
If you know what you would like help with and want to get an idea of the number of sessions considered appropriate you can visit the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence website (NICE; www.nice.org.uk) or contact us to discuss your family’s needs.
Ensuring High Quality Care
When working with any Psychologist it is important that they are properly qualified and registered. The Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) hold a register of all appropriately qualified professionals (called Practitioner Psychologists), and they have guidelines for maintaining professional standards that must be adhered to. This includes holding certain qualifications and undertaking a certain number of hours’ training and professional development every year. You can check the HCPC register at http://www.hpc-uk.org/check/. At Forward Thinking, we are all Registered Practitioner Psychologists with the HCPC.
In addition, we are all Chartered as Clinical Psychologists with the British Psychological Society (BPS). The BPS have further guidelines in terms of standards that must be adhered to in order to hold Chartered status. You can check the BPS Register of Chartered Members here: http://www.bps.org.uk/bpslegacy/lcm
We all hold current ‘Enhanced Clearance’ from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS), formerly known as the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB), and we hold our own professional indemnity insurance.
Health Insurance Providers
We are registered with all major Health Insurance Providers including BUPA, AXA PPP, SimplyHealth, PruHealth, Cigna and WPA. In most cases, we can claim directly from the Health Insurers. You may need an authorisation code from your Health Insurance Provider in order for us to be able to be paid directly, and there may be an excess charge – please check with your Health Insurance Provider.
