General Counselling Questions

It is very important to us that you are thinking about starting therapy. Our experience tells us that the best way to decide on whether therapy, a particular therapeutic approach or therapist might be helpful is an initial appointment. We try to offer as much information about our therapists and the concerns they work with on our website so that when you do meet you will be able to focus on the experience of being with the therapist. How you feel will enable you to decide together with the therapist the best way forward. 

Yes, this is a private and confidential service. Sometimes people are concerned that information will be shared with their GP, employer or family members and that this might have implications. The benefit of an independent service such as this is that information does not need to be shared until you are ready to share (if at all). In the very rare event you therapist thinks there is a need to communicate with other professionals they will discuss this with you first.

We only offer you therapists who have a minimum of two years experience in working in private practice having also met the stringent requirements of the major UK professional bodies for counselling and psychotherapy. You can reast assured that when meeting with your therapist they are used to speaking with people about the types of concerns brought to therapists who practice privately. 

Our team have also shown themselves to be accomplished therapists - able to bring a wealth of experience to the therapeutic process. With your therapist you can relax in the certain knowledge that you are meeting with a leading professional in talking therapy. Our service is confidential and our comfortable consulting rooms are conveniently located in Chiswick, Kensington and Cirencester.

Your therapist will be:

  • Fully trained to meet either the accredited registers of the Professional Standards Authority (PSA) or the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) regulator.
  • Active member of leading professional bodies, commiting to the most established and rigorous Ethical Codes of Conduct and meeting standards for ongoing standards of care.
  • Committed to professional development and reflective practice.
  • Experienced therapists including the delivery of therapy in private practice settings.

Together as a team we have:

  • Delivered over 100,000 therapy sessions
  • Over 160 years of combined experience as therapists
  • 96% satisfaction from clients who have completed feedback forms

An Associate will have significant experience, have membership of a professional body and at least two years in private practice. Associates are independent practitioners who Nicholas has invited to bring their practices to be based together. Whilst the Associates work independently, they have been carefully selected for their qualifications, experience and commitment to excellence. 

They also have their own professional liability insurance arrangements. The team is therefore able to provide a comprehensive portfolio of professional counselling and psychotherapy services for adults, couples and families with a choice of male and female therapists experienced in working with a broad range of concerns. 

Your agreement for therapy will be with your therapist and in the initial session they will talk you through how they work, agree with you what your therapy should be and advise how to pay their fees. 

Senior Associates are therapists who have worked in private practice and held full accreditation / registration for over ten years, or therapists who choose to become Senior Associates when they have worked with us for at least four years. This means they have a minimum of six years working with the types of concerns brought to private therapy.

A great deal of research has and is being undertaken on the subject of Counselling Services, Psychotherapy Services and the different approaches to therapy. It suggests that the most important factor in effective outcomes is the strength of the relationship between the client and the counsellor or psychotherapist. We therefore provide you with details and a photo of our Counselling and Psychotherapy Team to help you start to think about who might be right for you and when you make contact with us we will ensure you are able to meet with a therapist who has the right experience for you.

Counselling and psychotherapy trainings are many and varied however our therapists have all undertaken a comprehensive program of post graduate training, belong to professional bodies, have years of clinical experience, undertake CPD (continued professional development), have clinical supervisors and hold professional liability insurance.

A Psychotherapist registered with the United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP) a psychotherapist will have undertaken an extensive post graduate training including an academic component generally exceeding MA level, extensive work experience and own experience of person therapy. In terms of work experience, as psychotherapy tends to be a longer term endeavour a psychotherapist will have had to work with long term clients. Psychotherapists tend to work with a wide scope of concerns from emotional difficulties to psychiatric disorders.

A Counsellor or Psychotherapist registered with the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy will undergo an accredited training programme that is generally shorter term than that for the UKCP. They also have extensive work experience prior to registration but will not necessarily have worked with clients on a long term basis or in psychiatric settings and they may not have undergone personal therapy themselves.  

Whilst being independent practitioners, all the Associates share the same commitment to providing the best possible standard of care and if you are in anyway unhappy or concerned about your therapy we will want to find a solution. As your agreement for therapy is between you and your therapist speak or write to them in the first instance. In the event you continue to have any concerns then the next step is to contact the therapists professional membership organisation. Associates also hold their own individual professional liability insurance arrangements.

The terms Counselling and Psychotherapy, these are often used interchangeably. However for the purposes of understanding what to expect, counselling is an endeavour that often has a clearer focus than psychotherapy for example a Bereavement or particular crisis. The nature of more clearly defined concerns tends to result in a limited number of sessions.

Psychotherapy is relevant where there is a sense of struggle without any particular sense of a cause of the concern, often this struggle is something which has been experienced for a considerable period of time. A psychotherapy relationship tends to be of a longer-term nature.

We will discuss this fully in your initial consultation however you might find the questionnaire on this link helpful.

There are hundreds of recognised therapeutic approaches however these tend to be grouped under three major types Humanistic, Psychodynamic and Cognitive Behavioural. Our team members are integrative counsellors or psychotherapists, this means that they employ the philosophies and techniques from each of the major theoretical perspectives.

It is never possible to say at the start how many sessions will be needed however we will regularly review with you whether you are finding the sessions helpful, when you no longer feel as though you need to continue we will agree a plan for ending. We always suggest starting with six sessions and if these prove helpful then we continue.

Counselling & psychotherapy with us provides an opportunity to develop a greater understanding of your difficulties, to comprehend and clarify what was previously unclear and with this new awareness to identify and implement changes in your life. Crucially we offer a supportive relationship until the point at which you feel your difficulties have been addressed.

We can explore situations related to any aspect of your personal life and relationships, your working life, or your social life. Read more about why to choose Counselling or Psychotherapy.

No, we will sit together in chairs.

We work with you so that you can make the best decision to suit your own personal circumstances, we may offer different perspectives on a problem but we will not tell you what to do.

If you want to cry then you can and we can talk with you about your concerns about crying.

Yes, Nicholas Rose offers supervision to counsellors and psychotherapists in groups and individually.

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