Polly Blackley

counselling and psychotherapy for young people and adults

Counselling and Play-Based Therapy for Children and Young People

I work therapeutically with children and young people who are:

anxious and withdrawn
having difficulties at school whether social, behavioural or academic
struggling with relationships with family or peers
affected by parental separation or conflict
bereaved
have poor self-esteem
are displaying worrying behaviour such as self-harming

I initially offer a free session to meet with the parent(s) to discuss concerns, before arranging an initial session with the young person to explore with them whether counselling or therapy is likely to be helpful to them.

In working with children I make available a range of play and art materials, including paints, crayons, clay, sand and a selection of toys and figures. Young people (over 11) may prefer simply to talk, but I also like to make some art materials, images and figures available when working with this age group, as these can sometimes help them to express feelings and thoughts which are hard to put into words.

I charge £55 per session, and £55 per meeting with parent(s) which I may offer on an occasional basis as appropriate, alongside the work with the child.