Information for parents and carers

I believe that it is really important that where possible children and young people who are accessing counselling are supported in this by their parents/carers. I also recognise that for you to be able to do this it helps to be reassured that I am a professional and have the relevant experience and expertise to be trusted to provide your child with support and this is a safe way for your child/young person to receive support, as well as maybe some information about how I work and the boundaries of that work such as what I might say to you about the sessions I have with your child.

​

Many parents/carers want to support their child/young person and this can be difficult if you don’t know what support may be useful as mind reading isn’t a skill we gain on having a child!! As such I will often seek to encourage children/young people that I am working with to share with those who care for them information that together we feel may help you to do this. I would ask that you try and resist the urge to find out about what they’re discussing in the counselling as this can mean that counselling can be less useful to the young person than it otherwise might be.

​

However please be assured that in line with Safeguarding Protocols and  my Confidentiality Statement if I am significantly concerned about any child’s/young person’s safety I would seek to make sure the appropriate people are informed and often this would involve working with the child/young person to agree to you their parent/carer being informed. Sometimes I would need to share information with you or others even if the child/ young person doesn’t want me to due to the level of the concern I have. There are of course some variations with respect to a child’s/ young person's age and the specifics would be discussed in an initial session and revisited in ongoing sessions.