Terms & Conditions.
For Parents:
Taking care of practical details at the beginning can help us create a structure and safe place where we can work therapeutically with your child.
Confidentiality
To create and maintain safety and privacy within the therapeutic relationship, confidentiality is essential. To fulfil my professional commitment, it is necessary to monitor and evaluate my work with my clients. This may involve regular supervision with another additionally qualified professional, where my work with your child may be discussed. Their identity will not be disclosed. With the exception of safeguarding children and vulnerable adults I do not disclose any details of my work to any outside agencies.
Cancellations
Less than 48 Hours notice
If for any reason you are unable to bring your child for their session, and I am available, you will be charged the full fee for the missed session. I would ask you to advise me of any intended absences as much in advance as possible. I will try to be as flexible as possible, if rearrangement of time and day is needed. I can be contacted on the above telephone number and will return your call as soon as I am able if I miss your call.
More than 48 hours notice – No charge.
Late Arrival
We understand that sometimes it is difficult to arrive on time for your session. Often we have clients booked in before and after your session and therefore cannot extend sessions if you are unable to make it in time. It will just mean that your session will be shorter on that occasion. If you are likely to be 20 or more minutes late please let us know as soon as is safe and practical and we will try to reschedule for another time. If this is not possible the full fee will apply for that session.
Fees
Our usual rate is £60 per session. Invoices are usually sent out Monthly and are payable by bank transfer within one week. Please let us know if you are having any difficulties. After a period of time unpaid invoices will be passed to a third party to recover any debts.
Commitments and Endings
The process of therapy can sometimes feel slow moving and may need particular commitments from you to stay with it at times. The length of time in therapy varies for each person and this will be decided and reviewed between us. Allowing adequate time for ending therapy is important part of the process.
PAST therapists are either registered members of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP), and abide by their Code of Ethics and Practice or they are registered professionals in the field of autism and education. We do take notes of our sessions, but these are kept in a locked fire proof cabinet and destroyed three (3) years from the end of our final session.
Copies of the BACP Code of Ethics and Practice are available on the BACP website: www.bacp.co.uk.
Contact Outside of Therapy
There are occasions where we may agree in sessions to send links or information on help and support in between sessions – This is part of our holistic working with children and their families. Otherwise there will be no direct contact outside of therapy, for the exception of any notifications concerning cancellations or re-arrangements. The phone number provided is to be used solely for the latter purposes. As your therapist I won’t be involved with you in any other way other than outlined; therefore if we see each other outside of sessions I will wait for you to acknowledge me first before I respond.
Before commencing counselling with a young person I expect to meet with the child's parent/s or carer/s to discuss the counselling contract and boundaries and to think about whether counselling is an appropriate intervention for your child. These sessions are charged at our usual fee rate of £50
Children 13 years and above should also attend this first meeting .
Reports
On occasions we are asked to provide reports for schools or local authorities for meetings and reviews. These reports will include strategies to support your young person and will be charged as an addition to the sessions your child or young person. Fee’s are available on our website.
Support for parents experiencing difficult or challenging behaviour
Parents do bring their children for sessions when they are experiencing difficult or challenging behaviour from their child. Counselling should not be seen as cure for behavioural problems and we cannot promise to help a young person's behaviour, the space is for exploration and challenging of one's thoughts, feelings and difficulties. As such it may improve behaviour and relating with family members for the child however this is not a measure by which a counselling relationship with your child would be viewed as helpful.
Behavioural challenges can also stem from inconsistent or unconfident parenting, this will confuse and distress children. If you suspect this to be the case within your family then we would suggest counselling for the parent might be more appropriate and helpful.
I can work with you to look at your childhood and experiences of being parented, both in the past and your current relationship with your parents, or any other issues which may be having a negative effect on your abilities to offer positive parenting now and is making parenting your own young person problematic.
Terminating Therapy
If you feel it is the right time for you to terminate our sessions, after our minimum term has ended, please let me know so that we can arrange to conclude on a constructive note. If at any point, either of us feels that your therapy is not progressing, we must discuss this in an open manner and agree on a suitable course of action. If at any time you feel that this service is not helping you please talk to me. I will always be willing to discuss this with you. This may give you the opportunity to understand and resolve your distress before a decision to discontinue our work has been made.