Kelly Pendlebury

Firstly, I am an integrative child and adolescent counsellor and registered member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy. As a member of BACP I abide by a strict code of ethics, that ensures I work within my own area of competence with children and young people, and that their safety and wellbeing is of paramount importance.

My previous career in criminal law was really the first time I made a definitive link between childhood experiences and how negative events (or adverse childhood experiences) can impact on later opportunities and problems in adulthood. I decided to come out of the field of law and retrain as a counsellor working with children and young people, which has involved extensive specialist training with Place2Be and Teens in Crisis.

I have worked as a counsellor for a number of years with children and adolescents through schools and the children’s Mental Health Charities, Place2Be and Spark, and this range of experience has meant I am able to work with a range of diverse issues from bereavement and loss, anxiety, self harm, eating disorders, low mood/lack of confidence and questions around identity.

As a creative counsellor, my approach is flexible and open. I am a person-centered counsellor by training, within a psychodynamic background, which means that I do not use a set approach when working with a child or young person. A good therapeutic relationship can be the conduit for positive change, and I look at the person, who they are as individuals, and what might be preventing them from moving forward in their lives. I hope that together we will go on a journey that will take into account their developmental age, attachment style and the system in which they live, exploring their inner world through a different range of mediums using play therapy, sand tray work, drawing and clay modelling for example. This can be incredibly powerful and revealing, as can sharing experiences through talk therapy if preferred. There is no one size that fits all, and I believe an individual approach has the best outcome. I have worked with neurodiverse children and young people, and can adapt my therapeutic approach to take into account any individual/specialist needs.

I have worked for a number of years in primary schools delivering play therapy, and I am currently working for a local Children and Young Person’s Mental Health Charity offering creative counselling and mental health support for those aged 11 years and upwards.

If you could like further information on how I work, please contact me. It would be great to hear from you!