A Little About Allan
Professional Qualifications and Experience
I began my counselling career in the late eighties with an organisation called Victim Support. They provide practical and psychological support to victims of crime, anything from being a victim of burglary through to sexual abuse and supporting families of murder victims came under my remit.
To do this work I undertook specialist training at the West Yorkshire Police International Training College at Wakefield in West Yorkshire. I then took and passed a Diploma in Counselling at The University of Huddersfield. At this time I also opened my private practice in Leeds. I am now based in Ely but since opening my practice here I returned to university in Leeds to complete a Degree, a BSc. in Therapeutic Counselling.
I am a professional accredited counsellor with The National Counselling Society and a member of The British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy (BACP). I also hold an Enhanced Criminal Records Bureau Disclosure Certificate. In addition, I hold membership of The British Association for Behavioural & Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP) and as such I am committed to my personal and professional development. I worked and trained for a time with the 'STAR' (Surviving Trauma After Rape) Project. This is a core group of counsellors in the West Yorkshire area that work with the Police and Area Health Authorities to provide immediate intervention and counselling to female and male victims of rape and serious sexual assault. Specialist training was undertaken by me which included the counselling of female and male adult victims who were physically and sexually abused as children. I had the privilege of training with some of the foremost authorities in the field namely, William Prendergast PhD and Ray Wyre Director of The Gracewell Clinic. This training was paid for by the Police and Health Authorities of West Yorkshire to whom I owe a debt of gratitude. I have also trained with 'Survivors' an organisation who work with victims of male rape.
Over the years since 1987 and, in addition to my diploma and degree, I have undertaken a great deal of coursework. Including: Basic Counselling, Counselling Theory and Practice, Developing Counselling, Bereavement Counselling, Stress and Crisis Management, HIV and AIDS Awareness, Drugs Therapy and Rehabilitation, Debt Counselling & Advice. I have also spent some time at the university's of Warwick and Aston (in Birmingham) researching working with sexual minority clients. This area of therapy is still in its relative infancy and covers areas such as Lesbian, Gay, Transvestism, Transexuals, Transgender, Kink et al. Pioneers at the forefront of research and therapy in this area are Pink Therapy who, I am happy to be associated with.
Areas of Expertise
Some of the issues covered are: Anxiety, Depression, Sex, Sexuality, Sexual Identity, Stress, Emotional Difficulties, Life Crisis, Bereavement and Loss, Sexual, Physical or Psychological Abuse, Problems at Home/Work, Personal Debt Problems. Please note this list is not exhaustive, as a counsellor with almost thirty years of counselling experience the issues covered are many and diverse. Please call for an informal chat if you are in any doubt.
Personal Approach
I am primarily a Behavioural Psychotherapist and employ various models of therapy including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). Put simply, the main aim of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is to rid ourselves of faulty concepts that influence negative thinking and the associated negative behavioural patterns. Among other things, a Cognitive Behavioural Therapist challenges predetermined assumptions and the associated negative thought patterns that a client may have about themselves, others or their environment.
In addition, as a Therapist, I will help you through assessment and subsequent therapy, to explore your issues, develop effective intervention techniques and personal coping mechanisms leading to an improvement in your quality of life.
Dependent on the issues presented I also employ other counselling techniques (models) such as Solution Focused Therapy, Cognitive Behavioural Modification (CBM), Rational Emotive Therapy (RET), Psychodynamic, Humanistic, Transpersonal and Brief Counselling. I also employ an element of Life Coaching and Directive Therapy in some aspects of my therapeutic approach. All of which, I believe, compliment my main model.
