Helena spent 10 years working in the NHS community mental health services in the West Midlands before moving down to the south coast. Since then she has developed specialisms in working with children with autism and also with trauma presentations.

After qualifying Helena initially worked within the Solihull Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS), and has spent a number of years teaching primary mental health workers about the importance of early childhood intervention. She is keen to understand children’s early life experiences and to spread the word about the impact they can have on children’s later development. She has furthered her own knowledge in the area of adverse childhood experiences through specialist training on therapy for children who have been through trauma.

Helena’s approach is to understand the past but also identify strengths and look at how these can be nurtured, so that every child can reach his or her full potential. She has two children of her own, one with additional needs, and has a great deal of empathy for those who have unique journeys through parenting.

You will find Helena has a creative approach to engaging with children and their parents through talking, music, and drawings. She will integrate a number of psychological models including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR), adapted Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and attachment theory into her work.

Helena has also worked closely with education staff for many years, so she can help to ensure that any change can be supported in both home and school settings. Above all, she will be able to support you with navigating your way through life’s challenges, because she has an attitude of hope and positivity about every child’s potential for growth and development.

Helena is registered with the Health Care Professions Council membership number PYL22525

  • Doctorate in Clinical Psychology – Universities of Coventry and Warwick
    2002 – 2005
  • BSc (Hons) Psychology – University of Leicester 
    1996 – 1999
  • Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP) Levels 1 and 2
    DDPI, 5 days in May 2021 and 5 days in October 2023
  • EMDR Parts 1 – 4 and EMDR for Children and Adolescents (Level 1)
    Brighton Therapy Partnership and EMDR Advanced Skills and Child Training, 10 days, September 2019 – April 2020
  • Working with people with autism who present with eating disorders and working with ARFID
    K C Jones (with the British Psychological Society), 2 days, March 2019
  • Behaviour modification approach to CBT for Autism Spectrum Disorder and ADHD
    British Psychological Society, 1 day, October 2017
  • Mothers’ perception of community health professional support
    Maunders, H., Giles, D., & Douglas, H. (2007) Community Practitioner, 80 (4), 24-29.