Professional Supervision
Supervision is a professional relationship where a counsellor receives guidance and support from another therapist who is more experienced and qualified.
All counsellors who are registered are required to undertake ongoing Professional Supervision as a part of their membership and insurance requirements.
However, there is more to Supervision than ticking a requirement box.
Ideally Supervision is a space where counsellors can share challenges, be vulnerable, name their doubts and perceived short comings, and be supported in expressing this. They should be able to be real, be human, and drop any professional façade that might be expected elsewhere.
I know for myself this was lacking in my early career. Sharing these things wasn’t psychologically safe. If I was vulnerable in Supervision I was thought of as less than. I was expected to have the answers or at least know what questions to ask. I didn’t! As a novice I fumbled my way through not realising that what I was experiencing was a lack of psychological safety. If I raised my concerns with colleagues I was told “yeah, that’s just how it is”. Sub-standard Supervision was normalised.
When I trained as a Professional Supervisor I realised the gravity of what I had not been offered, and what I had missed out on because I didn’t know what to ask for. This led to me making a commitment in my role as a Supervisor to be more than I had experienced.
In offering Supervision I offer a safe space for therapists to bring all of themselves. The therapist, the administrator, the lost child, the challenged parts, the self-doubts, the accomplishments that deserve celebrating, the burn out, the fatigue, the exciting new areas of learning and growth, the “OMG I don’t know where to go”, the disliking some clients, and any other parts that show up.
I am open to supporting supervisees that choose to just focus on utilising one area of speciality in their relationship with me.
These specialties are:
- working with children
- working with adults
- working with an attachment focus
- working with neurodivergent clients, and neuro-affirming practice
- working in the community (outreach)
- working in a trauma sensitive way with clients
Please note: Professional Supervision is not personal therapy. While there may be some overlaps between home life and relationships, and professional work, it is advised for all Counsellors to have a personal counsellor they can access for personal issues.
