Harbour Play Therapy
My name is Louise and I am a certified play therapist (PGDip), accredited by Play Therapy UK (PTUK). I am based in Oxfordshire but also work in the surrounding counties.
I am a qualified primary school teacher and worked for 15 years in a number of schools around the UK. My passion has always lain in supporting a child's emotional and mental needs and working as a certified play therapist is how I am now able to do this.
Being a member of PTUK means that I have thorough training in areas such as child development, trauma, neuroscience and attachment. I also abide by their ethical principles and receive regular clinical supervision. See https://playtherapy.org.uk/ethical-framework/ for more information.
I work on a one-to-one basis with children to support them in making sense of any difficult or confusing emotions. I also work with small groups of children who have a common therapeutic need.
I have experience working in parental separation, bereavement, abuse, attachment, global learning delay, autism and anxiety, amongst other areas.
An integral part of my work involves working closely with schools and families to enable us to provide the best support to the child we can.
PGCert Therapeutic Play Skills PGDip Play Therapy Licensed Heart to Heart Practitioner DBS ICO Member (ZA459428) Public Liability Insurance
“Play is the language of children, toys their words” - Garry Landreth.
Play therapy helps children understand muddled feelings and upsetting events that they haven't had the chance to sort out yet. It can also help children to gain in confidence and improve their social skills. Rather than having to explain their feelings, a child can use play to communicate at their own level.
How Can Play Therapy Help?
Play is vital to every child's social, emotional, cognitive, physical, creative and language development. It helps to make all types of learning concrete for children and young people. Play therapy can help in a variety of ways: - Emotional support: to learn more about their thoughts and feelings - Playing out of difficult or traumatic experiences in order to make sense of what happened and be better able to cope in the future - Learn to manage relationships and conflicts in more appropriate ways - Develop confidence and social interaction skills Outcomes range from a reduction in anxiety and raised self-esteem to a more specific change in behaviour or relationships.
Fees are charged at an hourly rate. The number of sessions will depend upon a child's individual needs. However, a minimum of an initial 12 sessions is recommended. Additional charges will be applied for travel, attendance of professional meetings and report writing.
Packages for schools are available upon request and are dependent upon the number of children or groups seen in one day.
My fees include record keeping, play equipment, external supervision, transport, PTUK membership, ICO registration and professional indemnity insurance.
Please contact me for further information.
"Louise was always proactive in talking to staff and gathering information to support her work. Louise was very informative to both parents and staff."
SENCO
"We have seen significant improvements in our child and it is lovely to hear that there have been improvements in school as well.""
Parent
"Play therapy from Louise has been a great asset to our interventions. The children have all benefited from Louise's support."
SENCO
