The process begins by developing an understanding of what is happening and deciding what the most appropriate next steps may be.
Every child and family arrives with different questions, concerns and needs.
1. Initial parent consultation
2. Initial formulation and next steps
The next steps may be:
Assessment and Diagnosis
Psychological intervention
1. Initial parent consultation
The first appointment is usually with parents or caregivers and provides time to discuss your concerns in detail. We will explore the difficulties your child is experiencing, how these are affecting their everyday life, when and where they occur, and what you are hoping to understand or change.
Before the appointment, you may be asked to complete an initial questionnaire and provide relevant reports or other information. This helps me to understand the concerns that have brought you to the practice and identify any areas that may need further exploration.
The initial parent consultation is arranged separately from any subsequent assessment or intervention. It provides an opportunity to discuss your concerns, ask questions and consider what, if anything, may be helpful next, without needing to commit to a full assessment or course of intervention from the outset.
2. Initial formulation and next steps
Following the consultation, I bring together the information available to develop an initial understanding of what may be contributing to your child’s difficulties and what may be needed next.
I will then discuss my recommendations with you. This may be an Assessment & Diagnosis pathway to explore particular questions in greater depth, Psychological Intervention where the focus is on addressing an identified difficulty and supporting change, or another recommendation where this would better meet your child’s needs.
I will explain what I am recommending, why I think it would be helpful and the expected costs. You can then decide whether you would like to proceed.
Assessment & Diagnosis
The Process
Where assessment is indicated, an individualised assessment plan is developed based on the questions that need to be explored. Depending on these questions, the assessment may include a more detailed developmental and clinical history, alongside the assessment methods needed to investigate particular areas of functioning. The assessment plan and expected number of appointments will be discussed with you before assessment begins.
Assessment usually takes place over several appointments and may include standardised psychometric testing of areas such as cognitive abilities, attention and executive functioning, learning, language or other aspects of development. Depending on the questions being explored, the assessment may also include structured or observational measures, questionnaires completed by parents and teachers, and information from school or other relevant sources.
Once the assessment is complete, information from these different sources is brought together and interpreted in the context of your child’s developmental history and everyday functioning. This provides an integrated understanding of your child’s individual profile and allows the questions that led to the assessment to be addressed.
You will receive a detailed written psychological report setting out the findings, conclusions and practical recommendations for home and school. If a diagnosis is established, this will be clearly explained within the report.
A feedback appointment provides time to discuss the findings and recommendations, answer questions and consider the next steps.
Psychological Intervention
The Process
Where psychological intervention is indicated, the initial sessions focus on understanding the current concerns, establishing clear goals and agreeing a plan for the work. Questionnaires or other measures may be used to establish a baseline and help monitor progress.
You will receive a brief written intervention plan outlining the focus of the work, the agreed goals and the proposed approach.
Intervention usually takes place over a planned block of sessions and is tailored to the child or young person’s age, needs and individual circumstances. Parents are actively involved where appropriate, both within sessions and in supporting strategies and change in everyday life.
Progress is reviewed throughout the intervention and the approach adapted where needed. At the end of this block of sessions, we will review what has changed, whether further support is needed and the most appropriate next steps.