Counselling provides a safe and confidential space for people to talk to a trained professional about their issues and concerns. Counsellors will help explore thoughts, feelings and behaviours so someone can develop a better understanding of themself and of others.

A counsellor will not give opinions, or advice, or prescribe medication. As far as possible they will help children and young people find their own solutions. Most counselling takes place in planned, regular sessions which, depending on the age of the child can last from 20 to 50 minutes.

During a session, counsellors may use games, or offer creative activities to help a child, or young person express themselves, or they might have a more general discussion about how they're feeling. What children and young people talk about is up to them, but it could include:

• Relationships with friends, family and peers
• past and present life events
• feelings, emotions or thoughts
• behaviour
• situations they find difficult

Counsellors will be impartial but understanding. They will listen without judgment and help explore children and young people’s thoughts and emotions. Sometimes they may offer helpful information too.

Counselling offers children and young people a safe space to discuss and work through anything they may be struggling with. This could include family worries, exam stress and mental health concerns like anxiety and self-harm.

Being a parent or carer can feel overwhelming at times. All we want is for a child to thrive and be happy, so it can be difficult to see them struggle. It's tough.

But as much as you want to be the person they come to with their concerns and 'fix' any worries they have, this isn't always possible. Sometimes, children benefit from talking to a professional, someone who has the training to help with their particular concern and someone who is unbiased.

By creating a safe space to talk through their concerns, child counselling can help children understand their emotions better, develop coping skills and build emotional resilience, something that will serve them well into adulthood.

When referring a child for counselling, it's natural to have questions about the process. Here's an overview of what typically occurs in a first session:

Introductions

• The counsellor will introduce themselves and explain their approach
• They'll create a welcoming environment and ask how the child prefers to be addressed
• The child is encouraged to ask questions to help them feel at ease

Assessment

• The counsellor may request a brief history of the child's concerns
• This could involve reviewing referral information or completing relevant forms
• Alternatively, the child may be invited to share their story in their own words
• The focus is on allowing the child to express what's troubling them

Establishing the Counselling Agreement

• The counsellor will outline the terms of the Dialogue service
• They'll explain confidentiality policies and their limits
• Procedures for addressing any safety concerns will be discussed

Important Considerations

• This initial session is crucial for building rapport and trust
• The child should feel comfortable with the counsellor and their methods
• If the child doesn't connect with the counsellor, it's acceptable to explore other options

Remember, the goal is to provide a safe, supportive environment where the child feels heard and understood. Your role in facilitating this process is invaluable.

If you have any questions about the referral process or what to expect, please don't hesitate to contact us. We're here to support both you and the child through this journey.

All Dialogue counsellors have completed several years of training before qualifying to work with children and young people. We required that all counsellors are registered with a recognised regulatory body, such as BACP or UKCP. Our counsellors come from a variety of background and have often worked extensively with children and young people prior to qualifying. We do not require that counsellors come from one particular approach. This means we have lots of different skills in our workforce, with counsellors who have trained in person-centred, integrative and psycho-dynamic approaches, as well as art and play therapist for example.

Adults can play a crucial role in a child's counselling journey. We would recommend that adults:

• Maintain open communication by encouraging a child to share their feelings without pressure.
• Respect their privacy and allow confidentiality if they desire it.
• Be consistent with appointments, ensuring regular attendance to support the process.
• Reinforce positive changes by praising improvements and new coping skills.
• Manage your expectations, understanding that progress may be gradual.
• Remember to take care of yourself and seek support if needed. Your understanding and support are vital to your child's counselling experience and overall well-being.

Unless a counsellor has a concern that child, or someone else, is at risk of harm they will not share what happen within a counselling session with a parent/carer without the child’s consent.

With primary age children counsellors meet with parents/carers before hand as part of the assessment process.

Many children and young people will choose to tell their parents/carers about what happens in their counselling sessions. However for some, the thoughts and feelings they are exploring might feel too big, or scary, to share with someone they are close to, and it may be easier to share what’s bothering them with a counsellor, who isn’t part of their daily life.

Dialogue maintains a robust system for ensuring that children and young people stay safe, and their welfare is protected. Alongside policies and procedures, we have our own internal safeguarding team offering support and advice to all our staff.

If a child, or young person, raises something within a counselling session that causes a counsellor concern they will let them know and explain to them that they need to share the concern with another adult. The counsellor will most often then speak with their line manager, or safeguarding contact, who will help them decide about what to do next. Next steps may involve talking to parents/carers, involving a teacher, or school pastoral lead, or referring to children’s services. All concerns are recorded on a database system, which is subject to our privacy policy and the GDPR.  

Dialogue is a service for children in mild to moderate need. This means that, whilst we hope to help as many children as possible, we might not always be the best service to help. Where counselling is not considered to be the appropriate service to meet a child’s needs, we may be able to help with an onward referral to Early Help, or Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services.  In schools, onward referrals are dealt with the school.

Dialogue counselling services were accredited by the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy since February 2012 with further accreditation achieved in November 2018 for online services. Dialogue services are annually evaluated by the BACP to ensure our continued service accreditation.

 We are the only accredited service in the region working with Primary School aged children and upwards. Our services meet the Quality Standards of the ACE-V Team, CAMHS Evidence Based Practice Unit, part of University College London (UCL) and The Anna Freud Centre.