Counselling, Psychotherapy, Psychology, Psychosexual and Relationship Therapy

The Awareness Centre provides counselling, psychotherapy, psychology and psychosexual and relationship therapy. We work with individuals, couples, families and groups. Our therapists offer face to face and Skype sessions.

Counselling services at The Awareness Centre Based in Clapham, we provide short term NHS counselling to clients/patients who are registered with a GP surgery in Lambeth and we work in partnership with the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (Slam). All NHS counselling is provided at your GP surgery. To be referred to see an NHS counsellor please make an appointment to see your GP or call Lambeth Psychological Therapies on 020 3228 6747. There is no fee for this service and you can have between 6 - 12 sessions.

We provide a Low Cost Counselling Service (LCCS) at The Awareness Centre for clients/patients on a low income or who are registered and receiving most benefits, including working tax credit, registered disabled, pensioners and students. However, you must show proof that you are registered and/or receiving a benefit. This service supports clients either wanting short or long term therapy. The fee for this service is £15 - £45.

We also provide private Counselling. Psychotherapy, Psychology, Psychosexual and Relationship Therapy to clients/patients and this can be a short or long term process. The Awareness Centre is a private health care provider for Aviva, AXA PPP, BUPA, Cigna, Pru-Health, Simply Health and WPA.

The Awareness Centre also provides a multilingual counselling service within the NHS, Low Cost and Private Counselling Services. We currently provide counselling and psychotherapy in the following languages; Arabic, English, Farsi, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Polish, Portuguese, Punjabi, Romanian, Russian, Shona, Spanish, Swahili, Swedish, Turkish and Urdu.

Our clinical practitioners are either registered with BACP (The British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy), BPS (British Psychological Society), COSRT (College of Sexual and Relationship Therapists), FDAP (The Federation of Drug & Alcohol Professionals) or UKCP (The UK Council for Psychotherapy ). Our Counsellors appreciate and respect difference and diversity in culture, age, ethnicity, race, gender, sexuality, physical ability and spirituality.

Our clinical practitioners can offer support for a wide range of issues and use a number of approaches to therapy.

To make an appointment to see one of our therapists then please contact our Counselling Coordinator, either by phone on 020 8673 4545 or via email on counselling@theawarenesscentre.com

'The staff are welcoming, friendly and professional. An excellent Reception team who can advise on the range of treatments and services at the Centre.' Kelly Garrett, Consultant Psychotherapist

Please click on the relevant link below for further information:

Approaches to Therapy

Types of Issues

Counselling Services

NHS Counselling

We provide short term NHS counselling for individuals and couples who are registered with a GP surgery in Lambeth and we work in partnership with the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (Slam). All NHS counselling is provided at your GP surgery. To be referred to see an NHS counsellor please make an appointment to see your GP or call Lambeth Psychological Therapies on 020 3228 6747.

Self referral brochure

We will offer you weekly 50 minute counselling sessions. Appointments are available during the GP opening hours. Your counselling sessions are confidential, free of charge and run for 6 sessions. Although your GP will be given some statistical information regarding the outcome of your counselling, the content of the sessions will not be disclosed to your GP without your written consent.

All our counsellors abide by the BACP Ethical Framework for Good Practice in Counselling and Psychotherapy and The Awareness Centre has BACP Organisational Membership. Our Counsellors appreciate and respect difference and diversity in culture, age, ethnicity, race, gender, sexuality, physical ability and spirituality.

NHS Clinical Team

Head of NHS Services

Caroline Gray

Clinical Team Leaders

Sam Farag

Ruth Nightingale

Therapists

Nancy Adu	Omar Al-Malazi	Abi Almond	Cathy Altson	Premila Ashcroft
Guido Barbato	Murray Blacket	Paula Breen	Camilla Brown	Suzanna Brown
Jean Burke	Julie Carroll	Judith Chamberlain	Olga Chernyavska	Jane Chilvers
Beatrice de Lajudie	Gherardo Della Marta	Karen Dempsey	Gemma Deran	Ljiljana Despotovic
Gurvinder Dhesi	Philippa Drew	Rosemarie Earlam	Martin Fine	Katrina Garnette
Anna Gladoseva	Charles Gordon-Graham	Danielle Goshawk	Paul Gurney	Norma Higson
Michal Kord-Bielski	Kamila Ilavska	Anupreet Johal	Vartuhi Kadiya	Olivia Kilbee
Anil Kosar	Steve Langstaff	Candice Lemonius	Sascha Leslie	Johanna Lindemann
Sadat Malik	Anna Mathur	Letisha McClean	Jacqueline Murungi	Daniel Neilson
Alexandra Neumann	Lynds O'Connor	Jennifer Ofori	Thomais Pelekanou	Marco Pitzus
Rita Poohamal	Anna Purser	Cristina Radu	Gail Rhodes	Janet Rich
Serena Roche	David Roderman	Louise Rodgers	Jessica Seaton	Urvashi Sharma
Olga Soy	Andre Stander	Sandra Tapie	Maria Elvira Tobon	Ella Weil
Jeni Whittaker

Low Cost Counselling and Psychotherapy Service

The Awareness Centre provides a Low Cost Counselling and Psychotherapy service for clients on a low income or clients receiving benefits, including working tax credit, or who are registered as disabled or as a pensioner or student.

We accept referrals from any borough in London and you can self-refer; your GP or another professional can refer you to this counselling service.

To make an appointment to see one of our counsellors or psychotherapists, please contact our Counselling Coordinator, either by phone on 020 8673 4545 or via email counselling@theawarenesscentre.com.

Fees:
£15 for 50 minutes - For clients receiving benefits (You will need to show evidence of your benefit to your counsellor to qualify for this service)

£30 - £45 for 50 minutes - For clients on a low income

Therapists

Nancy Adu	Omar Al-Malazi	Abi Almond	Cathy Altson	Premila Ashcroft
Guido Barbato	Clare Biggar	Caz Binstead	Murray Blacket	Paula Breen
Camilla Brown	Suzanna Brown	Jean Burke	Judith Chamberlain	Olga Chernyavska
Jane Chilvers	Beatrice de Lajudie	Gherardo Della Marta	Karen Dempsey	Gemma Deran
Ljiljana Despotovic	Gurvinder Dhesi	Rosemarie Earlam	Katrina Garnette	Anna Gladoseva
Charles Gordon-Graham	Danielle Goshawk	Kamila Ilavska	Anupreet Johal	Vartuhi Kadiya
Olivia Kilbee	Saburo Kobayashi	Michal Kord-Bielski	Anil Kosar	Candice Lemonius
Sascha Leslie	Johanna Lindemann	Sadat Malik	Anna Mathur	Letisha McClean
Annette Mills	Jacqueline Murungi	Daniel Neilson	Ruth Nightingale	Alexandra Neumann
Lynds O'Connor	Jennifer Ofori	Thomais Pelekanou	Marco Pitzus	Rita Poohamal
Anna Purser	Cristina Radu	Gail Rhodes	Janet Rich	Serena Roche
David Roderman	Louise Rodgers	Jessica Seaton	Urvashi Sharma	Olga Soy
Andre Stander	Sandra Tapie	Maria Elvira Tobon	Ella Weil	Jeni Whittaker
Jane Zoega

Referral Form

Patient's Name:
Patient's Telephone Number:
Patient's Email:
Reason for referral:
Referred by:	GP Consultant Other Professional Self Please make a selection.
Referrer's Name:	Please provide us with your name
Referrer's Telephone Number:	Please provide us with your contact number
Referrer's Email Address:

What People Say:

'Offering a peaceful and contemporary environment, The Awareness Centre is a fantastic base to see clients from. With a high level of customer care, both myself and my clients feel well cared for and supported.' Clare Biggar, Low Cost Counsellor

Private Therapy Services

Counselling

What is Counselling?

Counselling offers a safe and confidential space in which a trained counsellor can help you explore your individual issues with warmth, empathy, acceptance and respect.

Counselling is not about giving advice or telling you what to do. It is about listening to you without judgement, enabling you to explore your thoughts and feelings. It is about helping you gain new perspectives about yourself and support you in resolving your difficulties as well as helping you find new ways of coping with a greater sense of control and choice in your life.

Fee:
£50 - £130 for 50 Minutes

Therapists

All our counsellors are fully qualified, registered and fully insured. We are sure that you will be able to find someone to support your needs.

To make an appointment to see one of our counsellors, please contact our Counselling Coordinator, either by phone on 020 8673 4545 or via email on counselling@theawarenesscentre.com

Mehmet Altan	Caz Binstead	Rosalind Carman	Lesley Cook	Tizzie Dennett-Short
Katerina Dimakopoulou	Kelly Garrett	Brian Garvey	Tara Harrison	Alastair Hinch
Markus Kitzberger	Veneshia Marie	Michaela McCarthy	Pinar McGivern	Sarah McGuinness
Ruth Nightingale	Miroslaw Polanowski	Louise Rodgers	Jessica Seaton	Sandra Tapie
Nick Williams	Duane Yon	Jane Zoega

Referral Form

Psychotherapy

What is Psychotherapy?

Psychotherapy aims to help clients gain insight into their difficulties or distress, establish a greater understanding of their motivation, and enable them to find more appropriate ways of coping or bring about changes in their thinking and behaviour. Psychotherapy involves exploring feelings, beliefs, thoughts and relevant events, sometimes from childhood and personal history, in a structured way with someone trained to help you do it safely.

Depending on the nature of your problem, therapy can be short or long term. Sessions can be provided for adults, adolescents and children on a one-to-one basis, or for couples, families and within groups whose members share similar problems.

Fee:
£50 - £130 for 50 Minutes

Therapists

All our psychotherapists are fully qualified, registered and fully insured. We are sure that you will be able to find someone to support your needs.

To make an appointment to see one of our psychotherapists, please contact our Counselling Coordinator, either by phone on 020 8673 4545 or via email on counselling@theawarenesscentre.com

Rosalind Carman	Katerina Dimakopoulou	Tizzie Dennett-Short	Kelly Garrett	Christopher Headon
Alastair Hinch	Markus Kitzberger	Michaela McCarthy	Sarah McGuinness	Ruth Nightingale
Sandra Tapie	Nick Williams	Jane Zoega

Referral Form

Psychosexual and Relationship Therapy

What is Psychosexual and Relationship Therapy?

Sexual difficulties can make us feel very alone. Some people feel so fearful, self-conscious or ashamed of their sexual problem that they suffer for months or even years without discussing their worries with anyone, even their partner. And yet sexual difficulties are very common and can have many causes. Their origins may be physical as a result of illness, accident, surgery, disability or medications. Some may be due to psychological problems such as anxiety, depression or other mental health problems, or, emotional, for example, unresolved grief or unhappiness due to other problems in a relationship and sometimes they are situational which means that they only happen under certain circumstances.

Psychosexual & Relationship therapy can help adults of all ages, whether heterosexual, bisexual, lesbian or gay; single people and couples who are married. The Awareness Centre has professionally trained psychosexual therapists who are specially trained to support clients with all kinds of sexual difficulties, whatever the cause.

Fee:
£50 - £130 for 50 Minutes

Therapists

All our Psychosexual & Relationship therapists are fully qualified, registered and fully insured. We are sure that you will be able to find someone to support your needs.

To make an appointment to see one of our Psychosexual & Relationship therapists, please contact our Counselling Coordinator, either by phone on 020 8673 4545 or via email on counselling@theawarenesscentre.com

Katerina Dimakopoulou

Christopher
Headon

Michaela McCarthy

Referral Form

Patient's Name:
Patient's Telephone Number:
Patient's Email:
Reason for referral:
Referred by:	GP Consultant Other Professional Self Please make a selection.
Referrer's Name:	Please provide us with your name
Referrer's Telephone Number:	Please provide us with your contact number
Referrer's Email Address:

Couples Counselling

The aim of couples counselling is to increase a better understanding of how problems affect the relationship. If you are experiencing difficulty in your relationship and would like to understand why this has happened, couples counselling gives partners the opportunity to talk and listen to one another openly and effectively. It opens up the opportunity to explore the dynamic of your relationship, and how unfinished issues from the past may be influencing the present.

When problems occur in a relationship, communication can shut down and with it, the best hope of finding a solution. With a compassionate, non-judgemental facilitator present, partners are often able to do this by discussing issues or problems that may have previously felt too difficult or unsafe.

Fee:
£50 - £130 for 50 minutes

Therapists

All our couples counsellors are fully qualified, registered and fully insured. We are sure that you will be able to find someone to support your needs.

To make an appointment to see one of ourcouples counsellors, please contact our Counselling Coordinator, either by phone on 020 8673 4545 or via email on counselling@theawarenesscentre.com

Katerina Dimakopoulou	Kelly Garrett	Christopher Headon	Michaela McCarthy	Nick Williams
Jane Zoega

Referral Form

Patient's Name:
Patient's Telephone Number:
Patient's Email:
Reason for referral:
Referred by:	GP Consultant Other Professional Self Please make a selection.
Referrer's Name:	Please provide us with your name
Referrer's Telephone Number:	Please provide us with your contact number
Referrer's Email Address:

Addiction Counselling

What is Addiction Counselling?

Addiction Counselling focuses on the issues of dependency and/or abuse with drugs, alcohol, food, sex, gambling, work, exercise, sex and relationships. Clients who struggle with addiction and compulsive behaviours will have a preoccupation with more than one addiction at any given time and will need to work through these issues to gain a structured way to work on themselves on a deeper level.

People who experience addiction issues may at times abstain from using a substance or compulsively obsessing with a particular behaviour, however, this tends to be short lived and without a structured programme they may relapse. Our addiction counsellors are also experienced with the philosophy of the Minnesota model and the Twelve Step Programme.

Fee:
£50 - £130 for 50 minutes

Therapists

All our addition counsellors are fully qualified, registered and fully insured. We are sure that you will be able to find someone to support your needs.

To make an appointment to see one of ouraddition counsellors, please contact our Counselling Coordinator, either by phone on 020 8673 4545 or via email counselling@theawarenesscentre.com

Lesley Cook

Michaela McCarthy

Referral Form

Patient's Name:
Patient's Telephone Number:
Patient's Email:
Reason for referral:
Referred by:	GP Consultant Other Professional Self Please make a selection.
Referrer's Name:	Please provide us with your name
Referrer's Telephone Number:	Please provide us with your contact number
Referrer's Email Address:

Psychology

What is Psychology?

Psychology is the study of mind and behaviour. Clinical psychology is the application of this science and understanding in the assessment and treatment of psychological distress; psychologists work to help people to understand the source of their difficulties and the reasons why the problems persist. Once this is understood, the person can then be helped to change.

Most UK trained clinical psychologists will have completed a degree in psychology and a professional doctorate in clinical psychology. Many will have further scientific and professional training in addition to this. It is a professional requirement that they continue to train throughout their career and to receive supervision of the work they do with clients. They are regulated by the Health and Care Professions Council.

Clinical psychologists are trained in a wide range of assessment and treatment methods from which they will often develop a specialty. They are skilled not only in the assessment and treatment of emotional and mood disorders, such as depression and anxiety, but also in the assessment and treatment of personality problems, relationship and interpersonal issues, and behavioural problems. They are also trained in neuropsychological assessment, which is the assessment and measure of brain function, for example intellectual functioning and memory.

In a psychological consultation clients undergo an initial assessment in which the history is taken, and sometimes measures completed, in order to understand the nature of the problem in the context of their current life as well as their growing up and other life experiences. Clients often find the assessment to be a therapeutic experience. It also gives both the client and the psychologist an opportunity to test whether there is a ‘good fit’ and whether they feel that it will be helpful to continue working together.

The presenting situation is formulated and discussed with the client and an agreement will be reached about the style, direction and scope of the future work. It might be expected that this will change and adapt over time, and there will be regular reviews to ensure that the work continues within an agreed framework.

If the problem is not something that the psychologist can treat referrals can be arranged to more suitable services such as AA, or with other community based statutory or non-statutory health organizations. At the Sloane Court Clinic and Awareness Centre we have very close working relationships with a large group of psychiatrists, psychologists, counsellors and other professionals working independently and also within the National Health Service and when necessary can refer individuals to such colleagues for specific treatments that we do not presently provide.

Urgent appointments are generally available, and telephone access to staff can be arranged between appointments where this is needed. Generally face-to-face contact is found to be better in most circumstances.

Fee:
£185

Therapists:

All our psychologists are fully qualified, registered and fully insured. We are sure that you will be able to find someone to support your needs.

To make an appointment to see one of our psychotherapists, please contact our Counselling Coordinator, either by phone on 020 8673 4545 or via email on counselling@theawarenesscentre.com

Dr Patricia Carlin

Referral Form

Patient's Name:
Patient's Telephone Number:
Patient's Email:
Reason for referral:
Referred by:	GP Consultant Other Professional Self Please make a selection.
Referrer's Name:	Please provide us with your name
Referrer's Telephone Number:	Please provide us with your contact number
Referrer's Email Address:

Private Healthcare Insurance

If you want to use your private health insurance to pay for your therapy, then please contact our Counselling Coordinator, on 020 8673 4545 or email counselling@theawarenesscentre.com. Please see information below:

The first step of the process is to contact your private medical insurance company and check that your policy covers you to receive clinical therapy. You can then contact Nadine O’Farrell who can refer you into see one of our therapists. You will then need to contact your insurance company with the named therapist and they will provide you with a pre-authorisation code.

You will need a referral from your GP to support your medical insurance.The Awareness Centre is a healthcare provider for: Aviva, AXA PPP, BUPA, Cigna, Pru-Health, Simply Health and WPA.

Fee:
£90-£185 depending on your insurance policy and therapist's fee

Therapists

All our therapists are fully qualified, registered and fully insured. We are sure that you will be able to find someone to support your needs.

Michaela McCarthy

Kelly Garrett

Referral Form

Patient's Name:
Patient's Telephone Number:
Patient's Email:
Reason for referral:
Referred by:	GP Consultant Other Professional Self Please make a selection.
Referrer's Name:	Please provide us with your name
Referrer's Telephone Number:	Please provide us with your contact number
Referrer's Email Address:
Healthcare Provider:	Please select an item.

Michaela McCarthy
Managing Director &
Consultant Psychotherapist

Kelly Garrett
Clinical Director &
Consultant Psychotherapist

Disclaimer: Counselling or Psychotherapy Treatments are not a substitute for professional medical care by a qualified doctor or other health care professional. Always check with your doctor if you have any concerns about your condition or treatment. Clients are responsible for assessing the outcome of their treatment and are advised to refer to NICE guidelines for further information.

External Links - We have listed links because we think they may be of interest. The websites they link to are out of our control and no representation is made as to their content. Use or reliance on any external links and the content thereon provided is at your own risk.