Psychological Assessment and Intervention for Children and Families
We appreciate that you and/or your family may be experiencing difficult challenges at this time. Please read through this section before making a referral in order to ensure that we are the right service to support you. We do not automatically accept all referrals we receive and we reserve the right for appropriate clinical decision-making as to whether we are able to provide the correct intervention and support for you and/or your family. Our service is designed to support children with mild-moderate emotional health and wellbeing issues and where a short-term intervention can be helpful.
We do not provide assessments of Autistic Spectrum Disorder or ADHD. We are not an emergency or crisis service and are unable to respond to acute mental health needs or where longer-term interventions are required.
If the child/young person is presenting with complex mental health needs then they will likely require the support of CAMHS and/or Social Services. We do not provide such a service.
If you have any concerns about their safety (or your own) please contact your GP, Out of Hours GP, Lifeline NI (24/7) crisis helpline, 0808 808 8000 (deaf and hard of hearing Textphone users can call Lifeline on 18001 0808 808 8000).
Common difficulties that young people and families come to us with include:
- Anxiety / Panic attacks
- Self-regulation issues
- Relationship Issues
- Behavior Issues
- Phobias
- Difficulties adjusting to trauma
- Loss or family changes
- Low self-esteem or confidence
- Anger issues
- Parenting Issues
How do I make a referral?
Complete our online referral form giving brief details of your concerns, contact details, GP details and private health insurance authorization code (if relevant).
What happens once my referral is received?
Upon receipt of the referral, we will send an acknowledgment via email. Please check your spam folder as occasionally an email receipt can land there.
Our clinical team will then review the referral to determine if we are best placed to offer support at this time. We make decisions on the suitability of referrals based on our clinical judgment and the skills mix of our practitioners.
Once a decision has been made we will contact you again by email and, where applicable, provide you with terms and conditions and how to book an appointment using our online portal.
Our fees are £150 per hour and we are currently only in a position to accept private health insurance referrals from clients insured by AVIVA, WPA or H3.
What happens at an Initial Assessment?
Typically this starts with the parent(s) meeting with one of our Highly Specialist Clinicians/Psychologists. The child or young person typically does not attend the initial appointment.
During this meeting we explore:
- How best to involve the child/young person to bring about change
- How best to involve the parent(s) and/or important others to bring about change
- The timing and frequency of further appointments
- If we need further information to help us complete the initial assessment and we will discuss this with you by:
- – Structured observations
- – Structured Interviews
- – Meet with child/young person
- – Psychometric Assessments of a specific issue
- – Cognitive Assessment
- – Liaison with school and other services
- – Psychological Assessment
When the assessment is completed we will agree on how best to proceed which may include:
- Intervention with parents so they are better able to support the child at home with the issues
- Intervention with Child
- Intervention with Parent and Child together
- Redirect to another service
- We will agree upon the number of sessions with a built-in opportunity to reflect on progress and plan the next steps.
- If the Clinician is aware of another service that is better suited to supporting families with the particular issue(s) and/or that is free, they will advise the parent(s) accordingly during the meeting.
Once agreement is reached the Psychologist will write a brief letter describing the issues and outlining the therapeutic plan. If you wish you can share this with your GP or others involved in the care of your child.
If you require a more comprehensive or bespoke letter or report, you can discuss this with the clinician who can advise you in advance of any additional fees this will incur.