You arrive
Park in the yard behind the building, or on Chapel Rise if the yard is full. The blue door is the right one. It is unlocked during opening hours — no bell, no intercom, no announcing yourself.
Aim for five minutes early, not fifteen
What to expect
Almost nothing here should be a surprise.
Most of the anxiety about a first appointment is not about therapy at all. It is about the building, the door, the waiting, and not knowing what is expected of you. So here is all of it, in order.
Step one
The first phone call
Twenty minutes, free, with a therapist rather than an administrator. You will be asked what has been happening, what you have already tried, whether anyone else is involved, and what you are hoping might be different.
You will not be asked to give a full history, and you will not be assessed. If you cry, nothing is written down about it.
At the end, one of four things happens: we suggest a first meeting, we suggest a parent consultation instead, we suggest waiting, or we suggest somewhere else entirely. The fourth option is real — roughly one call in six ends with us naming a different service.
Ask for a call Concept site — no telephone line
Step two
Your first visit, minute by minute
Written out in full because knowing the sequence is worth more than any reassurance we could offer.
Scroll sideways, or use the arrow keys
Mel says hello
Or she is on the phone and waves. There is no reception desk to stand at and no clipboard. You are not asked why you are here in front of other people.
First names only, out loud
You wait
Big bench, two armchairs, water, a kettle. Wifi password is on the wall. Fidget items and a basket of books, none of them about feelings.
Usually two or three minutes
You are collected
Your therapist comes out and says your name. Not "the next patient". Younger children often want a parent to walk them in for the first minute.
The door stays unlocked
The first five minutes
Boring on purpose: how long, how often, what is private, what is not, and what happens if you want to stop. Then the actual conversation, or the actual playing, begins.
Nobody is asked to "tell their story" cold
It ends on time
Ten minutes before the end, your therapist will say so out loud, so the last thing said is not the biggest thing. Endings are held firmly here — it is one of the things that makes the hour safe.
50 minutes means 50 minutes
You leave
No paperwork on the way out. Payment is by transfer afterwards, never handed over in front of a child. Next appointment is agreed in the room.
And the car park is right there
Step three
What a session is actually like
It differs a good deal depending on who is in the room.
Fifty minutes that mostly look like playing. Sand, small figures, paint, a den. The therapist follows rather than directs, and comments far less than you would expect. Children usually leave looking exactly as they arrived — the effect shows up at home, days later.
Two chairs at an angle, or a walk up the valley. Long silences are normal and are not filled for the sake of it. Some weeks are a monologue about a friendship; some weeks are twenty minutes of nothing and then one important sentence.
Seventy-five minutes, a loose circle, often two therapists. Lots of questions about sequences rather than feelings. Children are asked first. It is more active and considerably less comfortable than individual work, and it moves faster.
Things that are allowed
Not talking. Sitting on the floor. Crying. Not crying. Saying you would rather not answer that. Asking your therapist a direct question. Changing your mind about what you said last week. Bringing your dog, if you ring first.
Step four
How we check that this is working
After six sessions we stop and ask, out loud, whether anything is different. Then roughly every eight sessions after that.
This is a real question, not a courtesy. Therapy that is not helping should stop, or change, and the person best placed to notice is rarely the therapist.
We also expect a rough patch somewhere around sessions four to seven. Naming something for the first time often unsettles a fortnight at home. If that starts, tell us — it changes what we do next and it is not a sign of failure.
Step five
How therapy ends
Badly handled endings can undo a good piece of work, particularly for children who have had important things stop without warning.
It is counted down
Three or four sessions of notice, marked each week. Never a last session that only the adults knew was the last session.
Something is made
Younger children usually make something to take home — a box, a book, a map of the work. It gives the ending a shape.
The door stays open
Coming back later is common and is not a relapse. Children change; what was resolved at nine can need revisiting at fourteen.
Boundaries
What we will not do
- Diagnose anything, including autism and ADHD
- Prescribe or advise on medication
- Write reports for court or legal proceedings
- Act as an expert witness in a family dispute
- Offer crisis or out-of-hours cover
- Take sides between separated parents
- Promise a number of sessions before we have met you
- Keep working with someone we cannot help
Practical questions
What if we get there and my child will not get out of the car?
It happens perhaps once a fortnight. Come in on your own and talk to the therapist — that is a useful session in itself, and we do not charge twice for it. Nobody is going to come out to the car park and negotiate.
How do I pay?
Bank transfer, monthly or per session, whichever suits. There is a card reader if you would rather. We never ask for payment in front of a child.
What happens in the school holidays?
We keep your slot and you keep paying for the weeks you attend, not the weeks you are away — tell us the dates in advance and there is no charge. Long summer breaks are worth planning together; for some children a six-week gap matters more than for others.
What if we do not like our therapist?
Say so, to them if you can and to Mel if you cannot. Being reallocated to someone else here is a completely ordinary event and nobody takes offence. Fit matters more than technique and everyone in this building knows it.
Still want to see the building first?
Fair enough. The Our Space page has every room, the car park, the toilets, the sensory detail and what happens to parents during a session.