My Approach

The emerging approach I’ve been working on invites therapists to engage with clients and their contexts as parts of larger living systems, where meaning, well-being, and change arise from relational participation rather than unilateral intervention. Rather than “applying” a therapeutic model, I encourage therapists to adopt a stance of humility, curiosity, and ecological sensitivity, seeing human experience as interwoven with cultural, environmental, and more-than-human elements.

My orientation builds on systemic and second-order cybernetic thinking, inspired by Bateson’s work and Blake’s Fourfold Vision, to move beyond postmodern critiques of power and language. It does not merely question dominant narratives; it situates therapists and clients within an ongoing, dynamic co-creation process that includes human and nonhuman agencies. Viewed this way, difficulties, symptoms, or “problems” are understood as adaptive survival strategies that have emerged within complex conditions, and therapeutic work involves illuminating and honouring these adaptations while opening space for new patterns to emerge.

My approach differs from conventional or directive methods by relinquishing control and leaning into co-evolving relational fields. It goes beyond narrow human-focused perspectives by including ecological and technological elements in the therapeutic ecology, gesturing toward a posthuman sensibility. In practice, this means collaborating with clients to explore and reshape their relationships with themselves, others, and the broader networks of life, recognizing that healing, growth, and insight emerge naturally from a respectful, non-coercive engagement with complexity.

About Me

I am a systemic psychotherapist, academic, and writer with a deep commitment to exploring the complexities of human relationships, interconnectedness, and the ways we make meaning in an ever-changing world. My work emerges from my belief that individuals exist within relational and ecological systems, and that understanding these connections is fundamental to both personal and collective transformation.

My career began in nursing, where I developed a keen interest in the ways health, relationships, and social contexts interact. This led me into academia, where I have worked as a lecturer, first at the University of Leeds (1994–2000) and later at the University of Hull (2003–2012). I currently serve as the Systemic Lead for the Clinical Psychology Doctorate Programme at the University of Hull, where I train future clinical psychologists in systemic thinking and practice.

Alongside my academic role, I work as a systemic psychotherapist, supporting individuals, couples, and families in navigating life’s challenges. My therapeutic approach integrates systemic, narrative, and ecological perspectives, emphasizing relational patterns, power dynamics, and the interconnected nature of human experience.

I work with

• Children and young people
• Companies
• Couples
• Families

Special Interests

Like all UKCP registered psychotherapists and psychotherapeutic counsellors I can work with a wide range of issues, but here are some areas in which I have a special interest or additional experience.

Types of Therapies Offered

• Family and Systemic Psychotherapist
• Family Therapist
• Systemic Family and Couple Psychotherapist
• Systemic Psychotherapist

What I can help with

• Abuse
• Age-related Issues
• Bereavement
• Chronic Illness
• Cultural Issues
• Health-related Issues
• Parents
• Relationships
• Supervision
• Terminal Illness
• Training