Young people
Counselling for children and teenagers
A calm, age-appropriate space for children and young people from age 5, drawing on experience as a school counsellor. Online or by telephone.
Safeguarding & parental involvement
How confidentiality works for your child's age, and how much you as a parent or carer are kept involved, is explained clearly and agreed before sessions begin. As with all counselling, the usual limits to confidentiality apply where there's a risk to a child's safety. This is standard practice, talked through openly at first contact, not something to discover later.
At a glance
- Provider
- Ann Purves
- Professional status
- Registered Member MBACP, registration 00988953. Verify on the BACP Register.
- Approach
- Integrative, mostly person-centred, drawing on age-appropriate creative and visual techniques
- Format
- Telephone or secure online video, depending on age and suitability
- Fee
- £50 / 1 hour · £30 / 30 minutes
- Clients
- Children and young people from age 5
- Coverage
- UK-wide, based in Newcastle upon Tyne
- First step
- A parent/carer emails ann@annpurves.com or calls 07856 187641
Experience with children and young people
Ann has experience as a school counsellor in mainstream primary and secondary schools in the North East, and in an alternative provision secondary school supporting students with a wide range of needs and home circumstances. Across those settings she supported young people with ADHD, autism and difficulties around emotional regulation, alongside more general worries, low mood and life changes.
How sessions are tailored
Sessions are shaped around each young person's developmental stage. Ann works integratively, mostly person-centred, and often uses visual, pen-and-paper approaches with younger clients. Drawing or a practical exercise can be an easier way in than conversation alone. Thirty-minute sessions are commonly more appropriate for younger children, or anyone who finds a full hour difficult to sustain.
When more specialist support is needed
For more complex or urgent needs, NHS Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) provide specialist assessment and treatment, usually reached via a GP referral. Private counselling with Ann is a talking-therapy option and isn't a substitute for CAMHS where specialist clinical input is needed, though the two can sometimes sit alongside each other.
Common questions
Counselling for young people, explained
What age range do you work with?
Children and young people from age 5, through to teenagers and young adults. Sessions are tailored to each young person's developmental stage: shorter, 30-minute sessions are often more appropriate for younger children, while teenagers may prefer the full hour.
What experience do you have working with children and young people?
Ann has experience as a school counsellor in mainstream primary and secondary schools in the North East, and in an alternative provision secondary school supporting young people with a wide range of needs and home circumstances, including ADHD, autism and difficulties with emotional regulation.
Will my child's sessions be confidential from me as a parent?
Confidentiality, and how it works for your child's age, is explained fully at first contact, including where the usual limits apply, such as any risk to your child's safety. How much a parent or carer is involved is discussed and agreed before sessions begin, so there are no surprises for either you or your child.
What techniques are used with younger clients?
Ann works integratively, mostly person-centred, and often draws on visual and pen-and-paper tools with younger clients, who can find it easier to express themselves through drawing or a practical exercise than conversation alone. The approach is always shaped around the individual child or young person, not a fixed programme.
What if my child needs more specialist support than counselling can offer?
For children and young people with more complex or urgent mental health needs, NHS Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) provide specialist assessment and treatment, usually via GP referral. Counselling with Ann is a private talking-therapy option and is not a substitute for CAMHS where specialist clinical input is needed. The two can also work alongside each other in some circumstances.
Is counselling for young people available online or by phone across the UK?
Yes, depending on age and suitability. Sessions are available UK-wide by secure online video or telephone. £50 for a 1-hour session, £30 for a 30-minute session.
Ready to talk it through?
Send me an email or give me a call and we'll find a time that works.