David Smith

I offer sessions most weekdays, in the mornings and the evenings. I can sometimes have sessions available in the afternoon as well. I am available for online working and can also deliver sessions by telephone.

If you are having problems in your life, finding the space and time to understand them is often difficult. I can help with this, providing you a confidential place to talk through the things worrying you.

Everyone is unique; each person’s situation different. I will work with you, helping you to understand your feelings and thoughts about what is proving difficult. From this you will have the opportunity to look at things differently.

I can help you explore how you came to be who you are. Together we can find out what has influenced your life, the things you like and dislike about yourself. So that you can decide what you might want to change and how this might be done. The counselling I provide will give you a safe place to do this.

I work in an integrative way, bringing ideas from attachment theory; transactional analysis and cognitive behavioural therapy into a person centred approach that will help you find a way of understanding yourself in a language that feels right for you. I have worked with people experiencing difficulties with their thoughts and feelings in many different situations. I am a highly qualified and experienced counsellor, working with individuals and couples on a wide range of issues.

I have a Masters qualification in Therapeutic Counselling. I qualified as a counsellor in 2009 and started my Private Practice in 2011. Prior to this I had been working as a counsellor in a charitable agency supporting people with mental health issues.

My practice is based in Buxton, Derbyshire. I work from a room in my home. The house is a short walk from the station and town centre. There is free parking available on the roads outside and nearby.

In the first session, we can talk about what you might expect to get from counselling. I can explain how I think counselling can help you. We also go through any information important to making sure our sessions run smoothly and feel comfortable for you.

I am available to offer supervision sessions on every weekday.

My usual office hours are 09:30 - 13:30 and 18:30 - 21:30hrs. But I can be available at other times by agreement.

I am an experienced counsellor and a qualified supervisor. I have worked in the third sector, private practice and for a number of Employee Assistance Providers. I also supervise others who work in those services.

If you are looking for a new supervisor and are either a qualified counsellor or a trainee, I hope that I can provide you with the space to explore and celebrate the successes of your work as well as give you time to think about and develop your practice. If you choose me as your supervisor, my aim is that you will find our sessions stimulating and empowering.

Good supervision relies on the development of a trusting relationship between those involved. I know this trust is vital when supervisees want to explore situations that have not gone as well as they might like.

I take a holistic approach to thinking about you and the work you are doing. So, in our sessions we will consider, not just your client work, but your well-being and also the environment in which you are working.

In theoretical terms the models of supervision that I bring to our work will include: The Cyclical Model defined by Page and Wosket, The Seven-Eyed Model as described by Hawkins and McMahon and I try to underpin these with a Person Centred approach described by Lambers.

I am always interested in the ideas and approaches that are being developed to improve the delivery of therapy, and when working with you, I hope we can explore these to help keep our work fresh and interesting.

In my work prior to training as a counsellor, I was successful in helping people develop their potential to do their best work and that is what I hope to help anyone I supervise achieve and sustain.

If you would like to discuss having supervision with me then please give me a call and we can take things from there.

I think the first session is really important in setting the tone and atmosphere for our work together. So, in this session we will talk about how we might work together and this will form part of the contract for our work.

I also like to review this at regular intervals, to check that you are receiving the kind of supervision support that you need.