Mark O'Leary

My supervision sessions currently run monthly on Wednesdays. They start at 9.30 am and the last supervision time available is 5pm.

If you feel like I might be a good match for you as supervisor but cannot make these times still get in touch and we may be able to sort something out.

As an experienced therapist and supervisor, I will be able to help you on your professional journey. I have a certificate in supervision from an NCS accredited course and approaching 20 years of experience in the field of complex mental health.

It is vital that a supervisee feels safe and supported by their supervisor. I have experience of working with many different supervisors over the years and I am lucky enough to have some amazingly positive experiences with them, but also some that were not so good.

Whenever I didnt feel I was able to bring a mistake or something I did in a session that went wrong, then I knew I was not with the right supervisor. Supervision is there to encourage growth and learning and it should never be used or experienced as a place to shame, blame or criticise the supervisee. 

I provide a warm and caring space for all my supervisees to explore their work and the impact it has on them and their clients. It is a space where you will never be judged or criticised, yet you will be challenged to be the very best that you can be.

I currently work with counsellors, therapists and other health professionals working in various helping professions. I also work with people who work in schools, prison/probation services and other professions that may have a high level of psychological stress involved within it. 

I have been working in the field of mental health for over twenty years. Before that I had spent over ten years in various office jobs eventually building up to becoming a network engineer for a mobile phone company.

I was never settled in the role and I started an evening Psychology course at The University of Birmingham in 2003. This was the catalyst for a complete career change as I found the course engrossing.

I began looking for jobs in the mental health field and in 2004 I was lucky enough to get a job as a support worker in a residential Therapeutic Community in Birmingham that worked with complex mental health issues.

My monthly wage more than halved and it was often scary at first, but I felt like I had found my vocation for the first time. I was often uncertain and anxious,constantly feeling out of my depth, but I found the work and the clients so inspirational I could not leave. In 2005 I began four years of training and I qualified as a psychotherapist in 2009.

I haven’t looked back since.

I have a unique mix of knowledge, experience and skills that have been built upon over the years. Having worked in many different therapeutic environments for so long and learning so much about how different behaviours, issues, traumas, experiences can influence a person’s thoughts and feelings through that work, my practice recognises the need to provide a very calm, safe and boundaried space to talk about and explore anything that affects your quality of life or your ability to enjoy your experience of life and the people in it.

I am a humanistic practitioner working with people flexibly and always with their needs at the forefront of any work we do. Every person is different and has different needs and requirements in terms of support and therefore I believe my experience in working in different environments, using different techniques and theories means I am able to work successfully with a wide variety of people with lots of different issues successfully.