Angela Gilchrist B.A. (Hons) M.A (Psych) C.Psychol AFBPsS AFHEA
About me and my approach
I have more than twenty years’ experience as a qualified Psychologist and have been Chartered with the British Psychological Society for the previous eighteen years. I have a wealth of experience, having worked extensively in the NHS as well as in private practice both in the UK and overseas. Here in the UK, I have experience of adult and older adult psychological services, with my most recent NHS post being in a Community Mental Health Team in London, where I saw adult clients with a wide range of psychological difficulties. I have also had extensive experience of private healthcare, having held practising privileges at the Priory as well as having been a partner at a private psychology practice overseas. I have been the Director of my practice in Sevenoaks, for the previous eight years.
While I specialise in adult work, over the years I have worked with all the major client groups including children and families, people with learning disabilities and those with acquired brain injury. Prior to becoming a clinician, I worked as a Counsellor, a Psychometrist (someone who specialises in psychological testing) and a Research Psychologist.
I am also a keen writer, contributing occasional articles about psychological issues to journals such as The Guardian as well as to blogs such as 'Discursive of Tunbridge Wells'. I am a Senior University lecturer and was employed on the Canterbury Christ Church University (Salomons) Doctoral training course in Clinical Psychology for a period of ten years. Helping trainees through the rigours of clinical training has greatly enhanced my work with clients, as well as deepened my knowledge of the intricacies of clinical practice. In my academic work, I have played a significant role in the assessment of clinical skills, which I believe, has helped me gain unique insights into the process of psychological intervention, what makes it meaningful for clients, and how best to reduce experiences of human distress. I have also been the Director of a programme for foreign-trained Clinical Psychologists, designed to help them adapt to UK conditions, and in particular, to working in the NHS. All of these experiences have helped me to understand the contexts in which people live and develop, as well as to better appreciate the societal influences which shape peoples' behaviour and their unique experiences of distress.
Professional Affiliations
- Chartered by the British Psychological Society
- Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society
- Member of the BPS Division of Clinical Psychology
- Member of The Association of Clinical Psychologists
- Registered Practitioner Psychologist with the Health Professions Council
- Member of EMDR-UK Association
- Member of the Board of Examiners D.Clin.Psychol. Programme, Canterbury Christ Church University
- Associate Fellow of The Higher Education Academy
