ABOUT ME
I am a registered counsellor, clinical supervisor, and counselling educator and researcher. I am passionate about supporting people in their development.
I have been a qualified and practicing counsellor for over 25 years. In this time, it has been an honour to witness and participate in my clients’ heroic growth, healing and learning, as they face challenges and struggles. My approach utilises the client’s own ideas, strengths, and hopes to build solutions that work for them. As needed, I supplement their ideas with ideas that work for others.
I have a special interest in working with men. Men do not always find therapy a positive experience. Due to having a significant number of male clients referred to me from colleagues, I developed an interest in understanding how best to adapt therapy for men. I have spent over five years studying what works in counselling men, learning from international and local male-friendly specialists. After completing my doctorate in male-friendly counselling, I now provide specialist training in this area to other mental health professionals, and continue to provide male-friendly counselling to men.
I provide counselling supervision to newly graduated through to senior counsellors, supporting professional reflection, case conceptualisation, and professional development. I have knowledge and experience in a wide range of modalities and issues. I have provided professional supervision to counsellors and other staff in NGOs, government agencies, and private practitioners.
Students who are studying counselling, who need tutoring and career guidance, can also book in to see me. I have four qualifications in counselling, from bachelor’s level to doctorate, so I understand what it is like to be a student. From my own experience and observations, I can coach students on how to become both effective counsellors, how to navigate counsellor training, and how to increase their likelihood of employment as a counsellor post-graduation.
Another passion of mine is providing counselling educators with educational supervision. As an academic coordinator/lead of counselling higher education for over 15 years, I understand the challenges faced by academics, managing students, balancing pedagogy, administration, research and publishing, leadership, clinical practice, and other responsibilities. I am a leader in the counselling field in relation to incorporating AI into clinical and educational practice.
My research and writing focus on strengthening the counseling profession’s identity and future. After years on counselling association committees, I now choose to serve as a “critical friend” to the field. By maintaining an independent perspective, I can think outside the box, challenge unevidenced traditions, and help our profession confront its blind spots to foster genuine growth. I take this responsibility seriously, dedicating at least one day a week unpaid to this work.
In addition to contributing to the National Heads of Counselling and Psychotherapy Education, I founded the Australian Counselling and Psychotherapy Academics network. Counselling educators play a pivotal role in shaping future practitioners, often volunteering their time alongside heavy academic workloads and private practices. My focus is on supporting up-and-coming academic leaders so I can step back and pass the baton to the next generation.
My qualifications in counselling are a Bachelor of Arts (Counselling), Graduate Diploma (Counselling), Master of Counselling, and Doctor of Philosophy (Male-friendly counselling). I am a registered clinical member of the Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia.
I am also a husband, have two grown children, and have two cats. I enjoy feeding our local birds that come to visit each day. I have a side hobby in property investing.
