Helen Osman
Driffield
Summary
I am a qualified Relational Psychotherapeutic Counsellor accredited with the UKCP and registered with the BACP. i am also a member of the SCPTI.
I worked for Hull & East Yorkshire Mind for 12 years supporting young people with first episode psychosis. During that time I also worked with a diverse group clients experiencing behavioural issues and personality disorders.
In 2024 I attended the Trauma Summit in Belfast (vitually) and listened to several lectures on the most up to date and current thinking when working effectively with trauma, know in the field as Complex PTSD. I have incorporated this learning into my practice and I believe this approach has supported my clients to feel safe and helped them move forward towards change with an improved sense of wellbeing.
In 2014 we started a family, however my initial intention to take a career break of around 5 years with my son was further impacted by the COVID 19 epidemic.
I began a re accreditation process in 2022 and began seeing clients again in February 2023. During the re-accreditation I completed 95 hours of CPD and 138 client hours. Since then I have accrued 200 plus hours working 1 day a week, in person, at the Westgate Clinic in Driffield and working remotely to support clients unable to attend the clinic.
Since returning to practice I have had experience working with eating disorders, grief, suicide, attachment issues, family dynamics, relationship breakdown, unidentified pain, addiction, anxiety , depression, loss, sexuality & panic attacks.
I have had regular monthly supervision since 2022 which has supported me stepping back into practice.
I am currently reading Gabor Mate's In the realm of hungry ghosts - close encounters with addiction (Mate, G., 2018) & The practical guide for healing developmental trauma - Using the neuro-affective relational model to address adverse childhood experiences and resolve complex trauma (Heller, L and Kammer, B.J.,2022.
Overview
10
10
years of post-secondary education
23
23
years of professional experience
Work history
Relational Centred Counsellor
Self Employed
Driffield, East Riding of Yorkshire
2023.02 - Current
- Counselled a diverse range of clients with varied mental health issues.
- Conducted psycho-social assessments to identify specific needs accurately and promptly.
- Built trusting client relationships that enabled open, ongoing communication.
- Supported clients after traumatic events to build resilience and coping skills.
- Provided crisis intervention to reduce immediate risk during critical moments.
- Referred clients for extra services when additional support needs arose.
- Advocated for clients to obtain resources and connect with support services and collaborated with medical professionals when required to coordinate care.
- Maintained ongoing professional development through CPD, monthly supervision and the requirements of accreditation/accreditation with professional bodies.
- Adhered to UKCP, SCPTI, and BACP codes of ethics throughout practice.
- Maintained confidential case documentation in line with data protection regulations to protect privacy and data security.
Senior Project Worker( 24hr Mental H Service)
Hull & East Yorkshire Mind
Hull, Kingston upon Hull
2007.09 - 2014.08
- Managed a team of 12 + staff in a 24 hour supported living environment with a brief of supporting 7 young adult clients experiencing psychosis for a period of up to 2 years each in maintaining a tenancy and promoting increased independence.
- Completed needs and risk assessments to define short and long-term objectives clearly. Regular reviews of objectives informed by feedback from clients, staff and stakeholders.
- Applied trauma-informed holistic care approaches tailored to individual patient needs with an aim to increase independence, manage tenancies and engage more confidently with wider support structures including support around family relationships where appropriate.Provided ongoing personal and emotional support individually and through the organisation of meaningful activities to build independent living skills and the confidence to access training and education.
- Promoted development of the service through regular reviews of intermediate and final client outcomes supported by client, staff and stakeholder feedback.
- Working in collaboration with multidisciplinary stakeholders through regular reports, meetings and clear, timely communication
- Working with the mental health crisis teams when a clients mental health presented risk up to and including the need for in-patient care.
- Supported the staff team through regular formal meetings, daily handover meetings and supervision sessions ensuring that the needs of the clients and service were met whilst guarding against risk and staff burnout. This was enhanced by supporting staff to access training and education to develop their practice and improve service provision.
- Delivered comprehensive 3 month probationary periods with new staff ensuring any extra help/support required through regular supervision.
- Ensured comprehensive records were kept about risk so staff were aware of anything that needed to be addressed immediately. Supported staff to confidently recognise, manage and report risk
Self employed Counsellor
Helen Osman
Hull, Kingston upon Hull
2008.07 - 2014.02
- Over this period, I worked at a family centre offering 6 sessions of short term focused work. I also worked at a reduced fee service offering more long term, open-ended sessions. In both services, I supported adults experiencing, grief, depression, anxiety, sexual abuse & personality adaptations as a result of complex PTSD. In addition, I have supported adults who have experience sibling abuse, women who are in coercively controlling relationships & women going through divorce.
- I have completed psycho-social assessments to assess risk and to consider whether counselling is the right for them at this time and also whether I think I am able to support them with the issues/concerns they have. In cases where risk is initially present or develops over time, I have provided crisis support with referrals for distressed individuals needing follow-up. I have referred clients to additional services when support gaps appear.
- I adhered to SCPTI & UKCP code of ethics at this time. Followed counselling standards by maintaining ethical practice throughout sessions. Maintained appropriate client notes and collected client feedback within confidentiality guidelines and boundaries.
- During this time I attended: additional professional development training on shame and personality adaptations; regular group supervision for 4 hours a month to support me in my practice and personal growth and saw a personal therapist at this time to enhance my own awareness about my relational history.
Project Worker (24hr Mental Health Service)
Hull & East Yorkshire Mind
Hull, Kingston upon Hull
2003.06 - 2007.09
- I was a member of the team employed by Mind to start up a new service called LinX House working alongside the NHS Early intervention team, know as PSYPHER This service was set up for young people (16-25) who had experienced first episode psychosis and provided 24hr supported housing service comprising 7 self-contained flats.
- My role as a project worker involved building positive and supportive relationships with some complex clients and liaising effectively with PSYPHER in order to do this. This meant building and maintaining good relations with the PSYPHER team and with any other community services that my clients wanted/needed to access. Setting up support plans for all aspects of independent living which were regularly reviewed and updated as needs where identified or goals achieved.
- I was part of a 24hr shift system which meant accurate note keeping and comprehensive handovers were essential.
- I attended monthly staff meetings and had regular supervision and some clinical supervision with the psychologist who worked for PSPHER. These sessions helped to increase my empathy and enhance my understanding alongside my relational training giving me greater insight into how to work most effectively with high dependancy clients.
- I facilitated training with the team about the dependant process to share new understanding and prevent certain counter-transferential reaction that were unhelpful, when supporting our clients.
- I applied a trauma-informed, holistic approach to my work which involved: the management and recording of risk; supporting clients to work towards being able to independently manage a tenancy, access benefits agencies and wider support networks; promoting the development of the skills needed for independent living and maintaining family and other relationships including conflict resolution; supporting clients to access education and training.
- As a team we provided crisis support by liasing with the crisis team and the AMHP team if a client experienced deterioration of their mental health to the point where in-patient care needed to be considered.
Education
Diploma of Higher Education - Relational Psychotherapeutic Counselling
Scarborough Counselling & Psychotherapy Institute
Scarborough, North Yorkshire 2003.09 - 2006.06
Certificate of Higher Education - Introduction to Counselling & Personal Relationships.
Adult Education , Hull University
Hull, Kingston upon Hull 1995.09 - 1996.09
GCSEs - Sociology , English Lit , Maths & Child Psychology.
Dacorum Further Education College
Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire 1987.09 - 1990.06
A-Levels - English Lit & Sociology
Dacorum College
Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire 1988.09 - 1990.06
O levels - English Language, Drama, French & Religious studies.
Hornsea Secondary School
Hornsea, East Riding of Yorkshire 1985.09 - 1987.05
Skills
Licensed counsellor
Eating disorder care
Trauma support
Grief counselling
Mental health advocacy
In-person and virtual therapy
Client confidentiality
Professional boundaries
Attentive listening
Empathy and professionalism
Self-awareness
Non-judgmental approach
Attachment
Affiliations
- walking, reading, listening to podcasts & Yoga
Timeline
Relational Centred Counsellor
Self Employed
2023.02 - Current
Self employed Counsellor
Helen Osman
2008.07 - 2014.02
Senior Project Worker( 24hr Mental H Service)
Hull & East Yorkshire Mind
2007.09 - 2014.08
Diploma of Higher Education - Relational Psychotherapeutic Counselling
Scarborough Counselling & Psychotherapy Institute
2003.09 - 2006.06
Project Worker (24hr Mental Health Service)
Hull & East Yorkshire Mind
2003.06 - 2007.09
Certificate of Higher Education - Introduction to Counselling & Personal Relationships.
Adult Education , Hull University
1995.09 - 1996.09
A-Levels - English Lit & Sociology
Dacorum College
1988.09 - 1990.06
GCSEs - Sociology , English Lit , Maths & Child Psychology.
Dacorum Further Education College
1987.09 - 1990.06
O levels - English Language, Drama, French & Religious studies.
Hornsea Secondary School
1985.09 - 1987.05