Paul is a Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and spent the first 12 years of his career working in community CAMHS teams and the charity sector, before moving into private practice. Paul completed his Masters degree in Psychoanalytic Developmental Psychology at University College London and the Anna Freud Centre. Following this, Paul completed his 4-year clinical training in Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy at the Tavistock Centre in London, an internationally renowned centre for excellence in child mental health training and research. Paul’s training post was based in North Camden Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service, where he gained substantial experience working with a wide range of child mental health difficulties.

Paul is trained to offer therapeutic interventions to children, adolescents, and young people between the ages of 0-25. Paul is also able to offer psychotherapeutic and developmental support to parents and families.

Paul spent the last 3 years of his time with CAMHS developing specialist skills in mental health work in secondary schools and has set-up and managed several bespoke clinics in secondary education settings, designed to respond to the growing need for specialist clinical services based in schools. Currently Paul works in partnership with a number of Independent Schools in Edinburgh, offering training, consultancy, and in-house clinical services where needed.

Prior to founding The Anchor Practice, Paul worked in the charity sector, where he conducted research into the clinical efficacy of an intervention for parents who feel they need support in understanding and helping their adolescent child’s mental health. Working with parents of teenagers with mental health difficulties continues to be an area of clinical interest for Paul.

In private practice, Paul has developed specialist skills in working with fostered and adopted children, and also young adults making the transition to university life who have a diagnosis of depression. Paul also has a specific clinical interest in the psychoanalytic treatment of musicians and other artists.

Alongside his clinical and organisational work, Paul remains involved in academic and research aspects of child mental health. Paul has held the post of Visiting Lecturer at the University of Essex and the Tavistock Centre where he taught and supervised for a variety of clinical trainings and MA level child development courses. Paul is currently a Visiting Lecturer in the Department of Psychology at The University of Edinburgh, where he teaches Psychodynamic Psychotherapy with Children and Adolescents on the doctoral course in clinical psychology (DClinPsychol).

Paul's specialist Modalities of Therapy:

Child Psychotherapy

Mentalization-Based Treatment (MBT) for Children

The Open Door Approach to Parenting Teenagers (APT)