About Me
Emma Thatcher
B.A (Hons), M.A, HCPC, UKCP, BAAT.
Registered Art Therapist (Health Care Professions Council: reg. no. AS16754).
BAAT (British Association of Art Therapists) registered.
Registered Integrative Psychotherapist (UKCP: reg no. 2011184884. Humanistic and Integrative Psychotherapy College).
IATE registered.
MA in Arts Psychotherapy from the Institute for the Arts in Therapy and Education (Distinction).
Approach
I am a qualified Integrative Psychotherapist and Art Psychotherapist, offering sessions both in-person and online. I provide a warm, thoughtful, and creative space for mental health support, self-exploration, and growth.
I am trauma-informed and attachment-aware, and I pay close attention to how early relationships, adverse childhood experiences, and internalised critical voices can shape how we relate to ourselves and others. Together we can explore these patterns safely and develop greater self-compassion and resilience.
As an Art Psychotherapist, I offer the option of integrating creativity into sessions. Art therapy combines talking with image-making, allowing emotions, memories, and internal conflicts to be explored in ways that words alone sometimes cannot reach. You do not need any artistic skill —only curiosity. We might use drawing, painting, collage, clay, writing, or visualisation to externalise difficult feelings, explore relational themes, or reconnect with a sense of safety and strength.
I work integratively, drawing from psychodynamic, humanistic (person-centred and Gestalt-informed), relational, and emotion-focused approaches. I also incorporate somatic awareness and grounding techniques, particularly when working with anxiety, shutdown, or trauma responses. Where helpful, I can support clients in developing practical tools for daily life, including those navigating ADHD or executive functioning challenges.
I believe questions of purpose, freedom, meaning, and how we manage life-stages are also important and am happy to explore clients’ existential and spiritual needs if desired.
I am affirming of LGBTQ+ identities and also work with clients in non-traditional relationship structures. I recognise how identity, difference, and social context impact us, and I aim to offer a space that is respectful and inclusive.
My style is reflective, and collaborative. I will encourage you to be curious about your inner world while supporting you to build practical and emotional resources for everyday life. Therapy can be a space not only to process pain, but also to rediscover creativity, rest, agency, and meaning.
Experience
I currently work in private practice, seeing a small number of clients.
I also have several years of experience as an honorary arts psychotherapist in the NHS, in inpatient and outpatient services, seeing both individuals and groups. I also have worked in a community mental health setting, working as an art therapist in a women's counselling service and as an honorary counsellor for MIND.
I have experience supporting clients with anxiety, depression, trauma, low self-esteem, perfectionism, shame, emotional overwhelm, neurodivergence, sexuality, relational difficulties, and experiences of unstable mood.
I have a background in photography, arts and heritage, the charity sector, user-led mental health and SEND.
I am accredited with the HCPC and follow their standards of ethics and confidentiality and have regular supervision with an HCPC registered supervisor. I am fully insured, registered with the ICO and in-compliance with GDPR.
Issues I can work with include
Abuse, Anxiety, Attachment disorder, Bereavement, Bullying, Career, Chronic fatigue syndrome/ME, Creative Blocks, Cultural Differences, Depression, Disabilities, Discrimination, Domestic violence, Emotional abuse, Family issues, Feeling sad, Gender Identity, LGBTQ Issues, Life Changes, Life Goals, Loneliness, Low self-confidence, Low self-esteem, Panic Attacks, Passive aggressive behaviour, Personality disorders, Physical abuse, Redundancy, Relationship problems, Seasonal affective disorder (SAD), Self-harm, Separation and divorce, Sex problems , Sexual abuse, Sexuality, Spirituality, Stress, Trauma, Work-related stress.
