Supervision

We offer clinical supervision to support therapists and health professionals to work in the best interests of their clients, to enrich their practice and to nourish themselves.

Can you tell me something about your background and qualifications?

Amy Mills is a humanistic integrative counsellor and psychotherapist. She holds a Master’s degree in Counselling and Psychotherapy from the University of East London and is an Accredited Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (MBACP Accred). Amy is also a Certified Cyber Therapist and a Professional Member of the Association for Counselling and Therapy Online (ACTO). Amy holds a BACP endorsed Level 6 Certificate in Therapeutic Counselling Supervision from the Counselling and Psychotherapy Central Awarding Body (CPCAB) and is currently in the process of completing Certified Clinical Cyber Supervisor training through the Online Therapy Institute.

Amy has supervised therapists since 2013 and has worked with over fifty practitioners to date. These have included:

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• trainee and experienced therapists, both one-to-one and in groups
   

• therapists working with children, young people, families and adults
   

• therapists from a variety of theoretical orientations including person-centred, psychodynamic, integrative, gestalt, cognitive behavioural therapy, art therapy and drama therapy
   

• therapists working in schools, private practice, counselling organisations and charities.
   

You can find more information about Amy’s background and experience here.

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What style of supervision do you offer?

Amy uses a blend of Shohet and Hawkins’* 7 eyed model combined with aspects of Page and Wosket’s** cyclical model. She values a supportive relationship with each supervisee founded on the core person-centred principles of empathy, congruence and unconditional positive regard. Past supervisees have described her as supportive, warm and approachable.

Amy supervises with reference to the BACP Ethical Framework (2018) and applicable UK law. She aims to be transparent in this process, sharing her thinking and the basis for it with supervisees, and encouraging discussion. She promotes a spirit of joint enquiry to ethical decision-making which she believes encourages supervisees to develop their understanding of how to use the Ethical Framework and knowledge of UK law, as well as how to use supervision, in order to weigh up ethical dilemmas. 

Amy supports supervisees’ development as therapeutic professionals by signposting to a range of learning resources in response to the specific client work supervisees are presenting (including reading, online CPD, face-to-face workshops). 

As an integrative practitioner Amy incorporates theory from a number of therapeutic modalities into her thinking including person-centred, psychodynamic, CBT, solution focused, mindfulness, attachment theory, systemic theory. She works creatively with some clients (e.g. sand tray, art work, puppets) and enjoys using creative materials and exercises when appropriate to enrich supervisory work.

*Hawkins and Shohet (2012) Supervision in the Helping Professions. Open University Press

** Page and Wosket (2014) Supervising the Counsellor and Psychotherapist: A Cyclical Model. Routledge

How can I arrange supervision with you?

You can contact Amy or book online to arrange an initial discussion of up to 30 minutes. This can be conducted through Telephone, Online Audio or Video. In this conversation we will consider together what is prompting you to seek supervision at the moment, whether Amy’s style of supervision is likely to be helpful for you, approximately how much supervision you need and whether we both have availability to be able to meet regularly. The conversation is free of charge.

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If you and Amy agree that supervision sessions with her are both practical and likely to be helpful, then Amy will email you an Assessment Form to complete and return to her by email. She will also arrange a time/day for a one-off Assessment appointment with you. This Assessment appointment lasts for up to 60 minutes and is charged for (please see our up to date information on fees). The Assessment appointment involves discussing your practice in depth, and considering what your needs are from supervision at the moment. It is also an opportunity for you to assess if you think Amy is the right supervisor to work with you.

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If you and Amy agree to continue to work together then Amy will give you a Supervision Agreement and a Privacy Statement for you to read and sign electronically. The terms of these include those found on our Terms of Use and Privacy pages. Once the paperwork is completed, you and Amy will agree when to meet for regular supervision sessions. These can be scheduled to suit you and can either be at the same time/day on a regular basis, or can be scheduled as and when needed to fit around other commitments.

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If Amy doesn’t think supervision with her is possible or appropriate for you then she will do her best to give you suggestions of alternative organisations or people who may be able to support you better.

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Do you supervise trainees?

Yes. Amy has many years’ experience supervising trainee therapists from a range of therapeutic orientations and training organisations. When working with trainee supervisees, she additionally contracts with the supervisee’s course tutor and placement manager(s). Amy is willing to support trainee supervisees by completing course and registration/regulatory body paperwork. For paperwork which takes longer than 15 minutes to complete, she does charge for the time it takes her based on a pro rata of the supervisee’s usual session fee.

How regularly do I need to come?

Amy will discuss and agree with you how much supervision you need and how regularly you will meet. There are a number of possibilities including 60, 90 and 120 minutes either weekly, fortnightly or monthly. There are a number of factors to take into consideration when deciding how much supervision to have including:

• the size and weight of your caseload
   

• your professional registration body’s requirements
   

• whether you have other supervisory arrangements in place (e.g. peer supervision, supervision through a course, another supervisor for an aspect of your work)
   

• how experienced you are
   

• your personal circumstances

It is important to commit to attending supervision sessions as best you can, as frequently missing sessions is likely to make it harder to build a trusting supervisory relationship.

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Are you available in an emergency?

Amy works Monday – Friday during the afternoons and evenings. She is usually available to speak on the telephone or by email at some point during the day, or at weekends, if a supervisee needs to speak about an aspect of their work urgently. Amy does charge for conversations which last 15 minutes or longer based on a pro rata of the supervisee’s usual session fee.

Do you offer telephone or online appointments?

Amy offers supervision sessions by telephone and online (online audio and online video call) to qualified therapists and health professionals working worldwide with the exception of people based in the USA and Canada.

It may sound obvious but when attending supervision by telephone or online, you don’t visit your supervisor’s office. Therefore, you will need to have certain things in place to be able to ethically and effectively work this way including:

• A safe and confidential place where you can be during your supervision sessions. This means being in a place where you cannot be overheard and your screen cannot be seen by others. Ideally you will be in a place where you won’t be interrupted during your sessions.
   

• A device - such as a computer, tablet or smartphone – to connect to your sessions. For Online Video or Audio sessions you will also need reliable Internet connection.
   

• For Telephone sessions, you will need to be somewhere where you have a strong telephone signal during sessions.
   

• For Online Video or Audio sessions you will need a working microphone and webcam.
   

• For Online Video or Audio sessions you will need to check that the device which you are intending to use to connect to your sessions is capable of running the software which we typically use to connect. Amy will discuss this with you in advance of your first session.
   

• Patience! When communicating online it is much easier to misunderstand someone than when you are with them face to face. If you think Amy has misunderstood something you’ve said, please be patient and correct her as soon as you can.

For Online Video and Audio sessions we usually use software called Zoom to connect. This software platform encrypts all data sent in transmission and does not require you to become a ‘contact’ with us, which helps to protect your confidentiality. You will need to download Zoom software to the device which you are going to use to connect to sessions; you will be prompted to set up an account but you can choose not to do this and still attend the session. Amy will send you a Zoom meeting invitation prior to each supervision session by encrypted email.

Do you work with groups?

Amy does see small groups of supervisees for joint supervision. If you are part of a group who are interested in exploring this option please contact Amy to discuss your situation.

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How much do you charge?

Please see our Fees page.

What records do you keep?

Brief notes of all sessions are held securely on electronic and paper-based systems, and your data is available for you to view on request. You can view our Privacy Policy and a hard copy will be given to you and discussed at the initial assessment appointment. Paper Plane Counselling is registered with the Information Commissioner's Office and our systems comply with the Data Protection Act 2018 and General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR).