‘A little knowledge is a dangerous thing’, or how qualified is my therapist or counsellor?

It is really important when working with vulnerable people, especially children or people with additional needs, that training and ongoing CPD is adequate. The old saying, ‘a little knowledge is a dangerous thing’ is apt.

With inferior or inadequate training it would be possible to cause more harm to a vulnerable person’s mental health. In-depth and broad theoretical knowledge is really important to be able to work safely and effectively with moderate to severe mental health problems. Yet, the transparency of qualifications is poor. So, here’s a little bit of help:

Level 8: Psychiatrists and Clinical Psychologists or Counselling Psychologists must have a PhD (a doctorate), a Level 8 qualification.

Level 7: Art Therapists, Drama Therapists, Music Therapists and Certified Play Therapists are all trained at Masters Level, a Level 7 qualification. With Play Therapists it is important to look for the word Certified and check that they are registered with either PTUK (Play Therapy UK) or with BAPT (British Association of Play Therapists). *

* There has been a rise in recent years in people calling themselves a Play Therapist or Therapeutic Play Practitioner without the required training. A Certified Play Therapist must be qualified to Level 7 and registered with PTUK or BAPT. A Therapeutic Play Practitioner (which Certified play therapists will also be, have completed a specific post-graduate course) should hold a Post Graduate Certificate in Therapeutic Play and be registered with PTUK.

Level 2 – 7: Counselling courses start at Level 2 (GCSE equivalent) and a counsellor can qualify to practice at anything from a Level 3 Diploma (equivalent to A levels) to a Level 6 BA (a degree) and occasionally to a Level 7 (Post Graduate Masters level). Check the level of training any counsellor you are thinking of using has had and consider whether this is suitable for your needs.

Very often, a higher level of qualification does not mean a higher charge for therapy.

Please, always double check that the person you use, whether they are a counsellor or therapist of any type, is properly qualified and registered. A qualified therapist will always be happy to give you the details you need to check they are suitably qualified and registered.

If in doubt, or if anything doesn’t ‘feel right’, pause and find someone else. It is really important that you are confident and relaxed with your therapist for the therapy to be effective.