I am Professor of Counselling Professions and Mental Health at the University, a Registered Social Worker, an Accredited Counsellor/Psychotherapist, a Senior Registered Coach and an Accredited Coach Supervisor. Additionally, I am a Senior Fellow of Advance HE, a Fellow of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy and an Associate Affiliate Professor at the University of Malta. I sat on the 2021 QAA Benchmark Standards Group for Counselling and Psychotherapy and have acted as External Examiner at several HE institutions, including the Universities of Leeds, Abertay, Salford, Leeds Beckett, City College Thessaloniki (Greece), Malta and Manchester.

As a social worker I worked in several fields, including child protection, vulnerable adults and adult mental health. I worked as an Approved Practitioner (Mental Health Act) where I undertook statutory assessments at mental health crisis for hospital admission, and also worked in a 24-hour mental health crisis team. I additionally delivered groups and individual therapy, as well as broader care planning assessments, to adults with severe mental health distress.

As a therapist I have worked in a range of practice settings, including schools, the third sector and independent practice. I was Senior Counsellor at the University of Liverpool Counselling Service for nearly 20-years, I was a Trustee of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) for 6 years, and Chair of the Board for 5 years. I work in a consultative capacity with the Executive of the Coaching Division of BACP, as well as being External Consultant to the re-mapping of BACP's Ethical Framework in the Counselling Professions. I have additionally delivered training and consultancy to a range of major charities, including Samaritans, Relate, CALM, the Listening Place, Charlie Waller Trust and Jonathan's Voice.

I have published extensively across number journal and practitioner articles, book chapters and have additionally published several key texts, including An Introduction to Counselling and Psychotherapy: From Theory to Practice (Sage, 3rd Edition), Counselling Suicidal Clients (Sage), Working with Risk in Counselling and Psychotherapy (Sage), Working with Self-Injury (Hodder) and Standards and Ethics for Counselling in Action (with Prof Tim Bond, 5th Edition, Sage) and the Handbook of Individual Therapy (with Prof Windy Dryden, 6th Edition, Sage) I have just completed a book with Prof Lynne Gabriel, Navigating Relational Ethics in Day-to-Day Practice (Routledge), as well as being Series Editor for Essential Issues in Counselling and Psychotherapy, Innovative Approaches to Ethics in the Counselling Professions (with Prof Lynne Gabriel), and Working Together (with Prof John McLeod and Julia McLeod).

I am particularly interested in the developments in coaching practice, when delivered in combination with therapeutic approaches through a pluralistic lens and am developing my writing interest in this area.