The Division of Counselling Psychology (DCoP) promotes the interests of Counselling Psychologists across the UK.
For any queries regarding the work of the Division of Counselling Psychology contact the Member Networks Team
News
On this page you'll find news, updates, and blog articles specifically relevant to the work and interests of the Division of Counselling Psychology.
The Division of Counselling Psychology's Statement on the Invasion of Ukraine - 4th March 2022
How to get your research advertised
If you would like us to help with recruitment or dissemination of your doctoral research, please email [email protected] with some wording for a short advert to be included in the e-letter. Please copy in your supervisor and attach a copy of your ethical approval. The typical process for agreeing to advertise does require your supervisor to confirm their knowledge of the request and that ethical approval has been granted. This process is the same for everyone to ensure fairness.
As we move forward, we would like to build a list of current research for the purpose of indicating to prospective trainees and external parties the type of research activity within Counselling Psychology.
Annual General Meetings (AGMs)
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Division of Counselling Psychology Wales AGM - Call for committee positions 2022 - Now open
Show contentCall for committee positions
The Division of Counselling Psychology - Wales will be held on Monday 11 July 2022, 3pm via Zoom
You must be signed-in to access the following material
- Download the Notice for details of the positions calling for (member only)
- Download further information on roles
- Apply for a committee position
- Submit a resolution item
Deadline for your online form is at 12 noon on Monday 30 May 2022
To help you complete this form, please download the step by step guide
All nominees must be Full Members of the Division of Counselling Psychology - Wales with voting rights unless otherwise specified.
If you have any queries regarding the AGM, nominations or resolutions, please email Member Network Services
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Division of Counselling Psychology AGM 2022 - Call for committee positions 2022 - Now open
Show contentCall for committee positions
The Annual General Meeting of the Division of Counselling Psychology will be held on Friday 15 July 2022, 5-6pm at Royal College of Physicians, 11 St Andrews Place, London, NW1 4LE
Members can also join online, if they wish. The details can be found on the AGM notice.
You must be signed-in to access the following materials
- Access the Notice for details of the positions calling for (member only)
- Download further information on roles
- Apply for a committee position
- Submit a resolution item
The Committee Member roles will form part of the Education and Training cluster. The main role will be for committee members to oversee the Division’s annual conference, training and CPD. There is room for innovation and creativity within a supportive community to help promote the strategic aims of the Division. Further details about the role can be found here: www.bps.org.uk/dcop
We encourage interest to get involved with the committee from all levels and experience of the membership. If you're interested in becoming involved, please contact Member Network Services for more information
Deadline for your online form is at 12 noon on Wednesday 1 June 2022
All nominees must be Full Members of the Division of Counselling Psychology with voting rights unless otherwise specified.
If you have any queries regarding the AGM, nominations or resolutions, please email Member Network Services
Call for Statements of Interest
In addition to the call for elected posts, there are a number of spaces on the Committee, which would be co-opted onto the Committee for a period of 1 year and would like to invite Members to apply to be a co-opted into the roles at the AGM on the Friday 15 July 2022
The roles that we would like to invite interest for are as follows:- Appointed Committee Member x5
** must be a Full Member of the Division of Counselling Psychology with voting rights
Deadline for statements of interest: must be received no later than 12 noon on Wednesday 1 June 2022.The Statements of Interest will be considered at a Committee meeting prior to the 15 July 2022
Without both the elected and co-opted roles taken up by member volunteers on the committee we cannot undertake the activities that the membership want us to doWhat does being a committee member offer?
- Previous committee members have described the role as the best CPD available. This is a chance to broaden your horizons and develop your career
- You will gain invaluable professional knowledge and experience
- You will support the professional development of your colleagues and help represent the profession at a national level
- You will be supported by a very friendly and helpful committee
- You will have free attendance at the DCoP annual conference
- Travelling expenses, etc. are paid
What does being a committee member require from you?
- 4 face to face meetings a year that are currently held online or in London
- A two-day strategy meeting in September
- An AGM as part of our Annual Conference
- There are some tasks which need to be undertaken by Committee Members outside the meetings
If you have any questions or require more details, then please contact Emma SmithDivision of Counselling Psychology Committee Handbook
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Division of Counselling Psychology Northern Ireland AGM 2022
Show contentThe Division of Counselling Psychology – Northern Ireland AGM 2022 will be held on Thursday 28 April 2022 at 1.30pm via Zoom.
Please note the change in AGM time
You must be signed-in to access the following material
If you have any queries regarding the AGM, nominations or resolutions please email Member Network Services
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Division of Counselling Psychology Scotland AGM 2022
Show contentThe Division of Counselling Psychology - Scotland AGM 2022 will be held on Wednesday 27 April 2022 at 4.30pm via Zoom.
Please note the change in AGM time
You must be signed-in to access the following material
If you have any queries regarding the AGM, nominations or resolutions, please email Member Network Services
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Division of Counselling Psychology North West
Show contentThe Division of Counselling Psychology North West are calling for statement of interests.
The deadline for submitting an statement of interest form is now closed.
Elections will be formally ratified at the next Committee meeting for Division of Counselling Psychology North West on Thursday 11 February 2021
If you have any queries regarding submitting an statement of interest please email Member Network Services
Newsletters and articles
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Newsletters
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Division of Counselling Psychology - COP26: Statement of Support
Show contentCOP26, the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, is being held in Glasgow from 31 October to 12 November.
As counselling psychologists, we know that the environment has a critical impact on people’s physical and psychological wellbeing and join other allied professions in supporting the delegates attending this most important of meetings.
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Rationale for the Russian Psychological Society’s exclusion from EFPA
Show contentIn April’s publication of The Psychologist, Ella Rhodes (2022) reported ‘The international psychological community must now stand together with our Ukrainian colleagues’. The Executive Council of the National Psychological Association of Ukraine requested the European Federation of Psychologists’ Associations (EFPA) exclude the Russian Psychological Society (RPS) from the organisation. The EFPA’s executive committee has considered the request and asked member associations to vote on the proposal to expel the RPS from the EFPA.
The request: While attending a Division of Counselling Psychology meeting, Sarb Bajwa, the BPS’s Chief Executive, updated us on the dilemmas and decisions impacting the BPS. Our Ukrainian colleagues requested and/plus the EFPA considered a professional ‘breach of trust’ in terms of breaches of internal law, human rights, peace and so forth. This outline is intended to report on the process and outcome of the request, rather than consider here the existential, ethical or philosophical questions raised by the request. Sarb Bajwa outlined the subsequent actions, omissions or missed alternatives. This outline is also intended to keep BPS members updated.
The voting process: Under the EFPA’s constitution and European law, the EFPA had no option to suspend the RPS; the options were no action or expel. Each member of the EFPA has a number of votes relating to the size of its membership. There are 100 votes in total, of which the BPS as a larger association member has 6 votes. Only 13 votes were cast to not exclude the RPS from the EFPA. The BPS voted to expel the RPS.
The outcome: The request to expel the RPS passed. In the months ahead, the vote needs to be ratified by the EFPA’s General Assembly. Unfortunately and as Sarb Bajwa highlighted, EFPA’s constitution does not allow for imposing sanctions and /or suspension. We suggest the rigid process itself merits consideration.
Reference
Rhodes, E. (2022). The international psychological community must now stand together with our Ukrainian colleagues. The Psychologist. (Online). Available at: https://thepsychologist. bps.org.uk/volume-35/april-2022/international-psychological-community-must-now-stand-together-our-ukrainian. (Accessed 6 April 2022).
Dr Philip Cox (D.Psych, CPsychol, EuroPsy, AFBPS)
HCPC reg, BACP (Snr Accred)
BPS Division Counselling Psychology co-Vice Chair
BPS Psychotherapy Section Past Chair
BPS Ethics Committee member
BPS Mentoring Service Steering Group member
BPS Climate Change Professional Development Working Group member
BPS Register of Applied Psychology Practice Supervisors (RAPPS)
Psychotherapy & Counselling Union consultant for professional complaints
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DCoP Environmental and Climate Crisis contributions
Show contentAs members of the Division will have seen in the media recently, The Grantham Institute/Imperial College recently published an important document: The impact of climate change on mental health and emotional wellbeing: Current evidence and implications for policy and practice (Grantham Institute, Briefing paper No 36).
This document helpfully collates insight into the clear and direct ways that climate change negatively affects mental health, both directly and indirectly, in the short, medium and longer term too.
It helps us recognise that while this is the case for all of us, it is particularly a factor for marginalised and vulnerable groups in particular.
The Society asked the Division to comment on the document in a timely fashion and we were delighted to contribute to the response which went live on May 27th. This was just a couple of days after it made the headlines.
It is great to see that the society can contribute to important issues in a timely way - and that counselling psychology's view is recognised.
As the report notes there is more to do, and counselling psychologists interested in this area can look forward to the climate change stream at this years DCoP Conference
The Division is also formalising its workstream related to the Environmental and Climate crisis and would be pleased to receive Statements of Interest from colleagues willing to join the workstream.
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Division of Counselling Psychology Environmental and Climate Crisis (DCoP ECC) Workstream
Show contentThe Division of Counselling Psychology is establishing a small working group to develop and support the development of DCoP members’ personal, professional, scientific and social justice interests in relation to counselling psychology and the environmental and climate crisis.
The working group aims to facilitate the exchange of ideas, development and sharing of knowledge about the environmental and climate crisis within the Division, when contributing to the BPS Steering Group and with other interested bodies.
We are calling for statements of interest to be submitted from counselling psychologists with professional or research interest s in the area (qualified and registered on accredited training routes in counselling psychology) who are able to offer both time, interest and expertise in the area. If you would like to contribute, please submit a statement of interest (SOI). Please do think about volunteering for this important work.
- Prof. Martin Milton, DCoP ECC Workstream Lead
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Division of Counselling Psychology Domestic Violence and Abuse (DVA) Workstream
Show contentWe are currently in the process of establishing the DVA Workstream within the BPS Division of Counselling Psychology. If you meet the person specification outlined below we would like to hear from you.
Purpose
The main aims of this workstream are as follows.
- To provide a forum for members working within the field of DVA through which they can exchange ideas and share knowledge.
- To help members further their professional and scientific interests within the area of DVA
- To support the specialised scientific interests of members working within the area of DVA
- To promote both practice-based research and research-based practice within the area of DVA including the intersections between gender, sexual violence, intimate partner abuse, ethnic identity, parenting, trauma, mental health and DVA.
Person Specification
Counselling Psychologists who have a special interest in DVA, and are currently working within this area (a minimum of 2 years).
Please submit your statement of interest before 5pm on Thursday 10 June 2021.
- Dr. Mou Sultana, DCoP DVA workstream Lead
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Division of Counselling Psychology Online and Digital (DCoP OD) Working Group - Call for Statements of Interest
Show contentThe Division of Counselling Psychology is establishing a working group to develop and support the development of DCoP members’ personal, professional, scientific, and social justice interests in relation to online and digital working; both in the short and long term.
The working group aims to facilitate the exchange of ideas, development, research and sharing of knowledge about digital healthcare in relation to counselling psychology.
We are calling for statements of interest to be submitted from counselling psychologists with professional or research interests in the area (qualified and registered on accredited training routes in counselling psychology) who are able to offer both time, interest and expertise in the area. If you would like to contribute, please submit a statement of interest (SOI).
Please do think about volunteering for this important work.
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A new Chair Perspective on volunteering: Work, Life and Counselling Psychology by Dr Yetunde Ade-Serrano
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A Perspective on Volunteering by Dr Neha Cattra
Show contentI won't lie, I always feel a little out of sorts when I go for long periods of time without volunteering in some capacity. I've volunteered in various ways for more than half my life, and I can't imagine not doing so. I started volunteering at school as a mentor and then as I accrued my training hours during my doctorate. And so many other ways in between and since.
I am not unaware of the challenges of volunteering - in many ways it is a privilege. I feel that its important that I use my privilege (such as it is, as an LGBTQ+ Asian woman) to support those that don't have the same opportunities as me, to get to those opportunities if they want them.
Less than a month after I submitted my thesis edits, I called the BPS and said I needed a new project to get involved with. Yes, I needed one - without some purpose I felt rudderless, so not all of my reasons are altruistic. But, most are. I want to further our profession, and I first did this by being part of the conference committee. I continued to work with DCoP, and now that I am the communications lead, I feel like my contribution is intrinsically about furthering Counselling Psychology.
I was not a born communicator, and of course I get things wrong all the time! Volunteering doesn't require a special skill, it asks that you are curious, passionate and diligent. You learn many skills, and make many connections - from BPS presidents to first year trainees, and bit by bit, you grow as a person, whilst developing others and furthering the profession.
The division is its members. When colleagues say 'what is the division up to?' I want to remind them that they are the division. The executive committee merely represents their views and priorities. The 'Division' is what its members are and want. It's a hungry beast with many moving parts, and whilst it pulls you in to some noble cause and takes up time, it also produces exceptional scientist practitioners with a thirst for developing CoP, leaders in their respective fields.
This is a call to arms. Never has Mental Health and Psychological wellbeing been more vitally important than in the midst and aftermath of a global existential threat to survival. Get involved in the conversations and the tasks that move our profession forward. Some examples of ways to get involved, big and small are included in this newsletter. Get in touch with questions and comments - we look forward to having you on board.
Dr Neha Cattra is a Senior Chartered Counselling Psychologist based in West Sussex, working in Adult Mental Health. A passionate volunteer, coffee addict and cat lover, she can usually be found making a racket in the kitchen.
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Writing for The Psychologist by Daren Lee
Show contentLike many of us, I have spent many an hour contemplating what our professional roles will look like in the future in the aftermath of COVID-19. For people in points of life transition this is likely to be poignant: for students embarking on a new life away from home at university, for trainee psychologists who have visualised being in the full throes of (face-to-face) professional practice and for some people who had previously developed a new healthier relationship with psychological distress, the global pandemic has forced us to re-write our plans, at least for now.
Recently, I wrote an article for The Psychologist – A jolt of transformation which explores people’s evolving relationship with their anxiety and its potential impact on CBT protocols in a post-COVID-19 reality. But, I would anticipate that COVID-19’s kinship with anxiety and the resonance of public health advice during the pandemic is particularly pressing for clients experiencing obsessive compulsive disorder with cleaning rituals.
I have long felt an affinity for clients with this presentation, as the wider public sometimes belittles their distress with reference to themselves being a “a bit OCD” because they like to keep their fridge magnets in order. The reality for me, is that the experience of OCD is far more sinister. It can represent a metaphorical ransomer that issues threats and holds loved ones hostage. For clients with obsessive thoughts about loved ones being contaminated, it is a case of ‘complete the compulsion or else’. To compound this distress, the mere presence of such intrusive thoughts results in clients assuming a moral responsibility to save their loved one’s from catastrophe – to pay the ransomer in time – to complete the next compulsion or confront the consequences.
I have also found myself thinking about the past and historical clients with this presentation. Clients who were ravaged by their compulsive cleaning and obsessional fears about contaminating their loved ones with deadly infectious diseases, but through their engagement and hard work, managed to break their patterns of hypervigilance, intrusive obsessional thoughts, compulsive cleaning and magical thinking. In our current COVID-19 filled reality, I can imagine that there are far more ransomers ominously lurking for people who have experienced OCD symptoms, past and present. Furthermore, the pandemic is likely to present challenges to those CBT interventions that have historically promoted exposure to unsanitised behaviour and conditions (for example Exposure Response Prevention). I would suggest that this renders counselling psychologists’ ability to work pluralistically, collaboratively and phenomenologically more essential than ever before.
Daren Lee is in the write-up stage of a Professional Doctorate in Counselling Psychology at London Metropolitan University. The themes outlined above are the subject of a case study entitled Unveiling the Ransomer, which explores a psychodynamic reformulation of OCD.