Ruth Barrett

Ruth Barrett is a qualified person-centred counsellor who holds a Master’s in Clinical Counselling and Accredited Registered Membership of the BACP (British Association for Counsellors and Psychotherapists). She brings a warm, caring and reliable presence to her therapeutic work, underpinned by a strong sense of personal and professional integrity.

Her formal training is in Person-Centred (Humanistic) therapy, with particular clinical interests in Complex Trauma, Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and early life Attachment. Alongside private practice, Ruth has worked with a charitable organisation in Chester, providing counselling to adults, children and families facing a range of difficult circumstances and supporting clients referred from the NHS, local authorities and social services.

Ruth also has a background in education, having taught for over twenty-five years with a focus on young people aged 11–18. This experience has informed her understanding of the long-term impact of childhood adversity. She is a certified CBT therapist and maintains a special interest in resilience and personal growth across the lifespan.

Ruth works with people from all ages and backgrounds, tailoring her approach to the individual rather than focusing only on a single issue. She has experience supporting people with loss and bereavement, childhood trauma, relationship difficulties, sexual abuse, anxiety, depression, disordered eating, phobias and obsessive compulsions. Her practice draws on a range of well-established approaches, including psychodynamic and integrative methods, person-centred work, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Attachment-informed approaches.

Clients are offered an initial session and can then decide whether to proceed with a block of fixed sessions or more open-ended work. Ruth aims to provide a compassionate, empathetic space in which people can explore their thoughts and feelings at their own pace.

Ruth works in accordance with the BACP Ethical Framework and has regular formal supervision with a qualified counselling supervisor to ensure high standards of practice. She is fully insured and completes required continuing professional development each year. Session content is held in the strictest confidence except where safeguarding concerns about children or young people arise, or where there is evidence that a client or others are at risk of serious harm - in such circumstances confidentiality may need to be broken.