ABOUT US
Hi, I’m Annabel
I’m a Level 6 Therapeutic Play Practitioner and have recently completed my Level 7 Play Therapy training, with graduation coming up next month.
At the heart of my work is a simple belief: play matters.
For children, play is far more than something they do for fun. It is one of the most natural ways they explore their world, develop relationships, experiment, problem-solve and make sense of their experiences. Research links play with development across emotional, social, cognitive, physical and creative areas, helping children develop skills such as confidence, resilience, communication, flexibility and independence.
Children do not always have the words to explain what is happening inside them. Feelings can be confusing, experiences can be difficult to put into language, and sometimes a child simply does not know how to answer the question, “How are you feeling?”
Play gives children another language.
Through play, creativity, imagination and metaphor, children can explore experiences and emotions in a way that feels natural to them, rather than relying solely on conversation.
Why child-led?
My approach is fundamentally child-led. This means I am not there to tell a child what to play, what to create, what they should talk about or how they should feel.
Instead, I provide a safe, consistent and accepting therapeutic relationship in which the child is given the freedom to lead.
I believe this is incredibly important. Children spend much of their lives being directed by adults. They are told where to go, what to do, when to stop, what to learn and often what is expected of them. Within a child-led therapeutic space, something different can happen.
The child gets to make choices.
They can explore at their own pace. They can experience autonomy and mastery. They can test ideas, make mistakes, change direction and discover their own solutions while knowing that a trusted adult is alongside them.
Research into play supports the importance of children having agency within their play. Freely chosen play, where children follow their own interests and instincts, is associated with wellbeing and the development of confidence, resilience, independence, curiosity and social skills.
For me, child-led does not mean passive. I am observing, listening, reflecting, noticing patterns and responding carefully to what the child communicates through their play. The relationship provides the safety and boundaries, while the child provides the direction.
Building connections through bricks
Alongside Play Therapy, I also facilitate Brick Club.
I have a particular love for LEGO-based activities because I have seen how powerful bricks can be as a gateway medium for children who may find traditional talking-based approaches difficult or intimidating.
Sitting face-to-face with an adult and being asked to talk about feelings can feel like a lot. Sitting alongside someone with a pile of bricks between you can feel very different.
Building gives children something concrete to focus on while interaction happens naturally around it. It can create opportunities for communication, shared attention, collaboration, problem-solving, turn-taking, flexibility and connection, without putting pressure on a child to talk.
Sometimes the conversation happens while the hands are busy.
Sometimes the building is the communication.
And sometimes a child simply experiences the satisfaction of creating something, solving a problem and thinking, “I did that.”
The power of play
One of the things I love most about this work is that play can look wonderfully simple from the outside while an enormous amount may be happening underneath.
A child building a tower might be experimenting with persistence and frustration. A game with rules can involve negotiation, impulse control and coping with winning and losing. Imaginative play can allow a child to explore relationships, fears, power, safety and different possible outcomes.
Research describes playful experiences as particularly powerful when they are joyful, meaningful, actively engaging, iterative and socially interactive. Through these experiences, children are not simply passing time. They are developing and practising skills they can carry into the rest of their lives.
That is why I take play seriously.
My role is not to take over a child's play, but to create the safety, relationship and space that allows it to unfold.
Sometimes children cannot tell us what they need. But given the right space, they can show us.