Play Therapy helps children and young adults understand muddled feelings and upsetting events that they haven’t had the chance to sort out properly.

“Play Therapy is the dynamic process between child and Play Therapist in which the child explores at his or her own pace, and with his or her own agenda, those issues, past and current, conscious and unconscious, that are affecting the child’s life in the present. The child’s inner resources are enabled by the therapeutic alliance to bring about growth and change. Play Therapy is child-centred, in which play is the primary medium and speech is the secondary medium. Play Therapy encompasses many approaches but the foundation of all approaches is child centred”

(British Association of Play Therapists Code of Ethics and Practice 1996)

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Children and young people use play to communicate at their own level and at their own pace, without feeling interrogated or threatened.  

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The aim of the service is to provide children and young adults aged 3 – 19 years with a child-centred therapeutic resource close to their local communities in Inverclyde. Children receive individual one to one weekly sessions from a qualified Play Therapist; while the parent/carer is supported by a Family Worker, who is trained and experienced in working with parents and carers on the issues that are emerging for the child in therapy

 

Children and young people can be referred for Play Therapy for a range of issues, for example -Grief and loss; sexual abuse; trauma; life transitions; fostering and adoption; challenging behaviour; disabilities; Autistic spectrum disorder – this list is comprehensive but not exhaustive.