Whitestone Therapy

  BACP blues... (20.8.25) 24 August 2025 | 2025 posts My last post –  BACP drama... (7.8.25)  – seems to have hit the spot.  The number of views is a lot higher than normal and I know the article has been shared quite widely.  Although not all therapists have much interest in BACP politics (me included), it’s news we should pay attention to.   As I wrote, it’s worrying that both a 'removed' Chair and the BACP board agree there have been serious failures of oversight, governance and behaviours.  That each accuses the other of this creates a sense the whole thing is a bloody mess. I’ve received a number of supportive emails from other therapists, and thank them for the encouragement and kind words.  It’s led to some interesting exchanges, some anecdotal experiences of working with Natalie Bailey and, far more importantly, hearing a chorus of concerns about the BACP direction of travel.  Some that wrote asked that the conversation stay private, ...

  BACP drama...(7.8.25) 7 August 2025 | 2025 posts It has been a wild ride at the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) this week. The BACP is the leading professional body for counsellors and psychotherapists in the UK, representing over 50,000 members. I am one such member.  It sets ethical and professional standards for therapeutic practice through its Ethical Framework for the Counselling Professions, which all members must follow.  Although there are other bodies (chief amongst them UKCP), the BACP is the largest and the most subscribed.  In a shocking development for us therapists, the BACP has ‘removed’ Natalie Bailey from her role as Chair, alongside her deputy Sekinat Admina. Here’s the text of the statement released yesterday: ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- “We’re today announcing that Natalie Bailey has been removed as BACP’s Chair and as a member of the Boa...

  Time away...(29.7.25) 29 July 2025 | 2025 posts It’s been a really good month in Spain. Part of the experiment was to see whether we could live and work here in a few years, so a month was a decent amount of time to see what worked and what didn’t.    Apart from a day after an earthquake in the area (and today as I write) the sun has been shining and the sea as clear as glass – snorkelling has been exceptional and everything is in technicolour.  A lot of expats who live here go back to the UK during July and August as it's high 30’s most days. And to be fair, it really  does  feel too hot even for people who love hot weather.  I’m thinking we too would probably avoid being here in July and August, as after a couple of weeks we’re avoiding the sun and hopping from one shady spot to another.  If I lived here full time I would already be looking forward to September! It's been enjoyable trying to learn the basics of the Spanish language.  I ne...

  Robert Entenman... (20.7.25) 20 July 2025 | 2025 posts Robert J Entenman – 1957-2015 This summer marks the ten year anniversary of Robert Entenman’s death – a man who certainly changed my life.  At the time of his funeral I wrote some words about Robert, which were written with public consumption in mind, but I’ve not written since about the personal impact he made on me.   I’d like to do that here (what follows is therefore personal and not therapy related). I first met Robert just after the financial crisis in 2008.  He joined my bank soon after me as my new boss, and we worked closely together until his untimely death in 2015.   At first, arrogant sod that I was, I resisted working for Robert.  At the time I had an accidental direct reporting line to a ‘global head’ and, feeling I could manage that relationship well (and that the direct reporting line elevated me), I resented a new person arriving and things changing.  Robert was a well-known, lar...