Amanda Barnes, BACP

Amanda Barnes meets people who are anxious about making the first call. She keeps the first sessions calm and straightforward. Her aim is to offer a steady, non-judgemental space where someone can say what is troubling them and be heard.

Amanda uses a gentle, respectful way of working. She lets emotions be felt and named without rushing people on. Clients lead the pace and decide what to focus on in each session.

She offers individual counselling and couples counselling. In couples work she helps partners look at trust, communication and emotional closeness. The work is practical and focused on understanding what is happening between people.

Amanda has five years of practice and is a member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, BACP. That membership is shown as BACP in her profile.

People come to her for a mix of concerns. These include relationship worries, grief and bereavement, low self-esteem, depression, anxiety, stress, addiction and trauma. She also supports those dealing with parenting strain and anger.

Sessions are conversational and aimed at small, manageable changes. Amanda helps people notice patterns, try new ways of communicating, and make decisions that feel right for them. The work is practical and paced to each person.

Therapeutic approaches and online counselling options

Amanda works with evidence-based therapeutic techniques that focus on understanding feelings and changing patterns. One common approach she uses helps people identify and shift unhelpful thoughts and behaviours by practising new ways of responding. This approach is useful for anxiety, low mood and stress because it gives practical steps to try between sessions.

Another approach focuses on relationships and communication. It looks at how partners interact, identifies unhelpful patterns, and teaches clearer ways to express needs and rebuild trust. This method is often used for intimacy-related issues and communication breakdowns.

Finding the right way of working is a collaborative process. Amanda will talk with each person about their goals and preferences, then suggest approaches to try. She checks in as therapy progresses and adapts the plan to what is most helpful.

Online sessions are offered by video calls, phone sessions, live chat and text-based messaging to suit different routines. Video is good for full conversations, phone works when bandwidth is limited, live chat allows short check-ins, and text messaging can suit people who prefer to write. These options make it easier to fit therapy into busy lives and to keep continuity between appointments.