As a team we understand that every child comes to us from their own unique path, shaped within family, school and community life.
Many children and young people experience adverse life circumstances or significant trauma and many struggle with their emotions.
The Children’s Society Good Childhood Report (2022) shows that children’s happiness continues to decline with an estimated 1 in 5 children in a classroom of 30 having a mental health problem.
Play is powerful and it comes naturally to children. When we play chemicals released in our brain mean we experience happiness and joy. It’s the way we are wired!
Play allows children to explore real life situations in a non threatening way, make sense of their world, practice problem solving or find new solutions and make new connections in their growing brains.
Our play and creative arts therapies harness the power of playing!
Through play and creative arts therapy we help children, young people and families experience healing and growth by feeling seen, heard and understood.
Our hope is that they will learn to live well despite the challenges they face. To find out more about our services click here.
About
We are a small organisation with a wealth of experience!
As Play and Creative Arts Therapists each of us has a unique background of working with children, young people and families in the education and charity sectors both in the UK and abroad.
We wanted to come together and bring our shared passion for seeing children and young people thrive and live well, through offering support for them as individuals, their families and through connecting with the wider support of the communities they live in.
We work one to one or in small groups with children and young people to provide a safe space for them to explore their experiences and emotions.
We love the tool kit that we use which incorporates art, clay, puppets, sand and other play materials.Every child will come with different experiences and needs; the tool kit allows children to have a whole range of sensory experiences through hands on, child led play.
We love to see how the children engage with what is in the play therapy room each week and as play therapists we play with them to deepen their process and their play.
Our sessions give children the freedom to play in a space where they are able to direct the play, make choices and explore at their own pace.
As a team we are passionate about the work we do because we have all seen the power of play therapy to bring change in children’s lives but we know that children are part of a wider system.
Living Well Family Services wants to support parents, carers and families too.
We want them to see the potential and power of play and we want to enable the change we see in their children to be lasting and to have an impact on all areas of their lives. We want to come alongside parents and carers too and support them so that the whole family unit is able to live well.
Services
For children and young people
Play and Creative Arts Therapy one to one sessions
Play and Creative Arts Therapy group work
Creative Arts Counselling for Young People
For parents and carers
Parent Child Attachment Play training
Filial Play coaching
For schools
Professional and interactive training on a number of topics
Lunchtime therapeutic support
““We don’t stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing””
Meet the team
Liz
Hi! I am Liz Vilela and I am a Play Therapist and Creative Arts Counsellor with PTUK and BACP, I am also training as a Filial Play Coach.
I currently work for a UK charity who support families affected by drug and alcohol use as well as having my own private practice based in Trowell. I have cross cultural experience from practicing as a Play Therapist in Mozambique. I have a particular interest in supporting children and young people who have been through or are going through traumatic experiences.
I love this work because I have seen how children have become stronger in themselves and have found their voices.
I enjoy playing and you can find me playing games like uno, monopoly or outdoors exploring nature whatever the weather.
Julie
Hi! I am Julie Travell. I am a qualified Play Therapist with PTUK. I have over 25 years experience teaching and working with children and families in a variety of roles.
I currently work as a Play Therapist in a primary school where I not only work with children but also their parents, teaching staff and other members of the community. Within this role I have also offered training and guidance on supporting children’s emotional and mental well being in school.
I love this work because I have seen how, through using a child centred integrative model in play therapy, children have been given time and space to make sense of thoughts and feelings. I understand the demands placed on children and staff in schools and the limited resources available to support vulnerable children and I’ve seen how engaging in play therapy has had a huge impact on children’s ability to engage in learning.
I enjoy playing and you can find me in water swimming or learning to kayak!
Lizzie
Hi! I am Lizzie Miller. I am a Play and Creative Arts Therapist with PTUK. I am also a Parent Child Attachment Play Practitioner.
I currently work as a Play Therapist for a Bereavement charity where I offer play therapy for siblings who have experienced the death of a baby. I have a degree in Early Childhood Studies and a range of experience working with children in schools and other settings.
I love this work because I have the privilege of helping children and families feel seen and heard during some of the most challenging times of their life, giving them a space to process difficult experiences and emotions.
I enjoy playing and you can find me outside walking my dog or doing a bit of something arty!
FAQ
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Play and creativity has so many known benefits for children and young people. Play is their natural way of communicating, “Play is their language and toys are their words” ( quote?) In play therapy children are given time and a safe space to explore experiences and emotions. A play therapist will play alongside and with the child to help deepen their process and explore what comes up in their play.
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Play therapy can work for any child as it is tailored to whatever that child or young person brings to each session. Children who benefit from this support may be experiencing adverse life circumstances such as the loss of a family member, divorce, or have a parent who is abusing drugs and alcohol or in prison. Play therapy can also help children who have a diagnosis of Autism or ADHD.
We love to work with and support all children whether they are withdrawn, quiet and struggling socially or whether their behaviour is challenging in the school environment or at home. Play therapy creates a safe and consistent environment for all children to explore their emotions and experiences.
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Children come each week for a session and each week the same simple play therapy tool kit will be available to them, art, sand, clay, puppets and musical instruments. The child is able to choose what to do each session with materials in the room. There are only a few rules in the room and everything the child does is confidential. The play therapist will watch, listen and reflect back to the child and will play with them to explore their experiences, emotions and meanings within the play.
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Play therapy is tailored to each child’s needs. However, we work with children for a minimum of 15 sessions to enable them to build a relationship with the therapist, have time to do some deeper work and time to bring the sessions to an end well.
Sometimes the sessions will end sooner due to unforeseen circumstances and other times the therapist may recommend that the child continue to receive the support for longer.
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A session lasts for a total of 45 mins, slightly less for a younger child.
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Many play therapists have a background in another profession and so may hold a number of qualifications. In order to qualify as a Certified Play therapist they must undertake training to diploma level (Level 7). All Play therapists are required to be registered by a professional body such as PTUK, BAPT or the BACP.
All Living Well Play Therapists can be found on the PTUK register and have completed certain professional requirements in order to remain on this register. These include having an up-to-date DBS check, safeguarding training, and meeting CPD requirements.
Play therapists often undertake additional training to work with parents/carers. Please see each individual play therapist's bio for more information on their individual qualifications.
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Play therapists use a number of different ways to measure the effectiveness of the therapeutic work. Before the sessions the parent/carer, teacher and child will be asked to complete Goodmans Strengths Difficulties Questionnaire to assess the challenges the child may face. These are then completed at the end of the sessions to compare and evaluate the impact. Parents and teachers are also asked for possible outcomes which are then assessed at the end of the sessions. Children are also asked for their views at the beginning and the end of the sessions as anecdotal evidence.
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Children will be collected from their classroom by the play therapist or brought by the parent/carer or teacher to the room. The child will attend the sessions by themselves. If a child is particularly nervous or unsure about the sessions then it is possible for an adult to come into the beginning of their first session to see the space and reassure the child. However every effort is made by the therapist to create a warm, safe and secure environment so that children are able to confidently attend their weekly sessions.
If you are interested in working with your child to build, strengthen and support your relationship with them then please see our information on PCAP and Filial Play Sessions.
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“Play is our brains favourite way of learning”