Clare Merchant, BACP

Clare Merchant is a counsellor who uses a person-centred way of working. She focuses on listening, showing compassion and helping people find their own solutions in sessions. Clare holds BACP accreditation, and brings three years of experience to her practice.

Her approach starts with understanding what matters to each person. Clare uses worksheets and open discussion to help people clarify what they want to change. She keeps language plain and practical so conversations stay down to earth.

Clare supports people with a wide range of issues including stress, anxiety and low self-esteem. She also helps those coping with grief, relationship strain, life changes and career worries. Midlife concerns are part of the topics she addresses, alongside addictions and trauma-related difficulties.

Additional areas Clare can work through include parenting challenges, sleep problems and compassion fatigue. She also addresses more specific stresses such as caregiver strain, fertility worries and body image concerns. Sessions are shaped around the priorities a person brings to the room.

In practice Clare collaborates on goals and practical steps. She will suggest worksheets and reflective tasks when helpful, and discuss small changes that fit into everyday life. People who prefer a straightforward, person-focused style often find this approach useful.

Person-centred support adapted for online working

Clare uses a client-centred approach that focuses on listening and reflecting back what matters to each person. This style helps where someone needs to make sense of stress, anxiety, relationship strain or life transitions by talking things through and identifying practical next steps.

She also brings a straightforward, task-oriented element to sessions by offering worksheets and guided discussion. These tools can help break down larger problems like grief, career change or coping with midlife concerns into manageable steps that feel easier to tackle.

Finding the right way of working is part of the therapy process. Clare will work together with each person to identify goals and choose approaches that fit their needs and preferences. That collaborative planning can involve trying different tasks or pacing sessions differently until the best fit is found.

If you are considering online therapy, please check which session formats are currently offered before booking, as the profile does not list specific options. Online work can make it easier to fit counselling into busy days, reduce travel time and allow for shorter check-ins when needed. Registered or accredited professionals and therapists commonly use a mix of discussion and practical worksheets to make online sessions productive and focused.