Children and young people counselling in Coventry
Helping children and teenagers experiencing anxiety, confidence issues, school stress and emotional difficulties.
Book an initial consultation
✅ BACP Registered Counsellor
✅ Experience Supporting Young People in Schools
✅ Person-Centred Approach
✅ Coventry & West Midlands
Children and Young People Counselling
Do you need support for your child or teenagers Mental Health?
Is your young one experiencing some of the following mental health issues?
- Feeling anxious, worried or overwhelmed
- Struggling with low mood or confidence
- Finding it difficult to manage emotions
- Experiencing friendship or relationship difficulties
- Finding school stressful or challenging
- Coping with family separation, loss or change
- Feeling isolated, misunderstood or under pressure
- Struggling to express thoughts and feelings verbally
- Experiencing behavioural or emotional difficulties
Experience and Approach
Martyn Blair qualified as a counsellor in 2008. In addition has worked in primary schools therapeutically for 10 years.
Martyn understands some of the challenges young people can face both emotionally and socially.
I aim to provide a consistent, supportive relationship where children and adolescents can feel safe enough to explore difficult feelings, develop emotional resilience and feel less alone in what they are experiencing.
Our bodies give us an indication of the connection with our feelings. Drawing it out on a blank body is just one of the exercises that may take place
Get in touch
Call me for an informal chat, please leave a message and I will get back to you
Watsapp me (Green button bottom right)
How can counselling help?
Develop confidence and self-esteem
Better understand emotions and reactions
Build resilience and coping strategies
Improve communication and relationships
Feel more secure and emotionally supported
Develop greater self-awareness and self-acceptance
If you are considering counselling for your child or teenager and would like to discuss whether support may be helpful, you are welcome to get in touch with Martyn Blair for an initial conversation
Where is Martyn Blair Counselling based?
Martyn Blair sees clients from Coventry, Nuneaton, Atherstone, West Midlands and Warwickshire, face to face at his base in the North of Coventry.
Clients can be seen online nationally.
Is Children's and Adolescent Counselling different
There are some important differences when working with children and young people, including developmental age, an ability to work creatively and legal requirements.
Martyn Blair undertook an additional level 5 diploma in Childrens and Young People counselling at New Pathway Counselling college
Training and practice for Martyn Blair are informed by the BACP competence framework for working with children and young people, alongside ongoing professional development, supervision and safeguarding requirements.
For detailed information have a look at the BACP competency framework
What happens in the sessions
Depending on what feels most helpful, sessions may include:
- Talking therapy
- Sand tray work and miniatures
- Picture and emotion cards
- Storytelling
- Creative play and games
- Drawing and creative materials
Creative approaches can help children and young people communicate feelings that may be difficult to put into words. They can also support emotional awareness, confidence, resilience and self-expression in ways that feel natural and accessible.
Oh and I hope we also find time to have fun!
Will you work with Parents and Carers
I understand the importance of working sensitively and ethically with both young people and their families. Where appropriate, I work collaboratively with parents and carers to help them understand the counselling process, while always keeping the child’s wellbeing at the centre of the work.
I often would have a meeting before, during and at the end of the work. Leaning into your knowledge of the young person's history can be really helpful
Choosing a counsellor for your child is an important decision.
You may want to ask about my qualifications, experience, safeguarding arrangements, professional boundaries, confidentiality and how I work with parents and carers.
I am happy to answer these questions before you make any decision about counselling.
Would my child be safe in counselling?
This is a great question and I imagine one that may be hard to ask
If you have questions about how I work with children or about safeguarding, I am very happy to discuss these before you decide whether counselling is right for your child.
It is completely understandable to want to know how your child will be kept safe before choosing a counsellor. Safeguarding is not something that sits separately from counselling — it is part of responsible therapeutic practice.
I take the safety and wellbeing of children and young people seriously. My work is guided by professional ethical standards, safeguarding procedures and the BACP competencies for working therapeutically with children and young people.
How I keep children safe
Clear professional boundaries
I maintain clear and appropriate boundaries throughout counselling. Sessions are structured around the child’s wellbeing, with professional boundaries applying to communication, physical contact, confidentiality and contact outside sessions.
Safeguarding procedures
I have safeguarding procedures in place for working with children and young people. If I become concerned that a child may be at risk of significant harm, I cannot promise to keep this information confidential. I would normally discuss concerns with the young person and appropriate adults wherever it is safe and appropriate to do so.
Supervision and accountability
My work with children and young people is undertaken within professional supervision. Supervision provides an additional layer of accountability and allows me to reflect carefully on the therapeutic relationship, safeguarding, boundaries and any concerns arising from the work.
A safe and transparent environment
Parents and carers are given clear information about how counselling works before therapy begins. We discuss confidentiality, safeguarding, consent and the roles of the child, parent/carer and counsellor so that everyone understands what to expect.
The child's voice matters
Children and young people need to feel that counselling is a safe place where they can talk honestly. Their privacy and developing independence are respected, while also recognising that safeguarding responsibilities sometimes require information to be shared.
My aim is to create a professional environment where a young person can feel comfortable, respected and listened to, while parents and carers can have confidence that appropriate professional boundaries and safeguarding arrangements are in place.
What if my child doesnt speak?
It’s an easy answer actually – they don’t have to talk. There is no expectation from me for them to produce something, explain anything or talk before they are ready.
However, whilst accepting the above, my challenge is to find the way the child or young person may want to communicate.
A young person may find creative media and play a more natural way to communicate; we can explore this together to see if it is helpful. Sometimes communication may simply begin with being alongside each other, without needing to fill the silence.
The meaning comes from the child’s own experience of the story they create. A child can talk about the character, drawing, story or miniature world rather than directly about themselves. This can make difficult experiences feel less exposing.
I don't assume that a picture or sand tray contains a hidden psychological code that I need to interpret. For example, a child putting a figure in a particular place doesn't necessarily mean abandonment, anger or trauma. The meaning belongs to the child and can emerge through their own exploration.
The relationship with me, the therapist, is crucial in allowing the child to experience being listened to, accepted and taken seriously.
The sand tray work shown in the photograph is a good example. No words are required; the young person can communicate their story through the miniature world they create.
Taking the first step
Reaching out can feel difficult—but it doesn’t have to be a big commitment.
I offer a free, informal conversation so you can ask questions and get a sense of whether working together feels right for you.
You don’t have to figure everything out before getting in touch.
If this feels like something you’re ready for, you’re welcome to reach out.
Counselling Fees
50-minute session £55.00
Supervision Fees
60 minute session – £55.00
90 minute session – £82.50
Trauma informed training with Counselling Tutor Training