Dr Emma Harris
Clinical Psychologist
All about Emma....
What is your education and work history?
- Doctorate in Clinical Psychology.
- Masters degree in Neuropsychology.
- I have worked in the NHS for more than 12 years.
- I have specialised in autism and I have worked in several different NHS autism assessment and therapy teams for early years children, school-aged children, and young people.
- Recently started work at Centre for Autism at the University of Reading, where I am developing an autism wellbeing hub for autistic children and their families.
Have you undertaken any additional training?
- I am trained in a range of autism assessment tools such as the ADOS-2 (Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-2nd Edition) and ADI-R (Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised).
- I frequently attend training courses to ensure my knowledge of autism is up-to-date and my practice is informed by recent research. This includes training on topics such as: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for autistic young people, Autism & Girls, Gender Identity & Autism, Restricted Eating in Autism, Autism & ADHD, and Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for autistic young people.
What do you do at Every Mind?
- I provide post-diagnostic and therapeutic support.
- My role involves meeting with families to find out more about what is going well and what has been more challenging.
- I try to understand the situation and support others with making changes that are important to them.
- Sometimes I work directly with young people (e.g. helping them to understand themselves and work towards their goals)
- Sometimes I work with parents/carers to help them with understanding neurodiversity.
- Quite often my therapeutic work involves a mixture of both parent and individual work.
What made you chose to work with neurodivergent children and young people?
- My favourite part of working with neurodivergent children and young people is easily how much I have learnt about neurodiversity from children and young people themselves.
- I love that I am always learning new things about autism from autistic individuals.
- This fits well with my way of working and I think it is essential to recognise the expertise people have about themselves.
- It is a privilege to get to know the young people and families that I work with.
What is important to know about how you work with neurodivergent young people?
- I try to work as flexibly as possible to make sure you feel comfortable, whether that is how you like to communicate with others or taking into account sensory needs.
- I’m happy for you to tell me about the best way for us to work together.
- I always try and work in a neuroaffirmative way.
- I think the challenges neurodivergent people face are often not related to being neurodivergent, the challenging part is living in a world which is largely designed for neurotypical people. Therefore, I never try to focus on ‘changing people’, and think it is more helpful to focus on understanding yourself and how you tend to respond in different situations, as well as helping the people in your life understand what you are good at, and the times when you might need some help.
What do you do outside of work?
- I love to spend time with my rescue cat.
- Ehen I am feeling energetic I also enjoy running.
What is unique about you?
- I have an excellent memory, but not always for useful information.
- If you need reminders of old song lyrics or Harry Potter facts, then I am happy to help!
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Testimonials
What People Are Saying
Dad of 8 year old girl
We all loved coming to Every Mind, my son importantly. He struggles to go to new places because of anxiety but having the animals, toys and such a calming environment really helped to settle him in. Every person treated him like a human being and took the time to get to know him. This was wonderful to see as he seemed so happy and relaxed when at the clinic.
Mum of 7 year old girl
We are so pleased to have found such an amazing clinic. We have been made to feel comfortable by everyone we have met and more importantly, so has our daughter. She’s been at ease undertaking the assessments because not only are the clinicians and reception staff so friendly, but the environment really caters to her needs and helped her to feel relaxed and engaged.
Dad of 10 year old girl
The diagnostic reports reflect a child we recognise; which means that in the relatively short time each clinician spent with her, they were able to see her strengths and challenges and tailor a report that didn’t just make us feel that she was a number in a system. Thank you to everyone at every mind for helping the beginning of this journey feel less overwhelming and daunting for us as parents. And thank you for seeing our child as the wonderful individual we know her to be.
Mum of 6 year old girl
We had such a fantastic experience with every mind. It was very clear from the outset that you meet the nice guidelines and what you were able to offer which is so important for a parent if they're paying to get a diagnosis.