Barbara Mitchels was admitted as a solicitor in 1975. She has worked with Local Authorities, Legal Advice Services, the Crown Prosecution Service, and in private practice.
She provides legal and therapy consultancy services for agencies and organisations in the UK and for government and non-governmental organisations abroad, including UNICEF.
Barbara has been a practising psychotherapist since 1989, and is Director of Watershed Counselling Service in Devon (www.watershedcounselling.co.uk). Watershed provides mediations, and integrative therapy for individuals, couples, families and groups, including specialist trauma treatments. Watershed works within the Ethical Framework of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP).
This unusual combination of experience led to Barbara writing and teaching a variety of topics relevant to counselling, psychotherapy and the law. She enjoys travelling to lecture and facilitate workshops (see the Workshops page). She has recently contributed evidence for the Royal Commission on Assisted Dying, and assisted the Crown Prosecution Service in revision of the Guidance on Therapy for Vulnerable Witnesses. Her publications include over twenty books on trauma, therapy, child law, child protection, and law for therapists. Recent articles include Assisted Suicide (Therapy Today: December 2009) and on Safeguarding Children and Vulnerable Adults (Therapy Today: November 2009). For a books list, please see the publications page on this website.
One of Barbara's other current roles is with the BACP Information Services Board, with responsiblity as Editor for the Information Sheets for practitioners, clients and researchers.
Barbara also enjoys working alongside Professor Tim Bond from Bristol University in writing legal resource materials and facilitating workshops. Their latest books in the BACP legal resource series are Mitchels, B. and Bond, T. (2010) Essential Law for Counsellors and Psychotherapists, London, Sage and also Bond, T. and Mitchels, B. (2008) Confidentiality and Record Keeping in Counselling and Psychotherapy, London, Sage. Their new book, Legal Issues Across Counselling and Psychotherapy Settings: A Guide for Practice, has just come out from Sage (see breaking news).
These comprehensive books simplify and explain the law necessary for therapists and topics covered include confidentiality, records, duty of care, professional negligence, contract, disability and discrimination, employers and employees, premises, employment, money tax, court claims and insurance.