The Gestalt Centre

The Gestalt Centre

At a glance

Causes

  • Mental health

Other details

Geographical remit: 
International

Objectives

The charity's objects ('Objects') are:

  • To provide education and training in gestalt therapy philosophy, theory and practice
  • To provide education and training in other psychological therapies and allied professions
  • To promote the mental health and wellbeing of the wider society through support, education and practical advice; and
  • To ensure the principles and practice of Gestalt are maintained in the pursuance of the above objects

Public benefit:

The Trustees have regard to Charity Commission guidance on public benefit and The Gestalt Centre’s objects and activities benefit the public in a number of ways.

Object 1  The provision of education and training in gestalt therapy philosophy, theory and practice.

Gestalt theory and methodology is a well-established approach in the field of psychological therapies. The theory and practice supports, encourages and provides training in effective communication and work with people experiencing psychological distress. It also has a theoretical base which helps students and graduates understand, appreciate and work effectively with cultural difference and diversity of all sorts.

Many of the students on our main training courses (psychotherapy and counselling) are professionals working in the fields of mental health, human relations and allied professions.

The increase in awareness, skills and understanding gained from the courses benefits users of services such as mental health teams, psychology departments, prison services, probation services, GP practices in the public sector and many mental health organisations such as MIND in the voluntary sector.

Object 2  The provision of education and training in other psychological therapies and allied professions.

The public benefit of this object is linked with the benefits stated above in that students on our main training courses and professional development courses and workshops increase their skills and capacity to work with those people who are in need of psychological help from professionals in various settings.

Providing some training in a range of psychological therapies improves the range of services available to the public.

Object 3 The promotion of the mental health and wellbeing of the wider society through support, education and practical advice.

It is increasingly clear through research that psychological distress and mental health difficulties are considerable in many societies. These difficulties affect people at many levels and much work place absence can be connected with various forms of psychological distress.

The benefit to members of the public of workshops and availability of individual therapeutic help can be very significant. The benefits can include a reduction of or ending of the experience of depression; dealing with and resolving trauma; exploring and helping changes in family relationships amongst many others.

There is also the benefit to members of the public of advice and guidance on aspects of mental health so that the appropriate service can be accessed.

The Low Cost Scheme run by the Centre (outlined above) contributes to the public benefit of this object.

Object 4 Ensuring the principles and practice of Gestalt are maintained in the pursuance of the above objects.

The benefit of this object with regard to the public is that the activities of the organisation are properly and appropriately validated, reviewed and overseen by external bodies in the professional field.

Activities

The significant activity that contributes to the above stated objectives is the Counselling and Psychotherapy training in Gestalt methods carried out at the Gestalt Centre’s premises at 15-23 St Pancras Way.  The Counselling training is to qualify students to obtain BACP (British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy) membership and the psychotherapy training to qualify students for an MA in Gestalt Psychotherapy awarded by the London Metropolitan University followed by the practitioner qualification entitling them to membership of the UKCP (United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy).

The Centre runs short courses and workshops for people who are in psychological distress, wish to explore, reflect and work on their psychological health and well-being.

These workshops are primarily facilitated using gestalt theory and methodology. The trainers and facilitators are available to work therapeutically with participants as well as give advice if needed.

The centre runs a ‘Low cost’ scheme which supports the provision of counselling for people who have limited resources and are in need of psychological help. We provide the premises and appropriate professional support for this service.

Our consulting rooms are used by qualified practitioners who work with members of the public and our training rooms are used by various organisations, including many charities for meetings, training sessions and workshops. The training rooms are offered at a reduced rate to charities.

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