Flourish with Child Centred Play Therapy
Hi, my name is Sophie and I’m a Counsellor and Play Therapist based in Canterbury and the Eastern suburbs of Melbourne. I provide Child Centred Play Therapy services for children between the ages of 2 and 10, presenting with a variety of social, emotional and behavioural challenges and needs. I love supporting kids and their parents in this journey towards healing and thriving.
What is Play Therapy?
Child Centred Play Therapy is an evidence-based modality that harnesses play as children’s natural language and way of processing their experiences and feelings. Most children until the age of about ten, struggle to articulate abstract thoughts and feelings, and will naturally make sense of their world and try to gain mastery over confusing or challenging experiences symbolically through their play. In CCPT the child is given autonomy to play as they choose and the power to decide how the therapist will be involved.
Play is utilised as the child’s process of meaning-making, and agency and is combined with the presence of a skilled and empathic therapist, within a safe, predictable environment. Toys, which are considered the child’s words in their language of play, are carefully curated to allow for healthy expression of big feelings - anything from aggression and anger, confusion, delight, desires for power and control, fantasy play, to re-enactments of their lived experiences.
The key ingredient in this play-based therapy is the therapeutic relationship. It is this relationship that facilitates a sense of safety and permission for the child to express tricky feelings, and explore traumatic or difficult experiences all the while being completely accepted exactly as they are. As the therapist, I serve as a co-regulator, using my own nervous system and the mirror neuron system to help the child regulate, as well as being there to model emotional awareness, healthy boundaries and limit setting.
What are the advantages of play therapy?
Child Centred Play Therapy (CCPT) has over fifty years of evidence based research. It is often sought when children are experiencing social, emotional, relational, sensory and neuro-biological challenges. It can also be protective and enhance children’s self-esteem, the quality of their relationships, their ability to advocate for themselves, their openness to trying new things, and their capacity to negotiate and compromise with peers and siblings in play.
Child-led play-based therapy has many advantages over directive talking-based therapies for children under the age of 12, as it doesn’t require the child to be able to articulate abstract ideas and experiences. The challenges specific to the child are revealed through their play and through their way of engaging the therapist in play. As an example, rather than asking a child to talk about their feelings around the loss of a family pet, the child might, of their own volition, re-enact an experience of losing a family pet and the play therapist can then respond in the moment, validating the child's experience through checking and validating the feelings of particular characters in their play.
Therapeutic play therapy can also be used as an adjunct service to paediatric psychology and psychiatry, where a clinician might work with a more directive approach on particular strategies and work predominantly with the parents.
About Sophie
My name is Sophie Hollingworth (She/Her) and I am a Neurodivergent Counsellor, Child-Centred Play Therapist and mum. I am passionate about empowering children to discover their own strengths, resources, resilience, self-confidence, and self-respect. Equally, I love helping equip parents with the resources to support their child in this journey. In my practice I am trauma-informed and neuroaffirming, encouraging my young clients to believe in themselves, discover what they have to offer and the gifts that come with accepting themselves exactly as they are.
safe space big feelings emotional regulation social skills confidence healing safe space big feelings emotional regulation social skills confidence healing empowerment
safe space big feelings emotional regulation social skills confidence healing safe space big feelings emotional regulation social skills confidence healing empowerment
safe space big feelings emotional regulation social skills confidence healing safe space big feelings emotional regulation social skills confidence healing empowerment safe space big feelings emotional regulation social skills confidence healing safe space big feelings emotional regulation social skills confidence healing empowerment
How does Play Therapy work?
The play therapist is applying many of the same human-centred principles that you may be familiar with from adult talk-based therapies. The play therapist is giving the child their unconditional positive regard, accepting them exactly as they are, and providing reflective responses to what is coming up in the moment. Just like a therapist might notice an adult client tear up while talking about a loved one and reflect this back, encouraging the client to process their feelings, a child play therapist can wonder out loud if the teddy is angry as the child has it knock over toys and stomp around the room. During therapy play, the therapist might wonder out loud if the child is having a big feeling and draw the child’s attention to their own clenched fists or tight arms. Note the therapist is not labelling the feeling in a way such that they are telling the child how they are feeling. Instead, they are gently and consistently sharing their awareness of a change in affect and physiology, encouraging the child’s own awareness of their emotional world and of their internal physiology (interoception).
What is Play Therapy Suitable for?
Play Therapy can support children with a variety of social, emotional, neurological and behavioural challenges. Here are just some of the reasons children can be referred to play therapy…
trauma
hospitalisation and medical trauma
neurodivergent brains (Autism, ADHD, Dyspraxia, Tourette’s to name a few)
emotional dysregulation
attachment issues
anxiety
depression
developmental delays
social difficulties
limited play, challenges entering, maintaining and compromising with others in play
sibling rivalry and family dynamics
communication difficulties
selective mutism
low self-esteem
perfectionism
relationship challenges
bullying
disordered eating
family breakdown, divorce & separation
grief and loss
emotional, verbal, physical and sexual abuse
neglect
Anisha
“Sophie has that unique mixture of creativity, playfulness, groundedness and a genuine empathy for not just the children she works with but the parents as well. I always felt heard and seen when speaking with Sophie about our family and our wins and challenges during our time working with her. Our son grew in confidence and opened and blossomed in a way we had not seen before which allowed him to process some very big feelings and eventually return to school. Sophie truly practises in a child led way and values collaboration and connection.”
Juliette
“Sophie is such a warm person. She has played a really important part in supporting our son's transition to school and social skills. We found our time with Sophie insightful; we really valued regular parent reviews to learn about the themes emerging in our sons play. We have gained a lot of insight and feel confident to move forward with the knowledge and tools to support our son to continue to flourish. We highly recommend Sophie's services.”
What are the four stages of Play Therapy?
Play Therapists and researchers have identified discernible patterns in the therapeutic process of children’s play in therapy. The journey through the stages isn’t always linear, with some children cycling back through testing for protection, dependency and growth stages before mastery. The duration of each stage also varies greatly from child to child. Stages below as defined by Parson, Pidgeon, Mora, Anderson, Stagnitti & Mountain (2015).
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This initial stage involves the establishment of trust. The child becomes familiar with the room by exploring the environment, and the therapist begins to build a relationship with the child, consistently responding in a particular way.
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This is characterised by expression of the child’s needs. In this stage, the child must know that the therapist will accept them and the feelings that they share. The child may be tentative in sharing emotions. As trust grows, progress continues.
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This involves greater expression of needs. The child works through a number of emotional themes that are personally meaningful. The child may engage in regressive play or dramatic play and use fantasy play to disguise the content. The therapist continues to respond or participate in a particular way.
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Characterised by empowerment and closure. The nature of the play changes as the child gains mastery and greater emotional understanding. The play becomes more interactive and cooperative and shifts progressively further away from dependency towards mastery.
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This involves separation and cessation of the therapeutic relationship.
Figure from Norton, C. C., & Norton, B. E. (2002). Reaching children through play therapy: An experiential approach. White Apple Press
Parson, J., Pidgeon, K., & Mora, L., Anderson, J., Stagnitti, K. & Mountain, V. (2015). Play Therapy. In C.Noble & E. Day. (Eds.), Psychotherapy and Counselling: Reflections on Practice. Oxford University Press
FAQs
Do I need a referral?
Referrals are accepted but not required. Self-referred clients are always welcome.
How are parents/caregivers involved in the process?
Initially, you will meet the therapist for an intake session to discuss your child’s history and support requirements.
Parent Reviews will occur roughly every 5 - 6 weeks. This is where we can discuss progress in therapy and explore further ways you can support your child outside of the playroom.
Can your sessions be subsidised with a GP Mental healthcare plan?
Unfortunately not. I am registered with a handful of private health funds for counselling. Please reach out for further details regarding eligible insurance providers.
Do parents/caregivers join in for the play therapy sessions?
The parents/caregivers do not come into the room during the play therapy sessions. Sometimes children need their parents to help them transition into the play room. In those instances, we will work together to help the child feel safe and comfortable to be in the play room on their terms.
Can I use my NDIS funding for your services.
Yes. If you are self-managed or plan-managed, you will be able to use your NDIS funding for the sessions.
How many sessions will my child need?
This will be different for each child and factors such as individual temperament, presenting issues and challenges will all contribute.
The therapist and parents/caregivers will discuss progress during parent reviews, and together identify the child’s readiness to transition out of play therapy.
When it’s time to end, it’s important for a closure process to occur to honour the child and parents’ journey, acknowledge their hard work, consolidate gains made, and empower the child as they move onwards and upwards.
Do you ever travel to deliver sessions?
All sessions are delivered face to face in Canterbury, 30 minutes east of Melbourne CBD. There may be opportunities for School Outreach in future. I have some excellent colleagues and networks within play therapy Melbourne and play therapy Australia I can recommend.