Educational Assessment & Special Needs Team

Jess Birchall
Special Educational Needs Consultant

  • Jess is a leading Autism consultant in South West London with over 10 years’ experience. Specialising in coaching a variety of specific learning difficulties across both Primary and Secondary settings, Jess is also an integral resource in supporting teachers in facilitating continuous learning among their students. With over a decade of experience working with specific learning difficulties, her teaching style focuses strongly on engaging the students, building communication skills and working closely with parents to implement a tailored plan. Becoming Head of Autistic Spectrum Disorder and Head of Sixth Form at a specialist school for Autism, Jess prides herself on delivering exceptional support for both parents and students, guiding you every step of the way.

    You can find more information about Jess and the Autism team at www.londonautismservice.com

  • Jess is available Wednesday's 10am-12:30pm

Dr. Muireann McSwiney
Educational Psychologist

  • Muireann completed her doctorate at the University of Southampton before moving to London where she has worked in CAMHS and local authorities, as well as independent schools and the private sector. Her experience thus far has included engaging in direct therapeutic and assessment work with children and families, as well as managing and coordinating mental health service development and delivery of school-, college- and community-based wellbeing interventions, working with key stakeholders throughout to ensure the highest quality of intervention. Muireann has managed teams, including in the NHS where she managed a group of mental health practitioners delivering guided self-help to clients. Muireann’s work in local authority settings has afforded her in-depth knowledge of SEN-related legislation and she has been the lead practitioner for Education, Health and Care assessments, including providing psychological advice for the purposes of SEND judicial review. Muireann has developed specialist skills in assessing specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia and dyscalculia. Muireann adopts a person-centred, collaborative approach with clients and aims to make each client’s experience a positive one, characterised by warmth and professionalism. Muireann draws upon a range of tools and approaches in her work including consultation, solution-focused brief therapy, coaching psychology, standardised assessments such as the WISC-V and the WAIS-IV. Muireann's work has largely consisted of working as part of a multidisciplinary team which has granted her insight into a wide range of systemic and organisational factors. Muireann is passionate about psychology and supporting people and organisations to use psychology to bring about meaningful, positive solutions and change. Muireann is registered with the Health and Care Professions Council.

Dr Kirsty Newbury
Child & Educational Psychologist

  • Children and Young People

    Kirsty is an approachable, thoughtful and empathetic Child and Educational Psychologist, who has experience of working therapeutically with children, young people, parents and families in a number of settings including the NHS, schools and private practice.

    Central to Kirsty’s way of working is taking time to listen to and understand clients, so that she can establish rapport and respond with a therapeutic approach, which is tailored to their specific needs. Additionally, Kirsty is qualified as a Family Systemic Practitioner and she believes in working collaboratively with families to promote emotional well-being for children and young people.

    Kirsty currently works with children and young people experiencing social, emotional and mental health needs, special educational needs and neurodiverse clients such as those who have been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and/or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Kirsty draws from various psychological approaches such a cognitive behavioural therapy, family therapy, art therapy, narrative therapy, psychodynamic approaches and mindfulness.

  • Kirsty is available on Wednesdays 9-5pm

Dr Mollie Higgins
Child & Educational Psychologist

  • Children

    Mollie is a HCPC registered Child and Educational Psychologist. After working at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust supporting children with complex emotional needs, Mollie was inspired to return to the Tavistock to complete her professional doctorate. Mollie has worked in a range of schools, including primary, secondary and specialist settings, as well as having experience working in CAMHS and Local Authorities. Mollie supports children and young people with a range of needs including learning needs, social, emotional and mental health needs and neurodevelopmental conditions. Mollie has undertaken research with autistic young people who struggle to attend school and is passionate about participatory approaches that ensure the voices of young people are heard. Mollie is skilled in supporting individuals with social communication differences such as autism, using a neurodiversity-affirming approach and provides support around understanding their diagnosis, exploring thinking patterns and identifying their unique profile of strengths and needs. In addition, Mollie is passionate about using a systemic approach to support children and young people experiencing school attendance difficulties. Mollie is guided by principles of attachment theory, psychodynamic theory, personal construct psychology and systemic approaches. She utilises a range of approaches in her work with children and young people, including cognitive behavioural, narrative, mindfulness-based and play-based approaches. Mollie is skilled in facilitating consultations with the systems around children and young people and uses psychology to make sense of children’s behaviour, helping to shift narratives and promote positive outcomes.

  • Mollie is available Mondays 5:15pm - 8pm & Saturdays 9am-11:45pm

Dr. Rebecca Rowley
Child Clinical Psychologist

  • Dr Rebecca Rowley is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist, registered with the Health and Care Professions Council and Chartered with the British Psychological Society. Rebecca has over 20 years of experience working within the NHS and private sector, including working within Community Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, inpatient Eating Disorder Services, Looked After Children Services and, most recently, as Therapy Lead at a National Tier 4 inpatient Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service within Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust.

    Rebecca has been trained to work with clients of all ages but has a special interest in working with children, adolescents and their families. She works in an integrative way drawing upon cognitive behavioural therapy, narrative therapy, solution-focussed, systemic, attachment and mentalisation-based approaches. She is collaborative, creative and playful in her approach to engaging and working with children.

    She offers assessment and therapy for a range of difficulties including anxiety, low mood and depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, dysregulated emotions and behaviour, trauma, eating and feeding difficulties. Rebecca has specialist training in assessing and working with children with neurodevelopmental difficulties, such as Autism and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder as well as children who have difficulties with learning. She is passionate about supporting and advocating for the needs of children and young people who are neurodiverse and/or may be struggling to access school. She has extensive experience of supporting families through the Education, Health and Care Plan application process and working with schools and caregivers to understand children's learning and mental health needs.

    Rebecca has provided teaching for psychology and psychiatry training programmes and has a wealth of experience in offering consultation, training and supervision to a wide range of professionals from heath, education and social care sectors.

  • Rebecca will be working Monday 9am -2pm and Thursday 9am - 4pm.