I am writing this coming to the end of my year 1 placement at bMindful Psychology having worked here from January to May. As a trainee educational psychologist at the University of Manchester, reflection is an important part of what I do. So, writing this blog is the perfect opportunity to reflect on what bMindful has given me and how it has supported me on my learning journey.
Colleagues
The huge range of professionals who work at bMindful are passionate about what they do. Because of this they have been generous when sharing their time and skills with me and no question I’ve asked has ever been too silly or too basic. They have made me feel supported and skilled and encouraged me to stretch myself and push my thinking. They are a genuinely lovely group of people who put children, young people, and the families and staff who support them at the heart of what they do.
Opportunities
Previously I have worked for local authority related services, so I think bMindful has provided me with some quite different opportunities. These have included multi-disciplinary meetings, shadowing and receiving training from clinical and educational psychologists, drawing on the skills and knowledge of colleagues such as art therapists and speech and language therapists. Working with such a range of colleagues has been a unique and hugely valuable experience that has added to my knowledge and my practice. In addition, the settings that I have worked in have ranged from specialist SEN provisions, mainstream schools, care home schools and education other than in school provision across a wide age range. I really appreciate my supervisor’s careful planning that has provided me with this breadth of experience.
Supervision
Supervision has been the glue that has cemented my experiences at bMindful. My supervision has been kind, patient and skilled. I have always felt that no matter what was going on in a busy day my supervision time has always been a priority. I have been scaffolded to think more deeply, more inventively, more widely, consider alternatives and explain my thinking. When I’ve left supervision, I feel like I have been gently supported to knit my tangled thoughts into a coherent shape that can be used to help the children and young people, families, and settings we work with.
So, my takeaways from my placement at bMindful? Well, it was much too short! I still haven’t figured out how to use the coffee machine! More importantly, I know that I haven’t yet experienced all the positive opportunities that bMindful has to offer. I would return here like a shot because of the range of work and because of the amazing team of knowledgeable and supportive colleagues.