Psychologists in Manchester

Psychology in Greater Manchester is practised by a wide mix of independent clinicians and teams, from sole consultant clinical psychologists to multidisciplinary clinics. Many offer assessments for neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism and ADHD alongside psychological therapy, see clients in person in suburbs such as Chorlton, Didsbury and Prestwich, and also work online.

This selection looks at three psychology practices in and around Manchester: Gold Standard Psychological Assessments, PATH Northwest and Happiness in Mind.

Gold Standard Psychological Assessments provides specialist autism and ADHD assessments for children, young people and adults across Manchester and the surrounding areas. Its multidisciplinary, neuro-affirming approach brings together experienced UK clinicians, and its focus is on understanding the whole person, not simply reaching a diagnosis. In Greater Manchester, in-person assessments take place at Prestwich Holistic Centre, a welcoming and comfortable clinic, and in-person appointments sit alongside online appointments, so that different parts of the assessment can be completed in the way that suits each individual and family.

The work is formulation-led and neuro-affirming, looking beyond diagnostic criteria to understand each person’s individual profile, strengths, needs and experiences. Its pathways are aligned with NICE guidance, and the clinicians receive specialist training in identifying high-masking presentations of autism, ADHD and other neurodivergent profiles. A Consultant Psychiatrist is part of every autism, ADHD and combined assessment, so that complex presentations are considered from a medical perspective and differential diagnoses are explored.

The written report brings together the information gathered during the assessment, with diagnostic conclusions and individualised recommendations, and for families, assessments can be used as evidence for both school SEN support and Education, Health and Care Plan applications. A diagnosis is treated as the beginning of better support rather than the end of the process: through the Beyond Diagnosis service, the team can continue working with people after their assessment on turning recommendations into practical change. Manchester sits alongside Berkshire, Liverpool and London among its UK locations, with Malaga and Marbella in Spain.

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PATH Northwest is the independent practice of Dr Sarah Tomlinson, a consultant clinical psychologist who offers ADHD, autism, learning disability and cognitive assessments for adults. A registered clinical psychologist who completed her doctoral training in 2007, she worked for the NHS in learning disability and autism services before beginning to work privately in 2015. Her practice specialises in late diagnosis, in women and in people with complex needs and mental health difficulties.

Autism assessments draw on established tools including ADOS-2, ADI-R and DISCO, while ADHD assessments combine a clinical interview with the ACE. A full assessment typically takes between two and four weeks, from the initial interview and diagnostic sessions to a feedback session and a written report. The approach looks beyond diagnostic criteria to how neurodivergence shows up in a person’s life, with strategies for work, relationships, overwhelm and executive functioning. Each client works one to one with Dr Tomlinson, who takes on only as many assessments as she can complete thoroughly.

Beyond assessment, she offers therapy adapted for neurodivergent clients, drawing on EMDR, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Internal Family Systems, along with ADHD coaching-style sessions. She also provides consultation and training for care providers, families and employers, and is lead author of a Jessica Kingsley Publishers volume on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for people with intellectual disabilities. Sessions take place face to face in Chorlton and Preston, or online.

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Happiness in Mind is an independent clinical psychology and well-being practice in Manchester, founded in 2006 by Dr Aoiffe Kilcommons. A chartered consultant clinical psychologist, she studied psychology at the University of Manchester, completed her doctorate in clinical psychology at the University of Liverpool and spent fifteen years as an NHS psychologist before leaving in 2014 to focus on independent practice. She is an accredited therapist with the British Association of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies and the Association of Cognitive Analytic Therapists.

The practice’s clinical psychologists offer assessment and evidence-based therapies to individuals, couples and organisations. Therapies are tailored to each person and include Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Cognitive Analytic Therapy, mindfulness, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Compassion Focused Therapy and Schema Therapy. They work with stress, anxiety, panic attacks, phobias, obsessive-compulsive problems, depression, post-traumatic stress, trauma, relationship difficulties, loss and bereavement, eating and weight problems and addiction, in line with NICE guidance. All sessions are held in confidence, in a warm and caring environment.

Beyond individual therapy, Happiness in Mind offers clinical supervision for therapists and training and consultation for organisations. Its Resilience in Mind Centre grew out of Dr Kilcommons’s work with elite athletes, including the Mind of a Player programme delivered to several Premier League football clubs in 2012/13. Holistic options sit alongside the clinical work, among them Reiki, Emotional Freedom Techniques, Voice Dialogue and life coaching.