Kaleidoscope: Mixed and Multi-Racial Heritage in Therapy 2025 Online Conference

Ailsa is an integrative psychotherapeutic counsellor living and working in Bristol. She works in both private practice and at BAME led and focussed organisation Nilaari. As a mixed white and Chinese Malay person, she has both professional and personal experience of the mixed experience.

Allen Scott, MBACP
Integrative Counsellor & Psychotherapist | 1Step-Beyond

Allen is an integrative counsellor specialising in complex mental health, including emotional dysregulation, EUPD, neurodivergence (Autism, ADHD), and suicidal ideation. His practice combines Person-Centred, DBT, psychodynamic, and CBT approaches to support some of the most vulnerable adults in society.

Of mixed heritage himself, Allen brings personal and clinical insight to work with identity, belonging, and intergenerational trauma. He supports clients navigating cultural invisibility, relational conflict, and the emotional complexities of not fitting neatly into social categories.

Prior to therapy, Allen spent 30 years in senior leadership across the tech sector. His work today is grounded in compassion, cultural responsiveness, and a commitment to helping clients move from survival to resilience and self-agency.

Amal Wartalska is a BACP Accredited Integrative Counsellor and Psychotherapist, an EMDR Europe and UK Accredited EMDR Practitioner and a member of The Black African and Asian Therapy Network (BAATN).
Her professional experience includes working in primary care, addiction field, charity sector, young people education system and private practice. She has an extensive experience of working with clients from marginalised groups. Some of the themes of her work include intersectional experiences of social oppression, identity and mixed heritage experience. Within her integrative model of practice, she uses EMDR to process all types of trauma, including socially inflicted trauma.

Claudia Coussins (she/her), is an integrative psychotherapist (MBACP, UKCP, BAATN) and researcher. Claudia provides private integrative psychotherapy and therapeutic coaching, works for a low-cost community therapy organisation (Spiral Holistic Therapy), and conducts ‘system change’ work (research, teaching and facilitation) with mental health and wellbeing organisations and community groups. Claudia is currently curating a new course entitled Black feminism, womanism: therapeutic perspectives (https://www.feministtherapynetwork.org/post/reflections-on-black-feminism-womanism-and-therapy)

Originally from South Africa, I am married and have two beautiful daughters, Keziah (19) and Gabrielle (16) years old. My husband is White British and I have lived in the UK for over 24 years. I have both national and international academic and professional qualifications in Social Work, Criminology, Sociology and Education. These qualifications led to employment in Child Protection, Youth Offending Service, National Probation Service and Higher Education. My research interests include a specialist focus on Race, Racism, Social Work, and Educational Inequalities. I am a registered social worker with Social Work England and the British Association for Social Workers (BASW). I also hold external strategic leadership positions that include being the UK Council representative of the Commonwealth Organisation of Social Work, BASW England Committee Member, BASW International Committee Member, and NSPCC Policy Co-Opted Governance Committee Member.

Dr Rhianna Garrett is a researcher and activist at Loughborough University in the field of racial geographies, specialising in global multiethnic socio-political identities. As a Chinese British multiethnic woman, Dr Garrett approaches the topic of mixedness from a lived experience perspective and aims to cultivate a shared kinship between other multiethnic people all over the world. She has published several articles on multiethnic experiences in higher education, is currently the Global Coordinator for the Critical Mixed Race Studies Association executive board and holds a position as Research Fellow at Nottingham Trent University, where she explores intersectional multiethnic experiences of career progression and employment. She has also collaborated with several multiethnic organisations across the world, including Mixedracefaces and People in Harmony. Dr Garrett aims to ensure multiethnic identities are being considered in policy, scholarship, and practice, and make multiethnic matters, matter.

Yvon is of Jamaican, Irish and English heritage. Her parents’ interracial marriage was seen as problematic for both families and wider society in 1962. The relationship did not survive. Both parents were powerless to prevent her from being taken into care, where she stayed for 18 years. Tenacity has been her superpower.

Yvon is now living and working in Bristol as a psychodynamic counsellor. After gaining her PhD in trauma and resilience in care experienced adults she returned to counselling and built an intersectional practice. Yvon has been at the forefront of the conversation about working with mixed and multiracial heritage clients in the UK since 2019. She creates multimedia resources for understanding and working with the impact of racism and colourism for people of colour. The idea for the Kaleidoscope conference was born out of frustration with the lack of specialised training and educational materials for practitioners working with mixed and multiracial heritage clients. In her spare time, she loves going for long walks, cooking, creating art, family and friend’s time.

I am of dual heritage (Nigerian/English) raised in a mixed ethnic stepfamily (English/Trinidadian) in Manchester. My first career was in the cultural industries, first as a Research Assistant in the British Museum (ethnography) then on to the then Commonwealth Institute (now the Design Museum) where I developed curatorial and managerial skills and knowledge. In the early 1990s I decided to train as a family therapist and studied at Kensington Consultation Centre (now closed) where I did my foundation and intermediate training then completed my MSc at the Tavistock Centre. After a working in the voluntary sector I moved to a CAMHS community team and then on to the Tavistock in 2005. Here, I worked in a multi-disciplinary team and took on the role of Course Lead for the systemic courses. Based upon my own experience I undertook research into mixed ethnic step families and how they navigated different cultures within families and gained my doctorate in 2017. Since leaving the Tavistock Centre I work as an independent clinician and supervisor.

I have over 20 years of experience working with Adult, Children, and Families in the charity, public, and private sectors. I am a qualified social worker for 13 years in a variety of roles, from in Child Protection, Children with Disabilities and working for the Family Court, representing the view of the child during proceedings.

I specialise in Safeguarding, Contextual Safeguarding, Cultural Awareness,, Anti racism and Suicide Prevention, Domestic Abuse and Mental Health First Aid training.

As a member of the British Association of Social Workers and participant in a Thematic Mental Health Group that continues to drive and support positive change in the field. I am dedicated to being a change maker, with the hope to create a more equitable and compassionate society for all.

Jamilatu Andersson, a trainee transpersonal transcultural integrative psychotherapist interested in mixed-race identity integration, ancestral healing, and creative imagination interventions, will lead this session. Her work, rooted in her Nigerian and Filipino heritage, aims to create inclusive spaces for identity exploration. She has experience delivering workshops and facilitating group spaces focusing on racialised identity and self-integration.

Janine Miller is a psychotherapist of mixed origins, originally from South Africa, who has lived in the UK and is now based in Sweden. With over a decade of experience supporting people through complex trauma, she brings a deep understanding of how identity, belonging, and the body intersect. Trained in the UK, her work is grounded in somatic and relational approaches, helping clients connect with their bodily experiences to navigate the complexities of who they are. Passionate about collective healing, she creates spaces for reflection, embodiment, and deep self-understanding.

Kimberley Fuller is a Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Clinical Supervisor with a special interest in racialised trauma and its impact on children and young people. Her work has always focused on supporting children impacted by trauma, whether through direct support within the home for children subject to Child in Need or Child Protection plans or working with children in care and those who have been adopted. She has worked extensively across both the voluntary and statutory sectors. Advocating for all children and families to receive the right support to meet their individual needs Kimberley began her career in homelessness support before becoming a young women’s gendered violence advocate. While training as a psychotherapist, she continued working in support roles, assisting children and young people affected by serious youth violence. She later managed a therapeutic service for adolescents within Bristol City Council. Beyond her clinical work, Kimberley is a trustee for Growing Futures, a grassroots organisation in Bristol that supports children and families. She also serves as Co-Deputy Chair of the Independent Scrutiny Board for Tackling Disproportionality in Avon and Somerset’s Criminal Justice System, advocating for systemic change and equity. Kimberley co-founded Sisu Therapeutic Services alongside three colleagues to provide accessible, long-term therapy for children, young people, adults, and families within Bristol and the surrounding areas.

Leo is a QPOC (Queer Person of Colour) psychotherapist with extensive experience supporting adolescents and adults across the lifespan. Grounded in an integrative and intersectional approach, he works with individuals from diverse backgrounds, with a particular focus on minoritised populations. His practice is affirmative, socially conscious, and deeply informed by the principles of social justice. Committed to fostering an inclusive and decolonial therapeutic space, Leo empowers individuals to explore their identities, experiences, and challenges with authenticity and without fear of judgement.

Lisa Broni is a qualified and experienced counsellor and trainer working in both private practice and for a charity specialising in trauma, based in London, UK. Lisa has also worked as a tutor for several years teaching counselling courses at various levels.

Lisa is a registered member of the British Association For Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and the Black African and Asian Therapy Network (BAATN). Lisa holds a BACP accredited Diploma in Counselling and a BA (Hons) degree in Counselling & Psychotherapy.

Lisa has a special interest in trauma and intergenerational trauma, depression, and anxiety and works from a person-centred approach

Lydia Puricelli (aka Conscious Culture Coach) is an Anti-racist integrative transpersonal trainee psychotherapist, coach, social justice activist, speaker, writer, author and trainer.

She focuses on the unique challenges Black & People of Colour as well as other marginalised groups face in training institutions and the workplace. She also specializes in treating the Mental Health and Wellbeing of B&POC and LGBTQIA+ communities through Frontline therapy and Opening Doors London. Where she works as counsellor and advisor.

Lydia is one of the Master graduates under Dr. Isha McKenzie-Mavinga delivering anti-racist training to therapists through BAATN on “The challenge of racism in therapy’. She also chairs the Student of Color and Allies Network at the Centre of Counselling and Psychotherapy Education where she works support students of colour in their training and challenge the institution on their oppressive teaching practices and curriculum.

Lydia has led and launched employee affinity networks for marginalised gro

Mohini is of Nigerian and Indian heritage, born in Britain and holds a BSc in Mathematics and Psychology, a qualified advanced Hatha Yoga Teacher and a UKCP Registered Attachment-Based Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist. With over a decade of experience in the financial sector, Mohini brings nuanced understanding of structural and interpersonal dynamics to their therapeutic work. Mohini facilitates Race and Culture Seminars to psychotherapy trainees, creating a safe space for critical discussions on power, privilege, and belonging. Through her teachings and clinical practice, Mohini encourages deep reflection and meaningful dialogue through mind-body awareness supporting both personal and collective growth.

Myriam Ferreira is a counsellor, psychotherapist, and wellness coach with over ten years of experience supporting clients and training future practitioners through culturally sensitive and holistic approaches to therapy. Originally from French Guiana and now based in England, she draws on her Black, Caribbean, and Chinese heritage to explore themes of identity, belonging, and resilience in her work. She integrates traditional therapeutic practice with nature-based healing, recognising the importance of connection—to oneself, to cultural heritage, and to the natural world—in fostering wellbeing.

Namalee Bolle is a London based transpersonal transcultural integrative psychotherapist, multidisciplinary artist and Guardian award winning writer. She is British born of Sri-Lankan and Dutch-Jewish heritage and her work explores themes of multicultural identity, intergenerational trauma and post-traumatic thriving. Her poem Dear White Therapists is published in the recent book Therapy In Colour: Intersectional Anti-Racist and Intercultural Approaches by Therapists of Colour and she has been published in The London Evening Standard and Vogue. Her first book ‘The Mixed + Multiracial Guide To Wellbeing: Navigating Family + Identity + Healing’ for Jessica Kingsley publishing comes out in November 2025.

I’m a counsellor, supervisor, and leader in the counselling world. I’m also a mum to mixed children, a wife to a white man, a grandchild of blacks grandparents, and a human who happens not to be perceived as white or black.

My relationship with identity has been a journey. I journeyed from my younger self fiercely & proudly calling myself “half-caste”—owning the term as a rebellious act to challenge its negative roots—to identifying as a black woman at the height of the George Floyd outpouring. In that moment, it felt like the only way to be allowed to grieve as deeply as I did was to disregard my white heritage.
But now, I find myself returning to my once proud snd heavily defended position of being mixed—not as something that reduces me, but as my authentic self, this empowers me, and in doing so, hopefully empowers others.

Rema Aribon is a registered member of the BACP with a background in
counselling, psychology and community work. As an ethnically diverse counsellor,
Rema brings a deep cultural responsiveness to her practice, supporting
individuals from underrepresented and underserved communities through an
integrative approach. Currently, Rema serves as Lead Counsellor at University of South Wales for TalkingZone and Psychotherapist at her private practice, Belonging Counselling. She also is a trustee for a local organisation Young Muslim and Community Organisation, a school governor and supports decolonising work for a task and finish group for People’s Collection Wales. In recognition of her work with children and young people from displaced, refugee and asylum seeker backgrounds she was awarded Silver for Outstanding Impact in Education in 2023 for her work with children and young people. Committed to continuous professional development, Rema is dedicated to providing inclusive, culturally responsive mental health support that brings meaningful and sustainable change within communities.

Ruth Abban is an Integrative Psychotherapist, who works in private practice with young people and adults via an intersectional, intercultural and Systemic lens. She has several years of clinical experience in children and young people’s charities and counselling organisations, alongside having worked in management. She also works as a Clinical Supervisor, and provides Racial Equity consultancy for various organisations.

Ruth works with a wide range of areas, including her specialisms of Adultification Bias, Racial Identity and Racial Trauma. She is one of the co-creators of a leading global service called “The Black Woman’s Rest Revolution”, helping Black women to heal from racial trauma and workplace abuse.

Steven is a dedicated leader in the care and education sectors, with over 18 years of lived and professional experience inspiring change for children in and out of care. Winner of the prestigious Global Inclusion Award for SEMH from the International Forums of Inclusion Practitioners (IFIP), he is recognised for his commitment to promoting inclusion and empowering the professionals who support vulnerable young people.

Through Elements Support CIC and Elements Education and Training, Steven leads innovative projects tailored for teachers, social workers, foster and kinship carers, and residential care teams. His initiatives, including The Power of One, Connection Before Correction, and Mixed Faces in Mixed Places, champion fresh, practical approaches to creating meaningful connections and driving positive change.

I am a MSc qualified and UKCP accredited person-centred psychotherapist. I have been working with clients since 2020 and opened my own private practice in 2023.

As a therapist, I believe that every individual is the expert in their own life. I have a particular passion for supporting clients from diverse and marginalised backgrounds, helping them explore challenges related to identity, belonging, and self-worth.

As I researcher, in my MSc final year small scale research project I set out to research the experiences of mixed-race therapists, who adopt person-centred philosophy, and how they perceive their mixed-race identity, and associated conditions of worth, may impact their therapeutic relationships with clients.

Victoria (or Taiwo) is a Christian psychotherapist with a deep understanding of religious and black culture shame. She now helps people heal their relationship with God, themselves, and others so they can let go of shame, guilt, and disconnection.