My name is David Wootton. I am a privately-practicing, person-centred counsellor and founding practitioner at Keighley Counselling. With over seventeen years’ experience in private practice, I have successfully worked with many different people, who have brought issues relating to work-based stress, anxiety, loss of identity, chronic pain, bereavement, relationships and depression amongst many others. I work with people of all ages, including teenagers from age thirteen years old and upwards.
Additionally to managing Keighley Counselling, my extended experience is as counsellor and assessor for a local counselling service, former consultant therapist at a local secondary education academy as a staff counsellor, long-term counselling associate at a national employee assistance provider and former counsellor at a young person’s mental health service. During my training, I worked in a local university counselling service for two years. Prior to this I worked in industry, driving large vehicles; prior to that, I attempted an art degree, formerly spending the first eighteen years of my life living in Northern Ireland.
I am currently involved with a local mental health service as a team supervisor, whilst also working with another, expanding care service to provide team and organisational supervision. I also feel excited about co-founding a project to help provide and monitor the efficacy of talking therapies for chronic pain sufferers.
I have further involvement with and co-direct a local CIC called True North Collective, where I hold the role of Mental Health and Wellbeing Lead. The collective is concerned with celebrating the success potentials of men and women, through peer support, business support, networking, work-shopping and advice.
I passionately feel that everyone should have access to talking therapies. The difference that talking to a professional can make is vast, sometimes life-changing. I feel thrilled that Liza has joined Keighley Counselling as student psychotherapist, and in doing so enabled more availability to work with those who need short or longer term therapy. I continue to enjoy thriving in a beautiful part of England’s largest county, grateful for my gift of a family to share it with. I garden, cook, share a stage with music buddies, create things and occasionally fail at DIY tasks.