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Service Update – March 2025

It’s been a long time since our last blog post. We’ve been busy!

In 2024, 457 new clients accessed at least one of our services, and we continue to see an increase in referrals across most of our services.

We are now well into 2025, so we are taking this opportunity to look back and update you on what’s been happening in the service over the past year. We’ve been working hard to enhance the support we offer, expand our team, keep waiting lists to a minimum, and improve access to our services. Here’s a summary of what’s new:

👥 Welcoming New Team Members

We’re delighted to introduce some fantastic new members to our team, who bring with them a wealth of experience and passion for working in mental health and neurodiversity services.

• Dr. Louise Reid, Clinical Psychologist – A highly experienced Clinical Psychologist with a special interest in trauma and complex mental health needs, Louise is passionate about helping clients feel safe and empowered in their therapeutic journey.
• Dr Malcolm Kinnear, Consultant Psychiatrist – Recently elected to Fellowship of the Royal College, Malcolm has over two decades of experience in psychiatry. He has previously been Clinical Lead for NHS services in Fife and worked as a consultant for a specialist neurodiversity diagnostic service in Tayside. Malcolm is very popular with our clients and team members.
• Dr Rachel Pendrey, Clinical Psychologist – Rachel has over 20 years of experience working primarily within services for older adults. Rachel’s calm and supportive nature has already made a big impact on our service.
• Dr Alison Gibson, Counselling Psychologist – Alison has a broad spectrum of clinical experience and is trained in a range of therapeutic modalities. She has a special interest in women’s health and menopause and is a valued member of the team.
• Dr Karim Baxter, Clinical Psychologist – Karim started in post in October 2024 as our Service Lead for our Children and Young People’s Service. Having previously worked within CAMHS and NHS inpatient services for young people, Karim brings an array of skills and experience. He has made a cracking start to managing and developing our CYP service.

We’re so pleased to have our new team members on board and are confident that their skills and dedication will further enhance the care we provide.

🏡 A New Home for The Invertay Practice

Across the bridge, we moved The Invertay Practice from Monifieth to Dundee! Our new practice base is now located at 11 South Tay Street,which is just a stone’s throw from the Dundee Contemporary Arts Centre and the Dundee Rep Theatre. This new location offers:

✅ A calm and cosy environment, decorated and furnished to feel nurturing and welcoming, rather than clinical.
✅ Improved accessibility – we are a 7-minute walk from Dundee train station, on several bus routes, and within walking distance from Dundee University.
✅ Some larger therapy rooms designed to create a comfortable and safe space for sessions with children, young people and families, or small groups.

We love our new home and hope to be here for many years to come!

🏡 A New Clinic Room at The St Andrews Practice

We have also recently taken on a fourth clinic room in our St Andrews premises – a lovely big and bright space which can be used for children, families and groups. We enjoyed making it a colourful and welcoming space. We also re-decorated and improved some of our existing clinic rooms.

🌱 Children and Young People’s (CYP) Service

The last year has seen huge developments within our multi-disciplinary CYP Service. Appointing Dr Karim Baxter as our service lead and increasing our team size has allowed us to build our capacity for providing “gold standard”, NICE/SIGN adherent autism, ADHD and dyslexia assessments. We have seen a significant increase in the number of families accessing these assessments along with our post-diagnostic supports. We are very much enjoying working with local families and linking in with schools in both Tayside and Fife. Our CYP clinicians are passionate about providing a safe, sustainable, values aligned service that families can turn to when they need support to understand and advocate for the unique psychological and/or neurodevelopmental needs of their child.

💬 Client Feedback and Improvements

Your feedback is invaluable in helping us grow and improve – thank you for sharing your experiences and views with us. Over the last year, we have made the following improvements based on your feedback from our 2023 client feedback survey:

1. We launched our client portal to improve client experience of completing questionnaires, submitting prescription requests, and accessing personalised information relevant to treatment. We sought your feedback on the new system and were pleased to hear that the portal has been well received and has positively impacted on client experiences.
2. Waiting areas in both St Andrews and Dundee have been established, with seating, music, and reading materials.
3. We have applied to increase signage at our St Andrews site to make the entrance more visible and are awaiting approval from Fife Council.
4. We have increased staffing capacity for psychological therapy, reducing waiting times down to a maximum of 8 weeks over the past year, with an average wait of 3 weeks from referral to first appointment.
5. We have increased staffing capacity for psychiatry, allowing us to meet the demand for ADHD assessments and prescribing without delays.

Here is a selection of anonymised comments from our 2024 client feedback survey. Thank you again for taking the time to give us your views, they are very much valued.

“I was listened to and felt at ease discussing my difficulties. I also felt validated for the first time in my life, that there was a cause for my difficulties throughout life. I cannot fault the service provided; it is excellent.”

“I can’t praise the practice enough. Everyone we’ve had contact with has been kind, patient and professional. You have created such a safe and nurturing environment. Thank you.”

“I have met, and either had input for myself or my child, from several clinicians in the team. It would be really difficult to say who my favourite is because they are all excellent clinically and just as people who care. It is rare to find an entire team who are all so supportive and kind. The admin team are also extremely efficient and kind.”

“Great place to go. Nice decor calm rooms. Has really helped and I always get what I need each time.”

“I found the admin team and the clinicians to be very approachable and efficient”

“I think it’s a fantastic service and the new location of Invertay in Dundee is excellent.

“Therapy has helped me in almost all aspects of my life and has enabled me to make sense of the most challenging experiences.”

💖 Thank You for Your Continued Trust

We’re incredibly grateful for the trust you place in us. Your wellbeing remains at the heart of everything we do, and we’re excited about these positive changes as we continue to grow and evolve.

If you have any questions or would like to book an appointment, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

With warm regards,

The St Andrews Practice & The Invertay Practice Teams