First conversation
What you are looking for, and whether this fits.
London · Psychology practice since 2013
Seven titles
Seven titles
are protected.One is not.
Clinical, counselling, educational, forensic, health, occupational, sport and exercise psychologist all require statutory registration, and misuse is a criminal offence. The word psychologist by itself is not protected at all. Worth knowing before you choose anyone.
- 2013since
- 7protected
- Notpsychologist
- Checkthe register
What we do
Four things, titles first
The title question applies to everyone offering this work, so it goes before anything we say about ourselves.
Which title, exactly
What is protected, what is not, and how to verify it in a minute.
See the programConfidentiality and its limits
What stays between us, and the circumstances where it cannot.
See the programThe work itself
Psychological work agreed in scope and in fee basis before it begins.
See the programWhere this is not the answer
Coaching is not therapy, and a crisis needs a different service.
See the program
How it works
How we work
Explain the title landscape so a client can check anyone including us, set out the limits of confidentiality before any substantive work rather than when they bite, agree scope and fees in writing, and refer where clinical input is what is actually needed.
Titles and registration
Checkable, by you, on a public register.
Confidentiality explained
Including its limits, before you share.
Scope and fees agreed
In writing, before work begins.
Working together
Fees
Fees are in pounds sterling and the basis on which they are charged is stated before work begins.
A first conversation
Whether this is the right kind of help at all.
- What you are looking for
- Whether this fits it
- Honest if it does not
- Referral suggested
- No commitment
An engagement
Scope and fee basis agreed before anything starts.
- Scope written down
- Fee basis stated first
- Confidentiality limits explained
- Reviewed as it goes
- Ended honestly if not working
What is not here
Absent on purpose, not by oversight.
- No success rates
- No client testimonials
- No comparison with others
- No promised outcomes
- No crisis service
Every engagement is quoted after a free consultation. No subscription.
How we work
The word that protects nobody
ROB ARCHER PSYCHOLOGY LTD was incorporated in England and Wales on 13 August 2013 under company number 08648198, with its registered office at 23 Villiers Gardens in London, and has had the same director throughout. Its registered activity is other professional, scientific and technical activities, which is a generic classification and specifies no speciality.
The most useful thing a page like this can do is explain something that applies to every practitioner rather than advertise one. In the United Kingdom a defined list of psychology titles is protected by law and may be used only by someone on the statutory register: practitioner psychologist, registered psychologist, and the clinical, counselling, educational, forensic, health, occupational and sport and exercise variants. Using one of those without registration is a criminal offence. The bare word psychologist, however, is not protected, and anybody may lawfully use it. Psychotherapist and counsellor are not protected either, though accredited voluntary registers exist. A designation from a professional body is not statutory regulation and should not be read as one. None of this means an unregistered practitioner is unsuitable, and plenty of valuable work is done by people using unprotected titles. What it means is that a title on a website establishes much less than readers assume, and the only check that settles anything is to note the exact wording and look it up on the relevant public register. It takes about a minute. The second thing worth saying early is that confidentiality in this work is not absolute, and its limits get explained before anything substantive rather than at the moment they operate.
Frequently asked
The questions we get most
Which psychology titles are actually protected?
Practitioner psychologist and registered psychologist, together with the specific titles for clinical, counselling, educational, forensic, health, occupational, and sport and exercise psychology. Those may be used only by someone registered with the statutory regulator, and using one without registration is a criminal offence. They are protected because each corresponds to a defined route of training and supervised practice.
Is psychologist on its own a protected title?
No, and this surprises most people. The bare word is not protected and anybody may lawfully use it. The protection attaches to the compound titles rather than to the word alone. That does not mean someone using the unqualified term is unsuitable, but it does mean the word by itself establishes nothing, and it is the reason the useful question is which exact title is being used.
What about psychotherapist or counsellor?
Neither is protected by statute. There are accredited voluntary registers for both, and membership of one tells you something real about training and accountability, but it is not the same as statutory registration and should not be presented as though it were. Likewise a designation conferred by a professional body is a professional body's designation, not regulation.
How do I check someone?
Note the exact title they use, then search the relevant public register for their name. If they use a protected title they should appear on the statutory register; if they use a voluntary register's designation, check that register. It takes a minute and it is the only verification that establishes anything. Ask us the same question: the registration held by this practice is on the legal page rather than implied.
Is what I say confidential?
Yes, with limits, and the limits are explained before any substantive work rather than when they operate. They include a serious risk of harm to you or to another person, concerns about the safety of a child or an adult at risk, and disclosure required by a court or by law. This is not the same as a lawyer's privilege, which is close to absolute, and the difference is worth understanding before deciding what to share.
What if I am in crisis right now?
This is not a crisis service and the contact form is not monitored continuously. If there is a risk to life, contact the emergency services or an urgent mental health service. That is a genuinely better route and not a brush-off: a practice working by appointment cannot provide the response an urgent situation needs, and pretending otherwise would be the dangerous thing to do.
Wondering whether this is the right kind of help?
A first conversation, with no obligation.