Moving from training, or from working inside an agency, into private practice changes what you need from supervision. The clinical questions don’t go away, but you’re suddenly also the receptionist, the bookkeeper and the marketing department. Here’s what a good first year of supervision can look like.
You’re in a recognised developmental stage
Research on how counsellors and therapists develop describes a journey through six phases — lay helper, beginning student, advanced student, novice professional, experienced professional and senior professional — with interactions with professional mentors and peers described as crucial learning experiences along the way. If you’ve just entered independent practice, you’re likely at the start of the professional phases, and supervision is one of the main places that learning happens.
How often should you meet?
The ACA Supervision Policy sets a minimum of 10 hours per membership year for practising members, and recommends supervision weekly where possible for full-time counsellors, and not less than monthly. In practice, many people starting out in private practice find that meeting more often at the beginning, while the caseload and confidence are both still building, is more useful than the bare minimum.
What a good first year tends to cover
- Your early caseload — how you’re formulating and structuring work with new clients.
- Getting your practice foundations right: policies and procedures, record keeping, insurance and your own scope of practice.
- The business side — setting fees, finding referrals, managing your diary — which research shows counsellor training rarely prepares people for.
- Early ethical questions, before they become bigger problems.
- Sustainability — how many clients is too many, and what keeps you well in a role with few colleagues around.
This is the territory the STEP-UP model is built around: SUPPORT and TRACK for the clinical work, EDUCATE for ethics and professional development, and PRACTICE for the business side.
Making the first few sessions count
- Agree on a contract early — fees, cancellations, confidentiality and expectations — so nothing is left to assumption.
- Bring specific questions, not only recaps; a short prep form beforehand helps. I give my supervisees one, and I’m happy to share a copy.
- Be open about what you don’t know. Supervision works best when you’re not performing competence.
- Review how it’s going after a few sessions — is the format, frequency and style working for you?
Getting started
If you’re just setting up, or have recently left an agency and are finding the supervision you had no longer fits, get in touch and we can talk through what would suit your stage of practice.
You can reach me here, or fill in the supervision enquiry form below.