Dudley educational and child psychology service

Dudley’s Educational Psychology Service (EPS) is committed to the use of applied psychology in a range of settings in order to optimise and maximise the learning, development and well-being of children and young people in Dudley. We have been delivering psychological services to schools in Dudley for 44 years, enabling us to develop an in-depth understanding of the local context and the needs of our schools. We have well established relationships with other services within Dudley including Virtual School, Specialist Inclusion Services, Speech and Language Therapy and the SEN Team. We also have close links with the educational psychology training course at the University of Birmingham and members of the team regularly contribute to sessions for the trainees. 

An educational psychologist is a psychology graduate who has undertaken additional professional training to qualify as an educational psychologist.

They:

• Have previous experience of working with children, for example as teachers.
• Are trained to understand how children and young people learn and develop.
• Have knowledge of a range of psychological approaches and research methodology.
• Work to prevent or overcome barriers to learning and healthy social and emotional development for children and young people.
• Abide by the Health Professions Council standards for practitioner psychologists.

Educational Psychologists work with children and young people aged 0 - 25 with a range of different needs. In addition Educational Psychologists support schools and local authorities to help them improve and develop their systems for supporting children and young people. Educational Psychologists look at how children and young people experience life within the context of their school and home environment and how different factors in these environments interact with each other. We then work collaboratively with parents, schools and other professionals to identify strategies to support children. 

Psychologists support young people and children with:

• Learning needs.
• Emotional and behavioural needs.
• Physical disabilities.
• Sensory needs such as problems with eyesight or hearing.
• Social skills difficulties.
• Concentration difficulties.

• Consultation- meeting with parents or carers and other professionals to discuss a child or young person’s needs and how best to help them.
• Psychological assessments- visiting educational settings to gather information about a child or young persons needs using methods such as observation, pupil interviews and one to one assessment.
• One to one and small group interventions- educational psychologists may deliver one to one or small group interventions to promote learning and emotional wellbeing. They may also train and supervise school staff to enable them to deliver these interventions.
• Supporting staff development- examples include delivering training, staff coaching and providing professional supervision for specialised interventions.
• Supporting parents-jointly identifying strategies to use at home, setting up and running training.
• Research and evaluation- designing and carry out research to enhance practice and improve outcomes.
• Multi agency work-leading and/or participating in a range of multi agency panels and child centred planning meetings. Educational Psychologists work closely with other professionals.
• Strategic work- educational psychologists support schools and local authorities to improve all children’s emotional wellbeing and experiences of learning.

For more support contact the Dudley educational and child psychology service.

Tel: 01384 814 359

Email: eps@dudley.gov.uk