Cathy McLellan
Cathy McLellan
Principal Clinical Psychologist specialising in working with children, teenagers and families
Dr Cathy McLellan is an experienced Chartered Clinical Psychologist based in London. In addition to her work in the private sector, she also works as a Lead Clinician in a Central London NHS trust within children and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). She works as the Lead Clinician for neurodevelopmental assessment clinics (ADHD, autism and Intellectual disability assessments) as well as Lead Clinician for an enhanced behaviour support service. As such she is qualified and experienced at supporting both complex and less complex clients.
With over a decade of experience in the NHS, Cathy is dedicated to supporting children, adolescents, and their families through complex mental health and developmental needs, including neurodiversity. Her work spans a variety of settings including inpatient care, community-based services, and specialist paediatric environments. She also provides clinical supervision to NHS staff, ensuring high standards of care.
Cathy has worked with a variety of presentations including anxiety, low mood, behaviour considered to be challenging and has supported families with parenting approaches, challenging dynamics in the home and adjustment work following neurodevelopmental or medical diagnosis. She has led services which provide support to young people and families where there are significant levels of distress and complexity and has provided support and consultation to professional networks across multiple agencies.
Adopting a person-centred and strengths-based approach, Cathy is skilled in integrating her knowledge and experience to provide evidence-based interventions. She has training in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), compassion-focussed therapy (CFT), Systemic and family therapy, Narrative therapy, Positive Behavioural Approaches (PBS) and Non-violent resistance (NVR).
Cathy is passionate about working with young people who have neurodevelopmental conditions and learning needs. She is skilled in adapting her approach and communication to facilitate a shared understanding, ensuring that her clients feel heard and supported. She works flexibly and creatively, drawing on the strengths and resilience of the young people and families she works with, to offer support that aligns with their values and priorities. She works extremely hard to make sure that she forms a really good relationship with the young person and family, as it is through that shared trust that young people feel able to change.
