about
Gavin Weir-Jones
I'm Gavin Weir-Jones, Psychotherapist, MA, PNCPS Acc., based near Topsham, just outside Exeter.
I offer therapy, counselling, coaching and mentoring for adults who are facing emotional difficulty, life change, relationship issues, grief, anxiety, low mood, burnout or questions of direction.
My work is shaped by over 20 years in therapeutic practice, accompanied by a wider experience in education and personal development, and more than four decades of life experience.
A mature, grounded approach to therapy
People often come to therapy when something has become difficult to carry alone. Sometimes there is a clear reason. Sometimes there is only a feeling that life has become heavier, narrower or harder to make sense of.
My approach is calm, compassionate and direct. I do not believe people can be reduced to labels, symptoms or one fixed method of therapy. I work with the person in front of me, drawing from different approaches where they are useful and appropriate.
The aim is to create a space where you can speak honestly, slow things down, and begin to understand what is happening with more clarity.
I work with the person in front of me, not only the problem they arrive with.
Experience that reaches beyond one model
My professional background includes psychology, teaching, outdoor education, mindfulness-based therapy, counselling, coaching and personal development.
Earlier in my career, I worked with a broad age range of people combining education and outdoor learning. That work deepened my interest in how people think, respond, protect themselves, adapt and change.
I later studied Applied Psychology, taught Psychology and Personal Development, and continued to develop my clinical training through mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, counselling, coaching and related therapeutic approaches.
Now in my early 60s, I find my work draws as much from lived experience as it does from formal training. Clients often value the balance of clinical knowledge, life perspective and steady presence.
Mindfulness and Buddhist psychology
Mindfulness and Buddhist psychology have been an important part of my personal and professional development for many years.
For me, this is not about asking clients to adopt a belief system. It is about presence, patience, compassion and learning to relate differently to suffering, thought patterns, fear, anger, attachment and change.
This influence sits quietly within my work. It supports a way of being with clients that is steady, respectful and open.
Qualifications and professional training
Psychotherapist, MA, PNCPS Acc, NCPS (Fully accredited)
MA Applied Psychology, University of Lancaster
Qualified Mindfulness Teacher in MBCT and MBSR
Qualified NLP Practitioner
Senior Accredited Member of the National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society
PG Dip Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy, Exeter University
PG Cert Education
Qualified Rewind Trauma Practitioner
Additional training and CPD includes
Conflict resolution · Self-harm · Transactional Analysis · Grief · Depression and anxiety · Emotional intelligence · Mindfulness self-compassion · Applied hypnosis · Internal Family Systems (IFS) · Buddhist retreats and teachings
A little more about me
Outside my work, I continue to enjoy music, dancing, poetry, fishing and time outdoors with friends and family.
These parts of life matter to me. They keep me connected to ordinary human experience, which is also where much of the therapeutic work begins.
If you would like to talk, you are welcome to get in touch
A free initial consultation gives us both the chance to see whether working together feels right.
You do not need to know exactly what to say before you make contact. We can begin from where you are.