- Years in practice
- 11
- Registration
- BACP
- Languages
- English
- Focus
- Stress, Anxiety
- Focus
- Relationship issues
- Focus
- Family conflicts
About Shirley
Shirley Banton is a counsellor with eleven years' experience offering online therapy to people in the United Kingdom and beyond. She holds BACP accreditation, and bases her work on a person-centred approach that values respect, pace and collaboration. Shirley aims to create a calm space where clients can feel heard and begin to make sense of difficult feelings.
Her style is gentle yet honest. She helps people slow down and reflect on patterns that cause distress.
Background and approach
That can include anxiety, low self-esteem, grief, trauma and issues around intimacy or relationships. She also supports people dealing with addiction, burnout, career pressure and the stresses of life change. Shirley draws on several therapeutic methods to match each person's needs.
She blends client-centred listening with practical tools from cognitive behavioural approaches and solution-focused techniques. Mindfulness and psychodynamic ideas also feature when deeper patterns or past experiences are part of the work. She has particular experience supporting people affected by relational and emotional abuse, including coercive control and long-term trauma.
Her background in further and higher education gives her insight into pressures faced by students and staff going through transitions or coping with burnout. Sessions are conversational and paced to suit the individual. Shirley encourages curiosity about thoughts and feelings, and works with clients to rebuild confidence, set boundaries and find clearer ways of moving forward.
What Shirley works with
Everything Shirley lists, in their own terms. Parenting is the reason this directory exists; the rest shows what else Shirley helps people with.
- Stress, Anxiety
- Relationship issues
- Family conflicts
- Trauma and abuse
- Coping with life changes
- Addictions
- LGBT
- Grief
- Intimacy-related issues
- Eating disorders
- Sleeping disorders
- Parenting issues
- Anger management
- Self esteem
- Career difficulties
- Bipolar disorder
- Depression
- Coaching
- Compassion fatigue
- ADHD
- Abandonment
- Aging and geriatric issues
- Antisocial personality
- Attachment issues
- Avoidant personality
- Blended family issues
- Body image
- Codependency
- Commitment issues
- Communication problems
- Control issues
- Coping with natural or human-caused disaster
- Dependent personality
- Dissociation
- Domestic violence
- Eating and food-related issues
- Emptiness
- Family problems
- Fertility issues
- Forgiveness
- Guilt and shame
- Immigration issues
- Impulsivity
- Infidelity
- Isolation / loneliness
- Jealousy
- Life purpose
- Midlife crisis
- Money and financial issues
- Multicultural concerns
- Narcissism
- Obsessions, compulsions, and OCD
- Panic disorder and panic attacks
- Personality disorders
- Phobias
- Postpartum depression
- Post-traumatic stress
- Pregnancy and childbirth
- Prejudice and discrimination
- Self-harm
- Self-love
- Sexual assault and abuse
- Social anxiety and phobia
- Women's issues
- Workplace issues
- Young adult issues
Approaches Shirley lists
- Client-Centred Therapy
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
- Mindfulness Therapy
- Psychodynamic Therapy
- Solution-Focused Therapy
- Trauma-Focused Therapy
Listing an approach is not evidence of training in it. This directory copies what each counsellor names and does not check training records.
Therapeutic approaches and how they work online
Shirley commonly uses client-centred work, cognitive behavioural techniques and mindfulness in her online practice. Client-centred therapy focuses on attentive, non-judgemental listening and aims to help people feel understood so they can explore their own solutions. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) offers practical ways to identify unhelpful thoughts and try different behaviours to reduce distress and improve sleep, mood or mood swings. Mindfulness therapy teaches simple attention and breathing practices that can reduce anxiety and help with stress regulation.Finding the best approach is part of the work. Shirley treats the choice of methods as a collaborative decision, shaped by what the person wants to change, their preferences and how they respond in early sessions. She will introduce techniques gradually and adjust them if something does not feel helpful.
Online therapy makes those options flexible. Video calls allow face-to-face conversation and visual cues, while phone sessions use less bandwidth and can be easier to fit into a busy day. Live chat and text-based messaging suit shorter check-ins, written reflection or ongoing support between sessions. These formats help people access therapy around work, childcare and other commitments, and support continuity when travel or relocation makes in-person meetings difficult.
Questions people ask about Shirley
What kinds of problems does Shirley work with?
Shirley supports a wide range of concerns including stress, anxiety, trauma and abuse, grief, relationship and intimacy issues, parenting strains, addictions, sleep and eating difficulties, low self-esteem and mood disorders such as depression and bipolar.
How would you describe her therapeutic style?
Her approach is person-centred and collaborative, mixing reflective listening with practical techniques from cognitive behavioural and solution-focused methods. Sessions are paced to the person's needs and aim to combine emotional depth with clear steps forward.
What experience does she bring to the work?
She has eleven years of clinical experience and significant background in further and higher education, which informs her understanding of anxiety, burnout and identity issues for students and educators.
What are her credentials and where is she based?
She is accredited by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and practises from the United Kingdom.
Can I work with her if I live outside the UK?
Yes. Sessions are offered in English and she accepts international clients.
Which session formats are available?
Shirley offers video calls, phone sessions, live chat and text-based messaging to suit different needs and schedules.
How are sessions paid for and what does it cost?
Costs vary with location and therapist arrangements. Sessions are provided via a subscription model that can be cancelled at any time.
What should I do to begin therapy?
Start by selecting the Start Therapy button, complete a short matching questionnaire, and then schedule sessions according to the therapist's availability.
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