The room I currently use for counselling is located in a small outbuilding/annexe of the school that houses the Learning Support team. This means that pupils can get to see me without it being obvious to others where they are going. I share the room with the school nurse. It’s quite small and needs to house 3 large filing cabinets, a desk and a counselling space. It has high windows allowing light, but ensuring privacy. It is carpeted and the paintwork is in fair condition.
Changes I made mainly involved moving furniture around to ensure privacy and to create an ambient space using accessories. I also purchased 2 soft comfortable chairs. The room has an additional ‘connecting door’ to the room next door, which is sometimes used for teaching. I arranged for the filing cabinets to be placed across the doorway to prevent unexpected intrusions, but it does not alleviate the noise level.
The atmosphere I try to create is one of acceptance and relaxation. Pupils see immediately that someone values them enough to make a nice space for them. It is important that pupils feel that both the space and the counsellor are welcoming and approachable. This combination helps encourages pupils to relax and feel they can be themselves.
Pupils often look surprised when they first step into the room, as though they don’t expect
this space to be for them. Mostly, they very quickly feel comfortable and begin to relax into the space, sometimes coming up with ideas to add to the room. At times, some pupils take longer to feel comfortable in the space as it feels unusual to them. The majority of pupils appreciate the anonymity the location of the room affords them and accept the noise levels that sometimes come with this. Often, I have been surprised by how easily pupils and myself can ‘tune out’ distractions when engaged in counselling.
