Trauma and PTSD: psychologists verified as HCPC-registered, specialising in evidence-based trauma therapy
Trauma needs the right kind of help. Every psychologist on this directory is registered with the Health and Care Professions Council and offers NICE-recommended treatments for PTSD and trauma, including trauma-focused CBT and EMDR.
Understanding trauma and PTSD
Many people who have lived through traumatic experiences carry the effects for years before recognising what’s happening. Trauma can come from a single overwhelming event — an assault, an accident, a sudden bereavement, a medical emergency — or from sustained experiences such as childhood abuse, domestic violence, or working in roles repeatedly exposed to danger or distress.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is the formal diagnosis given when trauma symptoms persist for more than a month and significantly affect daily life. Around one in twenty UK adults experience PTSD at some point. Common signs include:
- Flashbacks, intrusive memories, or feeling that the trauma is happening again
- Nightmares, disturbed sleep, or difficulty falling asleep
- Avoiding people, places or situations that remind you of the event
- Feeling constantly on edge, easily startled, or watching for danger
- Difficulty concentrating, remembering, or feeling emotionally present
- Physical symptoms with no clear medical cause — pain, tension, gastrointestinal problems
- Feelings of guilt, shame, anger, or numbness that don’t shift over time
Some people develop complex PTSD (sometimes called C-PTSD) following prolonged or repeated trauma, often beginning in childhood. This can include the symptoms above alongside difficulties with self-image, emotional regulation, and trusting others.
PTSD is treatable, even years after the original event. Effective treatment exists at any stage — it is not too late to seek help.
Why HCPC registration matters for trauma work
Trauma is one of the areas of psychology where the difference between trained and untrained help is most consequential. Poorly-delivered trauma work can cause re-traumatisation: a person re-experiences the worst moments of their trauma without the structured framework needed to process them safely. This is well-documented in clinical literature and is the reason NICE guidance places such emphasis on trained, supervised practitioners.
HCPC-registered psychologists working with trauma have:
- Doctoral or equivalent postgraduate training in psychological science
- Specific training in trauma-focused interventions, typically including trauma-focused CBT or EMDR
- A duty under HCPC standards to work within their scope of practice and recognise the limits of their competence
- Ongoing supervision and continuing professional development requirements
- Statutory accountability through HCPC’s Fitness to Practise process
In the UK, anyone can call themselves a ‘trauma therapist’ or ‘trauma coach’ without any formal qualification. There is no minimum standard, no required training, and no regulator. With trauma, the consequences of unregulated practice are not theoretical.
What evidence-based treatment looks like
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) sets out the recommended treatments for PTSD in NHS and private practice in the UK. The two main treatments for adults are:
Trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy (TF-CBT)
Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR)
What treatment is not
NICE does not recommend single-session psychological debriefing immediately after a traumatic event. It also cautions against generic counselling or supportive listening as primary treatment for diagnosable PTSD, on the basis that this approach has limited evidence of effectiveness and may delay access to interventions that work.
Some psychologists also work with related, evidence-informed approaches — including narrative exposure therapy, cognitive processing therapy, and stabilisation-based approaches for complex trauma — usually in addition to or as a structured pathway towards trauma-focused work.
Who you'll find on this directory
HCPC-registered Clinical, Counselling and Health Psychologists who work with:
- Single-incident trauma — accidents, assaults, medical events, bereavement
- Combat and military trauma
- Childhood abuse and developmental trauma
- Domestic abuse and intimate partner violence
- Birth trauma
- Workplace trauma — emergency services, healthcare, journalism
- Complex PTSD
Each profile shows the psychologist’s HCPC registration number, their specific trauma training (TF-CBT, EMDR, both), and their typical client focus.