Expert tutors
All teaching is delivered by experienced practitioners who are actively working in psychotherapy and hypnotherapy. Our students learn from people doing the work, not just teaching it.
Welcome to UK Therapy Guild Academy
Affordable Training in Integrative Counselling and Clinical Hypnotherapy
This page covers who UK Therapy Guild are, including: a hero introduction; our story and key milestones; a message from founder Nichola Doyle; our five core values; our integrative teaching approach; the subjects covered in the Professional Practitioner Programme; the training pathway from enrolment to qualification; student reviews; and a call to action to book a discovery call.
UK Therapy Guild
About Us
We are a Liverpool-based therapy training academy with a long history of developing confident, capable counsellors and hypnotherapists. Our team are passionate about the quality of what we do and the students we work with.
Our story
How we came about
UK Therapy Guild has its roots in UKAIT - the United Kingdom Association of Integrative Therapy - founded and led by Paul Henderson. Paul established a strong foundation in integrative counselling training in Liverpool, building a programme and a culture of learning that placed genuine student development at its heart. Nichola Doyle trained with UKAIT herself, and it was through that experience that she came to understand the power of the integrative approach - and the kind of training that truly changes people.
In 2022, Paul invited Nichola to take over the organisation. She spent two years in careful transition before relaunching it as UK Therapy Guild in 2025. The core values Paul had built remained central - but Nichola brought her own clinical experience, her personal story, and a deeper commitment to the student experience. The programme expanded to include Clinical Hypnotherapy alongside the existing integrative counselling training, and a community counselling service was established to give students real supervised client experience while providing affordable therapy to people in Liverpool who need it.
UK Therapy Guild is the course Nichola wishes she had found. That is what drives every decision we make.
From the founder
"Training at UK Therapy Guild is not just about earning qualifications - it is about genuinely developing the person. We want our students to leave not only with the skills to help their clients, but with a deeper understanding of themselves. That is what sets our graduates apart."
Our values
What we stand for
Everything we do is shaped by a set of values that have been at the heart of this organisation since its beginning. These are not aspirations - they are the way we actually work, every day.
Safe environment
We take the learning environment seriously. Trust, warmth and consistency allow students to engage fully, take risks in practice and develop at their own pace.
Depth of curriculum
Our curriculum is broad and integrative by design. Students gain a genuine understanding of a wide range of therapeutic approaches rather than a surface-level overview of any single one.
Active teaching
Sessions are motivational and hands-on. Group work, live demonstrations, guest speakers and monitored practice all feature - because learning counselling means doing it, not just reading about it.
Personal development
We encourage self-reflection, free thinking and genuine growth. Many students find the programme changes how they understand not just their clients, but themselves.
Our approach
Why we teach integratively
We believe in breadth
No single therapeutic model can serve every client. The integrative approach equips practitioners to draw from a wide range of frameworks and choose what fits the person in front of them.
We value flexibility
Students learn to apply different perspectives - Psychodynamic, Humanistic, Systemic - and shift between them with confidence. Clients benefit from a practitioner who is not locked into a single way of working.
We develop the whole practitioner
The integrative model requires self-awareness, critical thinking and a strong professional identity. Developing those qualities is as much a part of our training as the clinical content itself.
The programme
What the Professional Practitioner Programme covers
The Professional Practitioner Programme spans two years. Counselling training runs throughout both years. Clinical Hypnotherapy joins the programme partway through year two, running alongside the ongoing counselling work.
| Subject | What it covers |
|---|---|
| CBT | Structured, evidence-based techniques for identifying and changing unhelpful thought patterns and behaviours. |
| Person Centred | Carl Rogers' humanistic approach - building a therapeutic relationship through empathy, unconditional positive regard and congruence. |
| Gestalt | Present-moment awareness, unfinished business, and the relationship between thoughts, feelings and behaviours. |
| Psychodynamics | The role of the unconscious, early experience, inner conflict and defence mechanisms in shaping present behaviour. |
| Object Relations | How early attachment relationships influence adult emotional and relational patterns. |
| Transactional Analysis | Understanding ego states, communication patterns and life scripts to support meaningful change. |
| Grief and Loss | Therapeutic approaches for working with bereavement, life transitions and significant loss. |
| Family Counselling | Systemic perspectives on working with family relationships and intergenerational patterns. |
| Couples Counselling | Relational dynamics, communication and conflict resolution in intimate partnerships. |
| NLP | Language, behaviour and the connection between conscious and unconscious patterns of thought. |
| Clinical Hypnotherapy | Therapeutic applications of hypnosis - joins the programme partway through year two alongside the ongoing counselling work (Level 5, GHSC validated). |
Your training pathway
From enrolment to qualification
Year One
Counselling theory, modalities and supervised group practice throughout the year
Year Two begins
Counselling continues. Client hours begin alongside 12 hours of group supervision
Year Two - mid
Clinical Hypnotherapy training begins, running alongside the ongoing counselling programme
Completion
Professional Practitioner Programme qualification awarded - Level 5 in Counselling (NCIP) and Level 5 in Hypnotherapy (GHSC). Eligible for BACP Proficiency Test.
Student reviews
What our students say
Verified reviews via Trustpilot.
★★★★★
"I have thoroughly enjoyed the course so far. All sessions have been really engaging and well structured. There is a lovely atmosphere within the group, which has been nurtured by Nichola. As a student with a disability, I can say that everyone is truly catered for and the course leaders genuinely care about the people they are working with."
★★★★★
"I am a current student on this course. I have learnt so much about integrative counselling but also so much about myself already. The course is taught in such a positive, supportive environment and I would highly recommend it to anyone who is interested."
★★★★★
"I am loving learning and finding it really interesting. I am not only learning a lot about the different modalities of counselling but also a lot about myself in the process, and I receive support where needed. I would highly recommend the course to anyone thinking about it."
Take the next step
If you are considering a career in counselling or hypnotherapy, a brief call with Nichola is the best way to find out whether the programme is the right fit for you.
No obligation. Nichola will answer any questions you have about the programme, entry requirements, and what to expect.