Cheshire Play Therapy Services

14/11/2025

In Play Therapy, children often take brave steps of their own — exploring difficult feelings, facing fears, and learning new ways to express themselves through play. Each small moment of trust, connection or creativity is a powerful act of growth. 🎨🧸

As BAPT Registered Play Therapists ®️, we see every day how providing a safe, consistent space helps children meet their own inner challenges — one play session at a time.

This , we celebrate the courage of children everywhere, and all those who work to help them thrive. 🌈

11/11/2025

People-pleasing in children isn’t about being kind or thoughtful - it’s often a survival strategy learned when saying “no” felt unsafe.

When children constantly prioritise others’ needs over their own, agree to things they don’t want to do, or change their preferences to match whoever they’re with, they’re showing us that they don’t trust that they’re valued for who they really are.

These children have often learned that their worth depends on making others happy, that conflict is dangerous, or that expressing their own needs leads to rejection. So they become experts at reading the room, anticipating what others want, and moulding themselves to fit.

The challenge is that while people-pleasing might look like maturity or kindness on the surface, underneath it’s exhausting and prevents children from developing a strong sense of self.

Our role is to help these children learn that they can say “no,” have different preferences, and even disappoint us sometimes - and still be loved and valued.

If your school is working to create environments where children feel safe to express their authentic needs and boundaries, our Emotionally Healthy Schools platform provides training to help staff support children who might be masking their difficulties:

https://clear-sky.org.uk/emotionally_healthy_schools/

09/11/2025

In Play Therapy, we recognise that remembrance is not only about the past, but about helping children make sense of big feelings — grief, courage, safety, and hope — through play and gentle connection.

Let us model empathy and gratitude, creating safe spaces where children can express what remembrance means to them.

🕊️

05/11/2025

28/10/2025

Every child needs .
Behind every poor choice is a story, a feeling, a need.
When we take time to talk with students instead of talking at them, we help them learn, not just comply. 💛

23/10/2025

For many children, the world can feel unpredictable — adults make decisions, routines change, and experiences happen that can feel overwhelming or confusing.

In Play Therapy, children are offered a safe and consistent space where they are in charge. Within clear therapeutic boundaries, they can make choices, take the lead, and explore their inner world through play — their natural language of communication.

Through symbolic play, children begin to make sense of experiences that once felt beyond their control. They find new ways to express emotions, problem-solve, and rebuild a sense of safety and balance.

🎈 In the playroom, play is not “just play” — it’s healing, empowering, and deeply meaningful.

23/10/2025

🌸 Absolutely love this idea — what a beautiful space for girls to grow in confidence and self-love! 💛

🌸Introducing... The Self Love Club 🌸

We’re so excited to introduce The Self Love Club - a gentle, empowering space for girls aged 6-16 to build confidence, nurture self-esteem, and feel proud of who they are. 💛

Rooted in the same Gather & Grow values of connection, creativity, and belonging, The Self Love Club is open to ALL children whether school attending, or home educated. Offering exploration through creativity, connection and mindfulness in a space filled with warmth, positivity, kindness and care.🌿

Sessions begin Thursday 6th November at Gather & Grow, Glebe Farm, Congleton.

🌿 Ages 6-10: 5-6pm
🌱 Ages 11-16: 6:15-7:15pm

🎟️ Tickets will be released this Friday!
Make sure you’re on our mailing list to be the first to know - spaces are limited and we’d love for you to join us.
https://gatherandgrow.uk/join-our-mailing-list

🌱 And for our wonderful Home Education community, new Gather & Grow taster sessions will be announced soon, we promise - keep your eyes peeled!

💙 A version of The Self Love Club for boys is also in the works for the near future! (Let us know if you'd like this!!)

Because when a child’s wellbeing comes first, everything else follows. 🌱🌼

22/10/2025

When children "act out," our first instinct is often to focus on stopping the behaviour. But what if we paused and asked: what is this behaviour trying to tell me?

Acting out is rarely about defiance or attention-seeking. More often, it's a child's way of communicating overwhelming feelings they don't have words for, or testing whether we'll stay even when things get hard.

These children might be scared and using aggression as protection.

They might desperately need connection but only know how to get attention through negative behaviour.

Their feelings might be so big that their bodies can't contain them, and the explosion we see is the overflow.

When we respond to acting out with consequences alone, we miss the message. When we respond with curiosity and compassion - "I wonder what's happening for you right now" - we open the door to real understanding and change.

This doesn't mean accepting harmful behaviour. It means addressing the behaviour while also addressing the unmet need underneath it.

Creating school environments where staff can respond to challenging behaviour with both boundaries and compassion requires training and support. Our Emotionally Healthy Schools platform helps schools understand what drives difficult behaviour and develop trauma-informed responses:

https://clear-sky.org.uk/emotionally_healthy_schools/

19/10/2025

In Play Therapy, children communicate their inner world not through words, but through play — the most natural and safe language they know.

Much of this processing happens unconsciously. Through metaphor, imagination, and symbolic play, children can explore experiences that might be too overwhelming to face directly. This creates a vital psychological distance, allowing them to process difficult feelings and experiences safely and at their own pace.

BAPT Registered Play Therapists® provide a secure, accepting space where children can express, make sense of, and begin to heal from what may once have felt unspeakable.

🧸 Play becomes the child’s language.
💬 The toys become their words.
🌱 And healing happens — one story, one moment of play at a time.

12/10/2025

In Play Therapy, children lead the way. When a child feels safe and accepted within a trusting therapeutic relationship, their natural language of play becomes the bridge to healing.

🎨 Through play, they can:

Communicate what they cannot yet put into words

Re-enact and process overwhelming or confusing life experiences

Try out new roles, ideas, and ways of being

Build resilience and confidence

Gradually widen their window of tolerance – their ability to cope with strong emotions and stress

BAPT Registered Play Therapists® provide that secure, accepting space where every feeling and story has a place — helping children move from surviving to thriving, one play session at a time. 💛

11/10/2025

🌍💚 World Mental Health Day 2025 💚🌍
Theme: “Access to Services”

Every child deserves access to support that helps them feel safe, heard, and understood.

BAPT Registered Play Therapists® provide vital therapeutic services to children who may be struggling with their mental health — offering a safe space to express feelings, process experiences, and build emotional resilience through play.

Play Therapy can be life-changing for children who find it difficult to talk about how they feel. Through play, they can make sense of their world, develop coping strategies, and strengthen their sense of self and wellbeing.

This World Mental Health Day, we’re raising awareness of the importance of equitable access to mental health services for all children and families.

Because every child’s voice — spoken or played — deserves to be heard. 💚