Professor Divine Charura

Qualifications

I am a Professor of Counselling Psychology and my background is as a Counselling Psychologist registered with the Health and Care professions Council and with UKCP (United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy) as a registered Psychotherapist. I completed my undergraduate training and postgraduate degree programmes in Leeds. I hold a BSc (Hons) in Counselling and Therapeutic Studies, and an MSc degree Public Health and Health Promotion and another MA degree in Psychotherapy. I completed my Doctorate in Counselling Psychology (DCounsPsych) at Teesside University. I have worked as a clinician in a range of clinical settings including the NHS, voluntary and private sectors, in both inpatient and outpatient settings.

Teaching

Prior to joining York St John University as a Professor in Counselling Psychology and also as the programme director for the Doctorate in Counselling Psychology, I worked at Leeds Beckett University where I had worked as an academic for 10 years. I initially started out my teaching career as a lecturer, then progressed to become a senior lecturer in counselling and psychotherapy and then later as a course director for the postgraduate courses in Psychological Therapies and Mental Health.

As the programme director for the Doctorate in Counselling Psychology I teach on our taught modules on the program across the 3 years. I am also the module leader for the doctoral thesis modules. Occasionally I am also invited to input on other training and programmes within York St John University, and other programmes both nationally and internationally. 

I am active as a Doctoral and PhD senior supervisor and I am interested in supervising doctoral/PhD students in theses relating to Trauma, relationships and attachment, dementia, mental health and wellbeing. I also have experience in supervising research on psychotherapy, counselling and psychological therapies, design of psychotherapeutic interventions, psychological development across the lifespan, and practitioner psychologist related research.

I have examined Doctoral and PhD theses for Leeds Beckett University, Chester University, University of East London, and Middlesex University (Metanoia Institute).

Professional Activities (including conferences)

As an academic, I have been invited to present keynote lectures and research training and to teach at a number of conferences and institutions in the UK and internationally. This includes, for example in South-East Asia, USA, Africa, and Europe. In 2019, I was awarded three awards for my international collaboration work and teaching associated projects.

As a psychologist and psychotherapist, I continue to work with patients/clients presenting with a wide range of psychological difficulties and disorders in clinical practice. My psychotherapeutic interests are varied. They include, working with trauma and complex trauma, the impact of trauma on memory, the transformation potential of the therapeutic relationship, and the efficacy of a range of psychotherapy interventions in therapeutic work with those who have a diagnosis or those experiencing psychological distress. I also have an interest in working therapeutically with diversity, the impact of relationships, culture, love/attachment, and relational difficulties. Furthermore, for many years I have also worked with marginalized groups, such as refugees and asylum seekers.

My interests, professional activities and clinical experience inform my teaching of theory, engagement with research, as well as supervision of trainee or qualified psychotherapists and psychologists.

In relation to my international teaching work, I have been invited to speak as a keynote speaker at conferences and training programmes in different countries. In 2019, I was invited as the first international J1 scholar and visiting professor to the Chicago School of Professional Psychology Washington DC Campus USA. I taught on a range of PhD programmes including the clinical, forensic psychology and counselling courses.

In 2019 I also went to teach as a visiting scholar on the first University counselling course of its kind in Cambodia at University of Puthisastra.

I continue to be interested in international collaborations and supporting our trainees and graduates to be international citizens who engage with the wider potential and application of counselling psychology in contributing to dealing with the range of challenges we are facing in the world today.

Apart from my interest in local and international collaborations which serve to mutually benefit both our trainees and international partners by offering a diverse range of learning experiences and knowledge exchange, I have held several positions with professional bodies.

For example, I have been one of the regional representatives for psychotherapists in the North of England, who are registered with the United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP). 

I am an Editorial Board member for the European Journal for Qualitative Research in Psychotherapy: (www.EJQRP.org) 

I have been appointed numerous positions and continue to engage in number of advisory boards, to help shape a range of portfolios and responsiveness to the latest research, standards and practice within the area of psychotherapy and counselling psychology.

I am a clinical supervisor on the Register of Applied Psychology Practice Supervisors (RAPPS) and I offer clinical practice supervision to practitioner psychologists, psychotherapists and counsellors in practice or for those in training.

I am one of the academics within the University who can be called upon to present or provide expert opinion on a range of subjects. I have previously contributed media presentations such as on ITV news, Channel 5 news and on different radio shows.

Research interests

I have a wide range of research interests and employ a range of qualitative research methodologies and methods in my research.

Having worked as a psychotherapist with individuals presenting with trauma for many years, my own counselling psychology doctorate was on Therapist experience of working with refugees and asylum seekers who have been tortured. In general, my research has been in psychotherapy, developmental/relational trauma and also in the area of dementia.  

Furthermore, I am happy to collaborate on research on a range of topics, but not limited to these topics:

• Trauma, grief, post-traumatic stress and facilitative conditions for optimal psychological change and post-traumatic growth.
• The lived experience of refugees and asylum seekers.
• Love, relationships and attachment and their impact on psychological development across the lifespan.
• The impact of ageing on psychological wellbeing, (with specific reference to Dementia).
• The impact of psychological trauma on memory and cognitive functioning.
• The lived experience of psychotherapist/ counselling/practitioner psychologists of working in different contexts.
• Parent-infant psychotherapy/interaction, love and attachment trauma.
• Psychological interventions, the therapeutic relationship, and psychological change.

Please see my publication list to read more on my research and scholarly outputs.