FAQ

👉🏽How do we make it safe to deliver on-line?

To ensure a safe online experience, we ask schools and parents to complete our safeguarding and GDPR assessment forms. This helps us set up a safe environment for each workshop. We also recommend a small cohort of no more than 10 pupils per session, and cameras can be turned off if privacy is needed. Additionally, we check that the participant is mentally well enough before starting the programme. For more details, visit our Safeguarding and Privacy Policy.

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Before each pupil starts their workshops, we ensure that pupils are feeling mentally well enough to take part in our programme. This can be carried out by schools or ‘body image coach’, providing we have consent to do so. Our assessment form will tell us if schools and parents have knowledge of local services if needed: (Gp’s, CAMHS, next of kin). If this isn’t in place, we would work with them to put this in place first. We also ask if there is capacity to attend A&E with a participant, if someone does not feel safe within themselves. Once this is verified and safeguarding measures are met, we feel confident in our delivery. We also offer 1-1’s for those seeking further support and can assess their needs from this. If someone is presenting as high risk, we have a duty of care, to NOT go ahead with their programme and would liaise with their school and parents, to seek further support with the right channels. 

 

👉🏽Why aren’t we HCPC registered?

While many counsellors and psychotherapists are not HCPC registered outside of the NHS, we are registered and regulated with other governing bodies, such as NCIP and NCPS, in the fields of therapy and coaching. For more on our qualifications, visit our Team page.

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👉🏽Does this need to be face to face due to it being at a more challenging level?                                                          

No. Our programme is designed to raise awareness and provide early-stage intervention for body image issues, such as eating disorders and BDD, using animation-based coaching. Our online services ensure that you can participate from the comfort of your home or school, and we can work with low to medium-risk clients. For higher-risk individuals, we’ll refer them to the appropriate channels. Find more info on how we deliver online body image coaching.

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👉🏽Where is the safety net if further follow-up is needed locally ?

We collaborate with schools, parents, and guardians to create a comprehensive safety plan. Before starting, we ensure all safeguarding measures are in place, including knowledge of local services (GPs, CAMHS, emergency contacts). Learn more about our safeguarding procedures and our collaboration with local services on our safeguarding page.

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👉🏽What happens when there is a bigger picture in the background like trauma or there are comorbidities/co-occurrences like neurodiversity?
How would this be identified, as it would need to be part of the therapeutic process?

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Our therapists are trained in trauma-informed therapy and work with individuals who have neurodiversity, ensuring that all aspects of a person’s identity are addressed during recovery. We blend psychoeducation with relational therapy to ensure that every client’s needs are met. If you're concerned about your child, explore our therapeutic services.

 

 

👉🏽If they had a mentally unwell young person what would they do?  

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If we identify that a young person is unwell, we follow safeguarding procedures and immediately contact the relevant school staff or parents. For more serious concerns, we refer the individual to local mental health services. Read more on our duty of care and the steps we take to ensure safety.

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👉🏽My only concern would be that body image and eating disorder issues are difficult to address, and if not delivered safely, may leave young people in a vulnerable position.

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We do everything we can to ensure that pupils/clients are supported throughout. This means that if a pupil is struggling with their mental health, we offer on-line 1-1’s and work with parents and schools to ensure that they are aware of any risks and what should be done to support this this person. We rely heavily on collaboration with the school and parents (where possible) so that any risk is managed appropriately by us, the school, parents, GP’s, CAMHS and A&E where possible. This means that we would expect a school and parent to have safeguarding measures in place if needed and we support parents to set this up if our service is accessed at home. We can share notes of each person (as long as they are signed by that person, to give consent) and each person having 1-1 sessions, signs a form stating that if there is any ‘risk’ to this person, we have a duty of care to protect them and break confidentiality with the appropriate parties.

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👉🏽There are is nothing about referring on or connection with ED service, if they had a unwell young person what would they do? 

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We are predominantly a training and coaching service. Our programme is used for early intervention and early stages of eating disorders and body dysmorphic disorder. Our coaches and therapists are linked to professional bodies and memberships that give the credential that they need in the fields in which they work. While we work solely with body image difficulties, we do not claim to be the best experts in the world but we are experts in therapy and coaching, with lived experience as well as intensive training on eating disorders and BDD. We know that we hold a map that can lead a child to recovery. This is part due to our own lived experiences but mainly due to our credentials and experience as a coach or therapist. All staff on the frontline (coaches/therapists) undergo training for eating disorders and body dysmorphic disorder so that they are up to date with legislation, new topics and the DSM5 (American version)/ ICD8 (English version).

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👉🏽There is nothing about their programmes being evaluated or being in the process of. 

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All content for BIC (body image coach) has been created and checked by accredited professionals in the field of mental health. This includes: (and is not an exhaustive list) coaches, therapists, ex teachers and staff members from a mental health charity. To make sure that our content gets results, we ran pilots with schools and individuals that were willing to take part with our project. Schools and individuals that were having body image issues. We received excellent feedback from both schools, pupils and individual support, some of which you can find here, on TRUST PILOT

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👉🏽What’s the youngest age you can work with, with body image difficulties in school?

Our workshops start at age 11 but that doesn’t mean we can’t support someone younger. Ideally, we work with ages 11 and above. We would assess each child on an individual basis.

👉🏿Can your programme be used as early intervention?

Yes! Our programme is specifically designed to act as an early intervention to prevent body image issues from escalating into more serious conditions like eating disorders and BDD. Learn more about the benefits of early intervention in our program overview.

👉🏻When is the best time to use your service?

We work best as an early intervention or when students are waiting for treatment through CAMHS or NHS

👉How much do you cost?
The full 6-week programme is subsidized at £305 for 19 hours of support. We also offer subsidized options for low-income families. For 1-1 therapy, prices vary and are handled directly with our therapists. Contact us for more details or if you need support with pricing.

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👉 Can parents access and refer?

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Absolutely! Parents and guardians can refer their child to the programme, and we offer a cost-effective referral process. If you’re a parent, we also have resources to help guide you through the process, including how to prepare for the program.

👉 What are your waiting times like?

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Our free awareness workshops are available immediately. For the full body image programme, waiting times are typically a few weeks. 1-1 therapy may have a waiting list, but we aim to start supporting within 2 months. Learn more about our waiting times and how we prioritize urgent cases.

👉 Can I attend the workshops with my child at home?

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Yes, as a parent/carer, you can attend the workshops with your child at home, but permission must be granted by the child first. For more details, see our parental involvement policy.

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👉 Do you work with suicide ideation?

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We have a duty of care to make sure that all children are safe, and we would take measures to do so, if a young person presented as high risk. This does not mean that we work with high-risk young people and after we have ensured that a person is safe, we would signpost to the appropriate service as our service is not for high risk young people. That being said, we can work along side a service that is working with someone to ensure their safety is met as this would be their priority. Our priority is to support a young person in their healing from body image difficulties.

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👉 Do you work with self-harm?

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Our service does not provide support for self-harm, but we can work alongside another service that does support a young person with self-harm.

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👉 What if I am a parent or school and cannot afford the full programme?

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Because we are a ‘not for profit’ service, we are able to accommodate your needs. Please speak to a member of staff to see if we can subsidise our service for you. We will do everything we can to support you, if it is possible.

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👉 What happens to all the data that you collect around young people?

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We evaluate our data so that we can find out if schools are influenced by any trends such as the ‘Andrew Tate’ videos. We hold all data for several years before it is archived or deleted. All data is strictly for our data purposes only and is not shared or sold.

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👉 What makes you the best to go to?

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Between us, we have over 40 years experience in body image disorders, as well as lived experience, which is why we are so passionate to support young people. With this lived experience and as qualified  and experienced staff, we feel that we can bring the best service to schools and parents. We are currently the only service to offer a full body image programme in animation.

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👉 Will your service ever be free?

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We are a not-for-profit organization, and we may receive funding in the future to offer even more free services. Stay updated on potential funding by contacting us or checking our news page.