A counsellor from the Trust’s Tower Hamlets Talking Therapies service has shared her story in a video for a national organisation to encourage others to follow the same career path.

Imtaz Khaliq was asked by the National Careers Service to discuss her career journey, and why she finds her role so rewarding, for the job profile section of the service’s website.

She also talks about the day-to-day tasks involved in the job and the skills she needs to provide care.

“I feel it's a privilege to be able to be part of encouraging people into the field because counselling is helped by diversity to create equity so that it is place based and relevant,” said Imtaz, who has worked for ELFT for five years and who joined the Tower Hamlets Talking Therapies team this summer.

Imtaz has been a lead group counsellor for the Trust, run counselling groups for two other London NHS trusts and is involved in a National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) trial comparing group arts therapies with group talking therapy. She has also been a peer tutor lead for the Tower Hamlets Recovery College.