ABOUT PAULA GILDING
Paula Gilding is an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker and Psychotherapist, and the director/sole practitioner at Safe Steps Together Clinical Services in Ballina, NSW.
With 30 years’ experience in therapeutic services, disabilities, education and child protection, Paula now specialises in working with children, adolescents, adult survivors of childhood abuse, families, parents and victims of crime (NSW).
She is a Tier 2 Approved Counsellor with Victims Services NSW, authorised to work with child and adult sexual assault survivors, survivors of domestic violence, abuse and neglect, family members of homicide victims, and family members of road crime victims.
Paula is also registered with Medicare (Provider # 5857415F) offering rebates with a gap fee, as well as with the NSW Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) as an external provider of psychological services in child protection. Paula is currently undertaking NDIS registration as a behaviour support and early childhood provider.
Her integrative therapeutic approach draws on her training and qualifications in Gestalt Psychotherapy, Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy, and arts-based modalities and EMDR. Paula practices from a multidimensional social work framework and is guided by the AASW Code of Ethics.
Academic Qualifications
- Master of Social Work – Southern Cross University
- Master of Gestalt Psychotherapy – Gestalt Therapy Brisbane
- Master of Education (Arts in Psychotherapy) – Institute for Arts In Therapy and Education, London UK
- Graduate Diploma of Education – Monash University
- Diploma of Teaching – Monash University
I practice on Bundjalung Country with deep respect and gratitude, and I am committed to providing care that is ethical, culturally respectful, and grounded in connection and safety.