The Vicandas Approach
At Vicandas Psychology we believe that neurodiverse families can be helped to lead happier, more harmonious and fulfilled lives without the need for a neurodevelopmental diagnosis.
Most families originally seek help because they are looking for support with emotional, behavioural, communication or relationships difficulties. We believe that, most of the time, we can solve this problem more effectively by understanding the individual and offering tailored support rather than giving them a diagnosis. This means that we do not have to put people through complicated or lengthy assessments which allows us to see people in a timely way and offer meaningful solutions without long delays.
Of course, sometimes diagnostic assessments can be helpful for an individual’s understanding of their difficulties; to access support or services; and to support communication with educators or employers. Our approach allows us to highlight when diagnostic assessment is likely to be appropriate and to deliver this for those that most need it.
Values and Purpose
Vicandas Psychology exists to provide meaningful support to families when they need it. Our work reflects our values of:
Compassion
We understand that it can be difficult to navigate a world which does not always accommodate neurodiverse people. We also know that being a parent is not easy or straightforward, particularly when you have a child with developmental needs. We recognise that most people are trying to do their best in the face of other family, work and social pressures. We approach our work free from judgement, with supportive kindness.
Dedication
We strive to help improve the lives of the people we work with and we recognise that this takes ongoing commitment and effort. We aim to support our clients to harness the same dedication and passion in order to have meaningful family relationships and happier lives.
Effectiveness
Everything we do is done with the aim of creating the maximum positive benefit for our clients. We draw on clinical evidence to develop the most effective assessment and intervention practices. We have systems of supervision and peer support to maintain clinical standards. We use feedback and clinical measures to assess our work and continue to improve our practice.
Efficiency
We know that our clients want to achieve positive changes and move forwards with their lives without the need for long waits or time spent in clinical services. This is why we are constantly working to deliver our best service in the shortest time possible.
Ethical Practice
We treat all of our clients and stakeholders fairly and with respect, regardless of their background our individual differences. We are committed to following best practice guidance in line with our professional registration. We take responsibility and accountability for our work and always strive to act with integrity, honesty and transparency.
Dr Matthew Vinecombe
Matt is an HCPC registered Chartered Clinical Psychologist with over 20 years’ experience of working in services for children, young people and families in the NHS and private healthcare system. Much of this has been in neurodevelopmental assessment services, but he also has experience and training in individual and family interventions for emotional, behavioural and relationship difficulties.
This broad experience led Matt to the understanding that we can be more effective in the way that we support neurodiverse families by adopting an approach where we are able to understand individual neuro-cognitive profiles and unique family interactions in order to deliver targeted support.
Matt is driven to promote resilience and sustainable outcomes for families and to decrease reliance on professional services.
