Gemma Ridge
Gemma is one of our Service Managers, managing our 8-16 session team of therapists and psychotherapists. She has experience of working in a variety of settings including the probation service and working for an adoption support service. She also has experience of working in the private sector and as a clinical supervisor.
As an accredited psychotherapist and EMDR practitioner, she also provides some client sessions within her team.
Sophia Ulhaq
Sophia is one of our Service Managers, responsible for the Perinatal Service. She manages the therapists and ensures the services run smoothly. She has experience as a manager in the third sector working with people who face barriers to support such as refugees, migrants and asylum seekers. Due to previous roles working with and advocating for marginalised groups including neurodiverse, LGBTQIA+, disabled and ethnically diverse communities, she is passionate about delivering inclusive services for women from all backgrounds.
Tessa Denham
Tessa is our CEO at WCTS, and passionate about supporting women experiencing deprivation and trauma with specialised psychological therapies. As well as taking overall responsibility for service delivery and research here, she represents WCTS and the third sector on the Leeds Strategic Mental Health Partnership Board. She’s also the third sector advocate for sexual violence services to the West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner. Tessa’s day-to-day role involves working with staff and service users, partners, funders and our Board of Trustees to promote the mental health recovery and wellbeing of the women and girls we work with.
Freya Hirst
Freya is our Operations/Deputy CEO, responsible for the management and admin teams. She is an experienced manager and has worked for a number of services in the third sector over the last 12 years. Due to previous roles supporting people experiencing housing issues and homelessness, and advocating for clients with complex needs, she is passionate about delivering quality services for people who are struggling to access the support they need.
Andrea Campbell
Andrea is our Clinical Lead and works to ensure the safety and excellence of the service through facilitating clinical learning, staff development and ethical practice. She has over 22 years’ experience of working as a therapist, trainer and tutor and is deeply committed to the values of counselling and therapy.
Mags Shevlin
Mags is one of our Service Managers, responsible for the Perinatal and Outreach services. She manages the therapists and ensures the services run smoothly. She has extensive experience as a manager in the third sector, working in marginalised communities and with people who often find services difficult to access. Mags is also training as a psychotherapist and is passionate about creating wider access to counselling and therapy for women who cannot afford to pay for services.
Board of Trustees
As a charity registered with the Charity Commission, we are led by a voluntary Board of 10 Trustees chaired. The Board is currently looking for women with expertise in marketing, charity law or counselling to join. If you are interested in applying, please email us at info@womenstherapyleeds.org.uk