Ishbel Tregear

Ishbel Tregear, from the Isle of Wight, is in her second year of the M7 Perinatal, Child, Adolescent and Family Work: A Psychoanalytic Observational Approach and aims to complete her doctorate in Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy. The continued lack of mental health resources for children and young people in isolated rural communities and children marginalised, stigmatised or excluded inspired Ishbel to begin her journey to train as a child psychotherapist.

Ishbel’s previous academic studies at the Courtauld Institute of Art and Cambridge University focused on postcolonial and decolonial perspectives within ethnomusicology, material culture and building history, involving an exploration of the intricate politics surrounding gender, translation and deterritorialization. At the Tavistock, Ishbel remains dedicated to her examination of themes centered on sameness and difference, utilising a psychoanalytical perspective.

Alongside her studies, Ishbel’s professional experience centres around advocacy and supporting marginalised voices. Ishbel played a crucial front-line role in the government’s Afghan Resettlement Scheme, providing advocacy and support to families and unaccompanied children in Home Office Hotels. Ishbel continued her advocacy work at Rape Crisis Centres, supporting and advocating for young people that had experienced rape and sexual assault. Ishbel employs an intersectional feminist approach, focusing on those who have faced barriers in accessing services and are at risk of slipping through the system’s cracks.

Ishbel currently works at a women’s refuge as a play worker for children and young people who have experienced domestic abuse and sexual violence. Additionally, she actively engages as an advocate and support worker for families with disabled children with severe complex care needs. Ishbel has particular interest in the role of siblings within families of disabled children and the identity, recognition and agency of youngcarers.