London

Council members

Maureen Tilford (Branch Chairman): E: tilford.maureen@gmail.com
David Kraft (Branch Secretary): E: dmjkraftesq@yahoo.co.uk
Charlotte Davies (Treasurer): E: charlotte.davies@doctors.org.uk
Other council members: Peter Naish, Samantha Crone

Welcome to the London Branch

Previously known as the Metropolitan Branch, and then Mets and South, the London Branch has been training health professionals in hypnosis since 1952. Like the other branches in BSCAH, the London Branch runs a Foundation Training over three weekends. Trainees are encouraged, throughout the course, to practise the practical skills learnt in each module, and, it is for this reason that the weekends are spaced out over, usually, a three-month period. We also offer one day workshops and specifically-designed hypnosis courses for speciality doctors. In addition, we organise peer supervision for all members of the branch as well as past trainees. Courses are open to doctors, dentists, chartered psychologists, nurses and other allied healthcare professionals. UKCP- and BACP-registered psychotherapists and counsellors are also welcome to train with us, and applications are viewed on a case-by-case basis. The London Branch is committed to helping trainees begin to utilise hypnosis—both formally and informally—as an adjunctive tool within their own specific modality. We look forward to hearing from you and, if you have any specific questions you would like to ask, please do not hesitate to give one of the team members a ring.

The London Branch supports the ongoing training of members from the whole of the South East of England. The following is a list of the areas/counties in this branch: London, Greater London, Brighton and Hove, Surrey, Kent, Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Berkshire, Redhill (Sussex), Southampton (Hampshire), Uxbridge (Middlesex) and Watford (Hertfordshire).

Co-supervision
Do you feel isolated in your work with hypnosis? Would you like to join a group to discuss your work? This is an opportunity to give or receive support, share experience, even establish collaborative projects. If you would like to establish a group, send in an outline of how you would like your group to run: local meetings / teleconference /skype / e-forum, and which professionals you would like to attract and we will advertise it on this page. There are some groups running already so perhaps you would like to be listed on this page too. Let us know.

IF THERE IS A TOPIC YOU WOULD LIKE US TO COVER, IF YOU HAVE SOME EXPERTISE YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH US, OR IF THERE IS A SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP YOU WOULD BE INTERESTED IN FORMING OR JOINING, PLEASE CONTACT US.

Meet the training team

David Kraft Peter Naish Samantha Crone Maureen Tilford

David Kraft (PhD BSCAH Accred.)

David Kraft runs a successful psychotherapy practice in Harley Street. London. He has been teaching on the BSCAH Foundation Training courses since 2013 and has very much enjoyed this experience. David originally trained in psychoanalytic psychotherapy at the London Centre for Psychotherapy; however, after a period of time, he felt that it was important to develop a more integrative approach to treatment. As a result, he decided to train at the National College of Hypnosis and Psychotherapy: here, he formalized his psychotherapy training and this led to UKCP accreditation and two diplomas—the DHP (NC) and ADHP (NC). David has an MSc in Psychology from Kingston University, and is a member of The British Psychological Society, holding the designated letter MBPsS. David also has a diploma in Clinical Hypnosis (DCHyp) and an Advanced Certificate in Clinical and Strategic Hypnosis (A.Cert.CSHyp). In addition, he is a fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine and a member of council for the Section of Hypnosis and Psychosomatic Medicine. He is also an accredited member of The British Society of Clinical & Academic Hypnosis (BSCAH), a member of its National Council, and on the Academic and Accreditation Sub-Committee. David has been researching psychotherapy and clinical hypnosis for several years now, publishing regularly in academic journals. He has written over 25 articles on many subjects, including: phobic anxiety, covert sensitisation, anxiety disorders, sleep disturbances, hyperhidrosis, sexual disorders, IBS, anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, agoraphobia, social phobia and panic disorder. David published his first book, ‘Birdsong in the music of Olivier Messiaen’ in 2013, and is completing his second book, a book of his poetry, which he hopes will come out in 2017. David is currently Honorary Secretary for the Mets and South Branch of BSCAH.

Dr Peter Naish

Following a degree in the physical sciences, Peter took another in psychology, finally moving to the Department of Experimental Psychology at the University of Oxford for his doctorate. Along the way he acquired an interest in hypnosis. This was in the era of scepticism about the subject; the hard-nosed scientific community was of the opinion that it was little more than an example of social compliance, where one person feels the need to ‘go along with’ the expectations of another. Some researchers went so far as to say that the whole process was so ordinary that it was misleading to grace it with a special name of its own: Hypnosis. However, Peter’s research results began to convince him that there really was something out of the ordinary going on. With the advent of brain scanning that position has been vindicated; the hypnotised brain really does behave differently. Peter had a spell carrying out research for the Ministry of Defence and, among the topics he addressed, he became involved with the issue of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Intriguingly, PTSD victims tend to be highly hypnotisable, and Peter developed novel apparatus to reveal the nature of the parallels between PTSD and hypnosis. He continues to explore the links between trauma and brain behaviour. With his long and active interest in hypnosis Peter has been elected over the years to several relevant posts, including spells as President of the Section for Hypnosis and Psychosomatic Medicine, at the Royal Society of Medicine, and Chair of Council for the British Society of Clinical and Academic Hypnosis. He is currently President of the BSCAH. He also chairs the Scientific Advisory Board to the British False Memory Society. He was invited onto the Board, because it was known that, carelessly used, therapeutic hypnosis can induce false memories; he is often asked to serve as an expert witness in cases where false memory or the misuse of hypnosis have been alleged. Peter is a strong advocate of the public dissemination of science, and he is a regular speaker at the major British science festivals. He has also lectured at the Science Museum, The Royal Society, the Dana Centre for the Brain and ‘Science on the Fringe’ during the Edinburgh Festival.

Dr Samantha Crone BDS MFDS RCS(Eng)

Samantha graduated from St Bartholomew’s and The Royal London Hospital School of Medicine and Dentistry in 1997, gaining a Bachelor of Dental Surgery degree (BDS) and subsequently gaining Membership to the Faculty of Dental Surgery at the Royal College of Surgeons of England (MFDS RCS(Eng)) in 2002, following further training in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. Samantha has worked in general dental practice, cosmetic dental practice, special care dentistry, hospital dentistry and surgery. A member of the British Association of Oral Surgeons, Samantha also holds a post as a dento-alveolar surgeon with the Surrey Dento-Alveolar Referral Service and in recent years has been involved in training and mentoring post-graduate dentists. She is also qualified to provide non-surgical facial aesthetic treatments such as botulinum toxin injections and dermal fillers. Samantha trained in clinical hypnosis in her final year of dental school in 1996 and has successfully used hypnosis techniques throughout her career in dentistry. She has found hypnosis particularly useful in the treatment of anxious patients, those struggling with pronounced gag reflexes, needle phobias and dental phobias, all of which can prevent or limit the provision of dental treatment. Samantha continues to maintain and update her skills in clinical hypnosis by attending courses and through peer review. She initially trained with The British Society of Medical and Dental Hypnosis Mets and South branch and is now an active member of BSCAH.

Maureen Tilford

Maureen worked as a GP in Norwich for 35 years. She became interested in the role of the mind in physical illness and the burden of emotional pain in the everyday life of many patients. She trained in hypnosis with the British Society of Clinical and Academic Hypnosis and applied hypnosis in her practice for many years covering a wide range of  problems as they presented in the primary care setting.  Maureen joined Primary Care Mental Health Education (PRIMHE) and through them completed a diploma entitled ‘Practitioner with a Special Interest in Mental Health’ at the University of Staffordshire.  She also took part in the training of final year medical students in mental health.

LONDON EVENTS

Modules 1-3 Foundation Training with London 2023 Read more...