I am delighted that my colleagues have nominated me for an appointment as part of the Queen’s birthday honours. To receive the news that I was going to be appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for services to children and young people in my role as a consultant clinical psychologist was humbling.
I am proud to be a British Citizen and value being part of a country which strives to encourage diversity and equality. My paternal grandparents were welcomed into this country as Jewish refugees from Russia and the privilege and opportunities that I have had would not have been possible without the opportunity that they were given. Whilst I view the term British Empire to be outdated and not representative of my experience of being British, I do appreciate the valuing of British excellence that the honours represent.
Since my training as a clinical psychologist I have always aimed to improve the mental health and emotional wellbeing of the children, young people, and families that I have worked with. When I moved to Worcestershire, at the end of the last century, this work became focused upon children growing up in, or adopted from, care. It was my privilege to work with dedicated colleagues within the NHS, Social Care and Education to develop and evaluate services and interventions that were helpful for the parents, carers, children, and young people.
I have been greatly assisted in my work through the mentoring I have received, most notably from Dan Hughes, an American clinical psychologist who developed the DDP model (Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy). With his generosity and support I, together with Julie Hudson and our many colleagues, have worked hard to ensure that families and practitioners have access to this model within the UK, most recently through the formation of DDP Connects UK.
In my writing, training, and conference presentations I have always sought to ensure that my learning from this work is shared widely.
This honour, whilst recognising my individual contribution, also recognises the hard work of many people. We want to ensure that our children and young people have the best support possible in order to recover from early trauma and develop towards improved mental health and emotional wellbeing. We also want to provide the best support to those parenting these children and young people so that they can stay resilient and emotionally healthy whilst undertaking what can often be a challenging parenting task.
Kim S. Golding, BSc, MSc, D. Clin. Psy. AFBPsS
Consultant Clinical Psychologist, Author,
and certified DDP Practitioner, Consultant and Trainer
To contact Kim, please use our contact page.
