Meet The EPIC Team
Dr Paula Hopkins
C.Psychol. – Principal Educational Psychologist
A Chartered Psychologist with the British Psychological Society and a full member of the Division of Educational and Child Psychology. Paula is registered with the professional body HCPC, allowing her to practice as an applied psychologist. Paula has twenty-one years’ experience as an educational psychologist and has worked as a Senior Practitioner Educational Psychologist with Leicestershire County Council and as an EP with Gloucestershire County Council before establishing EPIC in 2015. Paula is the service lead and director of EPIC and has key interests in children’s mental health (particularly anxiety), attachment and relationships, working memory and social processing. Paula has published research articles on group work and nurturing classrooms and is hoping to publish future articles from her doctoral research into class teachers’ perceptions and approaches to children’s anxiety.
Dr Melanie Shirley
C.Psychol. – Senior Educational Psychologist
Mel is a highly experienced Educational Psychologist. She has worked for over twenty years with children and young people between the ages of 0-25 supporting a wide range of Special Educational Needs and Disabilities. Working with local authorities as an Educational Psychologist and Specialist Senior; she has also worked at Loughborough University before joining EPIC on a permanent basis. Mel is committed to identifying solutions for individual needs; overcoming barriers and enabling achievement. She specialises in autism and sensory needs as well as having key interests in attachment and relationships and mental health. Mel Has expertise in delivering person-centred integrative psycho-therapy incorporating CBT, Narrative Therapy and Solution Focus Brief Therapy.
Nicola Pereira
Educational Psychologist
Nicola is an experienced Educational Psychologist from South Africa. She worked in a school context in South Africa as well as in private practice, with a focus on supporting young people between the ages of 12 and 25 years old. Nicola is committed to working with young people in diverse settings with the aim of providing connection and support to ensure a successful academic journey for individuals. Nicola is interested in developing relationships with all stakeholders to support young people in their academic and personal journeys. Life long learning is important to Nicola and she is always willing to gain new experiences. She is excited to be working in the United Kingdom with the EPIC team.
Sonné Visagie
Educational Psychologist
Alison Orton
Administrator
After graduating from Leicester University Alison embarked on a career within the financial services sector working for large corporate banks. Her career has involved qualifying as a finance advisor and latterly developing training materials, delivering courses to all levels of employees, to supervision and undertaking audits. After having a small career break to have her children Alison returned to work in a customer focused busy office environment dealing with clients and the public through all media channels.
Alison has always had an interest in child development and a desire to help them build confidence and be the best that they can be. This interest was nurtured through her long-term involvement with the Guide Association as a group Leader and Camp Advisor. Alison also has experience working within the EYFS.
Laura Basson
Assistant Psychologist
During Sixth Form Laura developed an interest in Educational Psychology due to her passion for working with children and love for Psychology. Laura graduated from Birmingham City University in 2021 with a First class honours degree in BSc Psychology. She then worked for two years as a Teaching assistant and Learning Mentor gaining experience in Education. Laura joined EPIC in 2023 as an Assistant Psychologist; she wishes to apply to the Educational Psychology Doctorate programme and pursue a career as an Educational Psychologist. Laura’s interests are Attachment, Adverse Childhood Experiences and Trauma.
Olivia De Gioia
Assistant Psychologist
Due to personal circumstances as well as developing a keen interest in psychology during A-Levels, Olivia pursued a Psychology degree at Loughborough University and graduated in 2022. She has spent three years working as a Learning Support Assistant at a specialist school for Autism and developed her ability to apply psychological theory in practice. Her fascination with the psychological theory behind child development grew so much so that she decided to undertake a MSc in Applied Child Psychology which she is currently studying for alongside working for EPIC as an Assistant Psychologist. Olivia is excited to gain valuable experience and expertise in this role which will aid her in pursuing a career as an Educational Psychologist. Her interests include Autism, trauma, anxiety and attachment.
Jess Meadows
Trainee Educational Psychologist
After being on placement with EPIC during her first year of studies, Jess was appointed as a trainee Educational Psychologist for her second year of the Doctorate in Applied Educational Psychology at the University of Nottingham. Before gaining entry onto the course, Jess completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Birmingham in Psychology and subsequently trained to be a secondary school teacher. Despite loving teaching, Jess was fascinated with the application of psychological theory to helping the children and young people in her care to achieve their full potential. Since training as an Educational Psychologist, Jess has developed interests in strategies to support pupils with ADHD, Autism and Emotionally Based School Avoidance. Jess is looking forward to completing her training journey with EPIC and meeting all the brilliant children and young people we support.
Mia Griffin
Psychological Services Assistant (University Placement)
After studying Psychology for two years for her A-Levels, Mia was excited to further her knowledge of psychology as an undergraduate student at Loughborough University. After learning about how we, as children, learn in one of Mia’s optional modules, she has developed an interest in how this can impact an individual’s thought process. Mia is excited to learn more about Educational Psychology and how it operates in a workplace environment. She feels that her role as a Psychology Service Assistant with EPIC will enable her to develop practical skills that can elevate both her current and future theoretical knowledge. Mia is passionate about children’s mental health and the ways in which it can be improved with professional help. Mia’s goal is to work towards becoming an Educational Psychologist and hopes to positively impact the child’s life, as well as the family and the school involved.
Josie Cartledge
Psychological Services Assistant (University Placement)
Josie is currently an undergraduate student at Loughborough University studying a BSc in Psychology in Education. After studying psychology at A-level she developed a deep interest in child development and educational psychology, which led to her volunteering in local primary schools to develop her ability to apply psychological theories in the classroom. Josie is excited to learn more about the role of educational psychologists and gain valuable experience whilst working with EPIC, to hopefully pursue a doctorate in educational psychology in the future. Her interests include adverse childhood experiences, anxiety and strategies to support learners in the classroom.
Hannah George
Voluntary Assistant Placement
After studying for a BSc in Psychology at De Montfort University from 2018 until 2021, Hannah developed a particular interest in Educational Psychology and decided to put the theory studied at undergraduate level into practice within schools in her local area, notably in an independent specialist school for learners with social, emotional and mental health needs where she worked therapeutically to help learners to succeed. Hannah is currently studying for an MSc in Developmental and Educational Psychology at University College London alongside her role of being a Volunteer Assistant Psychologist as she feels that working for EPIC will be invaluablein the experiences it can offer before going onto doctoral training in Educational Psychology. Hannah’s particular interests lie within the areas of social, emotional and mental health, adverse childhood experiences, attachment and trauma.
Testimonials From Previous Assistants:
