Operational SupportADO Services River Valley  - Here at River Valley, Our Future Is Helping Your Future

Our ADO River Valley Staff Team are supported by the main business team which are based at 126 Upper Wickham Lane, Welling, Kent, DA163DP.

Our administration team supports the staff on the ground, delivering the HR, accounts, development, project management and school office and exam functions. The team are experienced in managing a busy office and the resourcing necessary for students to have all the help and tools required to make their stay at ADO River Valley an enjoyable and rewarding experience.

Our Staff Team

ADO staff are a diverse and multi-functional team ensuring that we can provide the best educators and leaders for a whole range of subjects and learning opportunities as part of their study. We are proud that we have developed and trained many of our staff from within the company, providing them with opportunities to grow together with us/ along with us and flourish in their careers.

We have skillsets and qualified staff across many disciplines, which enables us to have such a comprehensive, flexible and holistic approach. This includes experience in the fields of academia, therapy, youth work, outdoor adventure sport, and PHSE for example. As a result, our students of all ages and abilities are provided with the best learning opportunities possible.

Skillsets

Our staff team have a wide range of education experience teaching children, young people and adults in our areas of expertise. Our team include staff with qualifications and vocational teaching experience in the following areas;

Mathematics  ♦  English  ♦ ICT ♦ Business Studies

Animal Care and Science  ♦  Equine Studies  ♦  Horticulture  ♦  Food Growing  ♦  Woodland Management  ♦  Bushcraft Practitioners  ♦  Conservation   

Health & Social Care  Youth Work

The needs of students are also supported by qualified therapists, who have certifications in;

♦  Animal Therapy  ♦  Equine Therapy  ♦  Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)  ♦  Relaxation Therapy  ♦  Mindfulness  

Occupational Therapy ♦ Neuro Linguistic Strategies

♦  Equine Facilitated Interactions, Neuro Linguistic Programming, Zones of Regulation, and ELKLAN 

♦  Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) ♦  Able Training: Module 1,2 3 Foundation Level in- Positive Behavioural Support, De-escalation, Defense, Disengagement, Safeholding and Restraint.

 

Meet Our Team

It takes a lot of dedicated staff to run a specialised education setting! Let's meet the team involved. Click or tap each slider bar to open for the biography's.

Management Team

Katie Palmer (née O'Brien) - Headteacher of ADO River Valley (Associate Director) - Designated Safeguarding LeadKate O'Brien

 

 

 

 

Victoria McHolland-Pilcher - Chair of Proprietor BodyVictoria ellipse

 

 

 

Onsite ADO River Valley Team

 Gary McHolland-Pilcher

Amy Kadiu - Deputy Headteacher and Maths and English Teacher

 

 

 

 

 

Emma Bronsdon - Sports and Creative EducatorEmma Bronsden

 

 

 

Charlotte Fenna -  Science EducatorCharlotte Fenna

 

 

 

 

Sara Buckley - Teaching Assistant & Therapist

Sara Buckley

 

 

 

Sarah Crawley - Occupational Therapist BSC 

 

Catherine Stevens - Art Therapist 

Michelle Brodie - Learning Support Assistant and PSHE Support EducatorMichelle Brodie

 

 

 

 

Dr Konstantina Tsoukala - Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist (Image Due Soon)

Konstantina has been working with ADO River Valley and our therapeutic intervention services for a few years through her role in Bromley CAMHS and has been a great support working with us in a multi agency approach. We are very pleased to be welcoming her to the team part time from September 2022

I am a Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist (I am qualified to work with young people up to the age of 25). I completed my bachelor’s degree (BSc) in Psychology at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. During my undergraduate studies, I volunteered for 3 years in a care home for children, named ‘Melissa’, which is based in Thessaloniki. This care home offered shelter and support to girls aged 5-18years. Additionally, in the context of my undergraduate studies, I completed my mandatory clinical practice in the Psychiatric Department of 424, General Army Hospital of Thessaloniki.
Since I completed my BSc, I moved to the UK where I completed my master’s degree (MSc) in Psychoanalytic Developmental Psychology in University College London/ UCL in collaboration with the Anna Freud Centre. During my MSc, I volunteered for a charity named Keeping Kids Company (previously known as Kids Company), which aimed at providing support to deprived children living in London.
For the next 2 years, I worked as an assistant in a parent-toddler group (children aged 1-3 years) at the Anna Freud Centre. Simultaneously, I worked as a healthcare assistant for adolescents who suffered with an eating disorder. In particular, I worked in Ellern Mede Ridgeway, an inpatient Unit for Adolescents with a diagnosis of an eating disorder. Simmons House Adolescent Unit (inpatient unit for adolescents who suffer with mental health difficulties) was another inpatient unit for adolescents that I worked in within the role of an assistant psychotherapist.
My theoretical as well as clinical training in psychoanalytic psychotherapy for children and adolescents was obtained through a four-year clinical doctoral program at UCL in collaboration with the Anna Freud Centre and the British Psychotherapy Foundation/bpf. During the 4-year training, I worked as a trainee Child & Adolescent Psychotherapist in a generic Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service / CAMHS in Southampton (Solent NHS Trust). Part of my training and work was also focused on supporting the parents/carers of the children/young people who were in therapy. Furthermore, for one year before the onset of this training and during it, I was in individual psychoanalytic psychotherapy, as a requirement of the program, with a frequency of three (for one year) and then four times (for four years) a week. During my clinical doctorate, I conducted my thesis in a private fostering agency, namely Five Rivers, and aimed at examining the Independent Foster Carers’ experience(s) and perception(s) of the support that they and the Young People under their care received within and outside their Fostering Agency.
Following the completion of my training, I worked as a qualified specialist Child & Adolescent Psychotherapist in Bromley CAMHS (OXLEAS NHS TRUST). In particular, I worked in the Neuro-Developmental & Learning Disabilities Department for Bromley CAMHS for 3 years. During my role within the service, I primarily worked with children in the autism spectrum, with a diagnosis of ADHD, as well as with learning difficulties or learning disability. Providing consultation and support to the parents/carers of these children consisted core part of my work. Simultaneously, I was trained in ADOS-2 (Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-Second Edition, Modules 1-4). The ADOS-2 is a standardized assessment tool which helps providers diagnose autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in children and adults.
Furthermore, I was trained in EMDR / Eye Movement, Desensitisation and Reprocessing and have attended and completed all the training modules (1, 2 and 3) offered by the educational provider ‘Richman EMDR Training’ in the UK. EMDR is a type of therapy which is mainly recommended for the treatment of psychological traumas.
Since 2022, I work in Greece and hold my private practice in the center of Thessaloniki, while remaining a member of the Association of Child Psychotherapists/ACP in England.
At the same time, I work remotely for ADO (both for ADO River Valley School and ADO Therapy), providing consultations to the team regarding individual children/young people who attend, supporting with the development of targeted pathways depending on young people’s presentation, creating parental/carer guidance to support young people at home on common struggles, as well as provision of bespoke parental/carer support. I also provide clinical supervision to ADO Therapists and am on hand to support all staff with strategies for working with young people but also with the staffs emotional resilience when required.
Finally, I am a peer reviewer at the Journal of Child Psychotherapy.

Joe Greenwood - Land Support Supervisor Joe Greenwood

 

 

 

Business Support Team

Kyle McHolland-Pilcher - Business Administrator and Exams OfficerKyle Image

 

 

 

 Gary McHolland-Pilcher

Gary McHolland-Pilcher - Chief Operating Officer & Company Secretary

 

 

 

 Gary McHolland-Pilcher

Laura Keeper - Business Administrator

 

 

Support Staff

Within the business we have several staff whom work flexible hours. They provide an important support mechanism for our core teams. 

Sarah Robertshaw - Staff Counsellor and Trainer - Sarah runs her own business but is contracted to ADO to provide regular training and counselling as required to staff.

Katie Huxstep - Animal Care Support Assistant - Katie provides weekend cover for animal care

Ella McHolland-Pilcher - Equine Care - Ella provides support to care and train the horse and ponies at ADO

The ADO Governance Committee

ADO also has an experienced and supportive management committee. Their biography's and information can be found HERE>

e: education@adorivervalley.co.uk

t: 020 8850 6778Last Updated 1st February 2021