People First
Our vision is to create a mental health service that young people are proud to tell their friends about.
The Wattle Tree Clinic’s primary goal is to provide mental health care that is relatable to young people. A huge part of this is achieved by the way we think of our team; as people first.
We select our team for their human qualities. Yes, their qualifications and skills are important. But their lived experiences of community and culture, of failure and achievement, are actually the things that make them great team members and even better humans.
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Michelle
Practice Manager
Michelle works her magic from a far, so you’ll never actually see her around the clinic, but it’s her who answers the phones, takes the bookings and manages the diaries. She’s like our virtual Mum, who can do ten things at once.
Michelle is a wizard when it comes to Medicare, and she never fails to chase our young people about getting their treatment plans sorted. When she’s not answering four phones at once, she’s taking long walks on the beach, watching animated movies or smothering her grandchildren in lots of love.
Work days - Monday to Friday.
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Courtney
Principal Clinical Psychologist
Courtney grew up on the South Coast by the beach and studied at UOW. She’s a massive bookworm, is obsessed with listening to podcasts and very much struggles to do nothing.
At work, Courtney has a special interest in supporting young people struggling with eating disorders. Since she graduated, she worked exclusively with young people, parents and families, across a range of different settings.
Alongside her clinical work, Courtney also has a huge passion for engaging youth in mental health care. The Wattle Tree Clinic is her commitment to this passion - to create a mental health service that makes a difference.
Work days - Mondays
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Arianna
Clinical Supervisor
In 2024 we decided we needed to add some more clinical muscle to our team. So we went on the hunt for an extra special supervisor. They needed to have years of experience working with children, adolescents and families, be a natural teacher, be warm and kind and most importantly LOVE the work they do.
And as all good stories start, Arianna turned up in our inbox, a recommendation from a colleague-of-a colleague-of-a-colleague.
Arianna is Clinical Psychologist and Board-Approved Supervisor who grew up and completed her studies across the ditch in New Zealand. Arianna’s now based in Sydney, having spent a decade working across various private, public and academic mental health settings. Alongside her work, Arianna is a proud cat mum of two fur babies, loves hiking, watching a good crime doco and apparently gets competitive when it comes to playing tennis.
Arianna joins us monthly as our group supervisor and provides 1:1 supervision for team as needed.
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Ash
Admin
No-one likes a Monday, but thankfully we have the lovely Ash in our office as our Monday admin and intake person. She’s the one who gets things sorted for the week ahead.
Ash has a background in mental health and has a passion for supporting young people to access mental health care that is relevant and meets their needs.
Alongside working with us here at Wattle Tree, Ash works as a Psychologist for NSW Health. Outside of work Ashleigh loves swimming in the ocean, bushwalks, reading and spending time with her therapy dog in training Rosie.
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Daisy
Registered Psychologist
In keeping with our theme, another UOW graduate! Daisy joins our team after spending two years working with children, adolescents, and families in the not-for-profit sector. She’s the daughter of an artist and a musician, but according to her, she did not inherit any of their artistic or creative abilities. When Daisy isn't working, she spends her time hanging out with her dog Winnie, going to live music, or buying plants for her house and trying to keep them alive.
At work, she endeavours to be as friendly and warm as possible. She describes herself as being fascinated by psychology, and always aims to form genuine connections with her clients. Daisy is joining the Wattle Team, hoping to extend her love for long term therapeutic work.
Work days - Tuesdays, Wednesdays & Thursdays.
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Dayle
Clinical Psychologist/PhD
Dayle remains on trend as a graduate of UOW. Having worked across a range of services and settings, Dayle finds working with young people and their families, the most rewarding. In her downtime, Dayle is always trying (and failing) to reach the bottom of her To-Be-Read pile of books, unwinding with video games, or just hanging out with her cat.
At work, Dayle gets that coming to see a psychologist can be a lot, and so she aims to create a genuine and warm space. She is flexible in her practice, and is able to draw from a number of therapies as needed. Overall, Dayle believes that people are doing their best with what they’ve got, and sees therapy as a way to deepen self-understanding and develop skills to help live your best life. She enjoys the journey of self discovery, and finds being able to walk alongside people in that journey an immense privilege. Dayle is also a board-approved supervisor.
Work days - Monday & Wednesday mornings. Dayle has AFTER HOURS appointments available on Mondays only.
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Sophie
Registered Psychologist
Sophie joins our team after studying at UOW and working for the last few years, supporting a diverse range of clinical presentations. She’s looking to join Wattle to further her love of supporting young people.
IRL Sophie is a tea drinker, a local AFL player and a musician. Sophie plays the guitar AND the fiddle, and she will jump at any chance to talk folk music. Apparently, this raises eyebrows in Wollongong’s punk/funk music scene.
In her work, Sophie has a great respect for working with young people and believes that children and adolescents often understand a lot more than the world might give them credit for. Sophie has interests in supporting young people with suicidality, those who identify as gender diverse, and LGBTIQ+ presentations. She loves nothing more than helping to navigate identity and growth and above all else, believes that recovery from mental illness is always possible and that there is always hope.
Work days - Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday. Sophie has AFTER HOURS appointments available through the week.
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Kate
Registered Psychologist
As an early career psychologist, Kate also joins our team after several years in the Not-for-Profit space. A graduate from UOW and Monash in Melbourne, Kate is looking to move into private practice to extend her skillset working with kids and families. Kate describes her approach to her work as warm and relaxed, seeking to meet her clients wherever they are at. Kate particularly loves working with families, helping to support parents with whatever is required to support their young one to thrive. Alongside this, Kate’s special interest area is working with young people with neurodevelopmental needs, because “they’re just great.”
When she’s not working, Kate spends most of her time with her dog and two cats, watching (read: binging) her favourite comfort series on repeat or playing Nintendo Switch.
Work Days – Mondays, Tuesday, Wednesdays & Thursdays. Kate has AFTER HOURS appointments available through the week.
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Kezia
Registered Psychologist
Kezia joins our team after moving to the area, from the Central Coast of NSW. A graduate of the University of Newcastle, Kezia worked clinically for a few years in private practice, whilst also dabbling in the equine/eco and art therapy spaces. From here, she moved into the Out of Home Care sector for a year, supporting kiddies with complex needs. Not surprisingly with this background, Kezia enjoys incorporating art and creativity into sessions (if clients are eager to express themselves that way!) and she understands that coming into a clinic can be intimidating so she aims to be as chill as possible. Kezia is passionate about helping children and adolescents navigate their social and emotional world, with her favourite clients being young one’s with neurodiversity.
In her free time, you’ll find Kezia painting, making ceramics, surfing, hiking and bird watching (yellow-tailed black cockatoos are her favourite!)
Work days - Wednesdays & Thursday mornings. Kezia has AFTER HOURS appointments available on Wednesdays only.
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*insert your name here*
We’re always searching for amazing psychologists to join us on the couch.
If you think that you fit the Wattle vibe, feel free to send us your resume!
Our Mission & Our Values
Our mission is to improve Australia’s youth mental health sector by providing uncomplicated clinical care that is designed specifically for young people. This means providing services that young people and their families understand, engage with and then feel capable of applying in their everyday life. Our clinicians understand the struggles of being young and the bigger picture of youth mental health – that small conversations had today, build resilient young people of tomorrow.
Compassionate
When times are tough, we know that kindness is one of the most powerful things we can offer our young people.
“Long after, people will forget what you said, but they’ll never forget how you made them feel.” – Said someone on the internet.
Grounded
We’re just people* helping other people with the overwhelming parts of their life. We keep ourselves firmly focused on the task at hand.
*suitably qualified people
Creative
Alongside traditional therapies, we think outside the box when it comes to wellbeing. We seek out clinicians who are confident in their craft, innovative and playful.
Inclusive
We understand that wellness grows from community, not just individual circumstances. We know it takes a village and we honour this, by inviting different perspectives, seeking collaboration and listening with the intent to understand the bigger picture.
Relatable
We get it. IYKYK.
Big Thinkers
We are rigorous thinkers, always asking questions, self reflecting and trying to figure out how we could contribute to things being done better.
The Wattle Way
Our Manifesto
We believe that young people can change the world, so long as they’re given the right tools.
At The Wattle Tree Clinic, our job is to provide the right tools at the right time for when mental health issues cause young people to get stuck. We strive to do this in the most effective and efficient way possible; because good therapy understands that wellness happens outside of the therapy room and that happiness happens when young people are supported to create their own change.
Alongside the actual work, we also believe in our responsibility in being drivers for social change. The quality of our day to day work extends beyond the young person in front of us. Our work contributes to wider community attitudes towards mental health and because we want the future to be better, we’re committed to doing this to the best of our abilities. We want to live in a world where mental health care is shameless, celebrated and commonplace.
Any Questions?
Visiting a psychologist can be a hard thing to do. It can be strange, especially if you’ve never done it before. But we’ve got you covered. We’ve put together a list of frequently asked questions, that hopefully eases any first timer nerves.