Meet the Team

  • Simon Burns

    Psychologist

  • Teena Kennedy

    Psychologist

  • Nikki Buchanan

    Clinical Psychologist

Simon Burns

With 20 years experience working as a psychologist Simon has enjoyed working amongst adult and child client populations, providing psychological counselling and assessment services. Predominately, he has been situated within the forensic field of psychology services, completing assessment and treatment services for high intensity behaviours. However, his experience extends to youth counselling programs.

Simon’s interest lies in working therapeutically with youth and adolescents; around mood disorders, adjustment difficulties, high intensity behaviours, and for all assessment requirements for cognitive and memory related difficulties. Predominantly, his therapeutic approach is one of a Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. However, he additionally incorporates Schema Therapy, Mindfulness, Psychoeducational and Behavioural Approaches to therapeutic interventions.

In addition to his work with children and adolescents, Simon has worked with adults for over 20 years, managing and treating high intensity forensic behaviours. In particular, his experience focused on working with individuals experiencing chronic mental health concerns, along with other difficulties including drug and alcohol addiction.

Aside from his work with clients, for the past 10 years Simon has provided supervision and training to provisional psychologists, working with practitioners to achieve general registration with the Psychology Board of Australia.

Services: Assessment, Intervention and Supervision

Registration: PSY0001403376

Teena Kennedy

Teena has over 24 years of practice, 19 of which as a Senior Psychologist. She has worked within both the public service and private practice in a variety of settings; including Telehealth, face to face individual and group therapy. After 24 years of psychological practice and as a woman, mother and grandmother, Teena’s interest in psychology has varied as ‘time goes by’ and includes mental health wellbeing, perinatal depression, relationships, trauma, illness, grief bereavement and supporting a loved one with chronic or terminal illness. Her passion is to watch her clients grow, and prosper, manage life’s ups and downs and accomplish treatment goals, working toward a happy and fulfilling life. Self-care is important. In her spare time you'll find Teena exercising, skating, surfing and snow skiing. 

Her Approach

Teena provides psychological counselling specifically tailored to meet individual needs in a relaxed, supportive and non-judgemental setting. Therapeutic approaches include Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Interpersonal Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) frameworks. These approaches empower clients to develop to a greater understanding of their thoughts, feelings, and actions, their impacts, and developing new and helpful ways of responding. She also integrates into her sessions elements of Mindfulness, Relaxation Therapy and Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT). 

Services: Assessment, Intervention and Supervision

Registration: PSY0001250635

Nikki Buchanan

Nikki is a Clinical Psychologist with 18 years experience and a Board Approved Supervisor up to, and including Clinical Endorsement.

Her work is centred in a Forensic setting. She has extensive experience in working with complex presentations, dual diagnosis, mental health, self-injurious behaviour, personality disorders, intellectual disability and other additional needs. Her expertise extends to report writing and assessments: including cognitive assessments, personality assessments and risk assessments, in particular sex offender and violent offender risk assessments.

Nikki has also enjoyed working with clinicians, offering supervision via the original 4+2 model, masters placements and as a clinical registrar. Furthermore, she has supervised 4+2 interns, masters placement students and registrars. Enjoying supervision is a priority. Her process is one of collaboration, offering a relaxed and professional approach to supervision. Ultimately, Nikki’s goal is to guide and assist psychologists to be highly competent and effective.

Services: Nikki is available for individual and group supervision via Telehealth or face-to-face in the Central Coast area.

Registration: PSY000122643