Who are we?
Our experts are all nationally and internationally recognised professionals working in British Sign Language with people who are audiologically and/or culturally deaf. They have shaped policy and practice nationally and across Europe, and continue to work in a variety of domains and geographical areas across the UK.
Clinical Psychologist and Neuropsychologist
Dr Joanna Atkinson
Dr Atkinson specialises in neuropsychology. She is based in London but will travel. She is a qualified clinical psychologist with additional qualifications in neuropsychology. She offers medicolegal reports, neuropsychological assessment, rehabilitation and therapy, personal injury work, capacity assessments, consultancy, and training. She is a highly fluent user of British Sign Language. She specialises in working with deaf adults and children where there are concerns about cognition, memory or language abilities. Areas of expertise include acquired brain injury, brain disease (infections, epilepsy, tumours), neurodegenerative disorders; (dementias, movement disorders), neurodevelopmental conditions/ neurodiversity (learning disability, ADHD, autistic spectrum disorders, dyslexia). She is skilled at working with older adults, deafblind people, and deaf people with language impairments.
Professional Memberships
BPS membership number: 295666
HCPC practitioner psychologist registration: PYL35238
Additional Information
Fluent BSL
Contact
joanna.atkinson@ucl.ac.uk
Consultant Clinical Psychologist
Dr Kevin Baker
Dr Baker is based in the East Midlands but will travel anywhere in the UK. He has personal experience of living, working and socialising with Deaf people lasting over 40 years, while working within deaf clinical psychology since 2005. He communicates fluently in BSL, and works with deaf adults, children and families, and those with learning disabilities; offering medico-legal reporting, family work, capacity assessments, psychological therapy, forensic risk assessments, consultancy and training.
Professional memberships
BPS membership number: 171111
HCPC practitioner psychologist registration: PYL02156
Additional information
Fluent BSL
EMDR trained
Enhanced DBS Certification
Consultant Counselling Psychologist
Dr Andrew Cornes
Dr. Cornes is based in Liverpool but will travel anywhere in the UK. He is also a qualified social worker and family and systemic psychotherapist. He has worked with Deaf individuals since 1988. He is the Expert who provided the final opinion to the Court of Appeal in Re C (A Child) 2014 EWCA Civ 128. He is a Fellow of the British Psychological Society and a Senior Fellow at the University of Melbourne, Australia. He has worked as an expert in health with the World Federation of the Deaf. He can provide parenting assessments, psychological assessments of children and adolescents, parental and inter-sibling attachment assessments and together and apart assessments. He can provide assessments of violence and risk in young people. He can offer training and consultancy on parenting and CSE.
Professional Memberships
HCPC practitioner psychologist registration: PYL30643
BPS membership number: 250885
Additional Information
BSL Level 3 (Advanced)
EMDR trained
Enhanced DBS Certification
Clinical Psychologist
Dr Mary Griggs
Dr Griggs is based in Bristol but can travel within Bristol, S.Glos, Gloucestershire and the South West of England. She has been working with deaf people since 1994 and as a Clinical Psychologist in this field since 2004. She works with deaf adults and offers medicolegal reporting, criminal case advice, capacity assessments, personal injury work and other areas of clinical assessment and therapy.
Professional memberships
HCPC practitioner psychologist registration: PYL04336
BPS membership number: 127003
Additional information
BSL NVQ Level 6
EMDR Accredited Practitioner P-11753
Consultant Clinical Psychologist
Dr Sue O'Rourke
Dr O'Rourke is based in the northwest of England but travels extensively across the UK. She has been working with deaf people since 1989 as a clinical psychologist and for the last few years as a qualified British Sign Language / English interpreter. She works with deaf adults, older adults, people with learning disabilities, and people with acquired brain injury. Dr O'Rourke can provide medicolegal reporting, family work, advice to criminal cases, personal injury work, cases of clinical negligence, assessment for therapy, capacity assessments and a range of consultancy and training.
Professional memberships
HCPC practitioner psychologist registration: PYL 17955
AFBPsS membership number: 024008
NRCPD 1013914
Additional information
EMDR trained
BSL NVQ 6
Qualified BSL/English Interpreter