What age range does child therapy cover?

At Hampstead Psychology, this page focuses on child therapy for babies, toddlers, preschool children and primary-school-aged children. We also work with teenagers, but teenagers often need a different kind of support, which is covered separately on our teen therapy page.

Can babies and toddlers have therapy?

For babies and toddlers, the work is usually not therapy in the adult sense. It is often parent-infant or parent-focused work, helping parents understand feeding, sleep, settling, crying, toileting, separation, emotional regulation, bonding and the emotional impact of a difficult start.

When should I seek help for my child?

It may be worth seeking help if your child’s difficulties are affecting family life, sleep, eating, toileting, school, friendships, confidence or everyday routines. Parents also contact us when they feel unsure whether a difficulty is a phase, a sign of anxiety, a developmental issue or something that needs more specialist support.

Will I be involved in my child’s therapy?

Yes, especially with younger children. Parent involvement is often central to effective child therapy because many of the important changes happen in everyday routines, relationships and responses at home. The work is collaborative and is not about blaming parents.

Can child therapy help if I am unsure whether my child has anxiety, ADHD or autism?

Yes. Child therapy can help clarify what may be contributing to your child’s difficulties, including anxiety, emotional regulation, sensory sensitivities, developmental differences, school stress or family pressures. Therapy is different from a formal ADHD or autism assessment, but your psychologist can discuss whether a specialist assessment may be helpful.

Is online child therapy suitable?

Online work can be helpful in some situations, particularly for parent consultation and follow-up work. For babies, toddlers and some younger children, online support is often parent-focused. For older primary-school-aged children, online therapy may be suitable depending on the child, the difficulty and the goals of therapy.

Child Therapy for Babies, Toddlers and Primary-School Children

Child therapy at Hampstead Psychology offers specialist psychological support for younger children and their parents, from infancy through to the primary school years. Parents often come to us when something at home, nursery or school has started to feel difficult to understand or hard to manage, and they want careful, experienced guidance rather than generic advice.

You may be concerned about sleep, eating, toileting, anxiety, emotional outbursts, separation, school worries, confidence, friendships, behaviour, family stress or your child’s adjustment to change. Sometimes the difficulty is clear and specific. At other times, parents simply sense that their child is struggling, but are not sure whether the problem is emotional, developmental, behavioural, family-related, school-related or linked to something else.

At Hampstead Psychology, we offer child therapy and parent support in Hampstead, London and online where clinically appropriate. Our psychologists work carefully with children and families to understand what may be happening, what may be keeping the difficulty going, and what kind of support is likely to help.

This page is for information and does not replace a clinical assessment, diagnosis or medical advice.

Child therapy at different stages of development

Support for babies and parents

In the earliest years, psychological support is usually focused on the parent-infant relationship, early regulation and helping parents feel more confident in understanding their baby’s needs. Parents may seek help with feeding, sleep, crying, settling, bonding, adjustment to parenthood, postnatal anxiety, birth trauma or the emotional impact of a difficult start.

This work is not about suggesting that a baby needs therapy in the adult sense. It is about supporting the relationship around the baby, understanding patterns of distress, and helping parents find steadier, more effective ways through a demanding and often emotionally charged stage.

Support for toddlers and preschool children

Toddlers and preschool children often show distress through behaviour, routines and big emotional reactions. Parents may seek help with sleep problems, eating difficulties, toileting struggles, separation anxiety, tantrums, fears, clinginess, aggression or daily battles around transitions. At this age, difficulties can quickly become exhausting for the whole family. A child may refuse certain foods, struggle to settle, become very distressed when separated, or need high levels of control around everyday routines. Therapy helps parents understand what may be driving the pattern and how to respond in ways that support emotional regulation, confidence and change.

Therapy for primary-school-aged children

Primary-school-aged children may struggle with anxiety, school worries, friendship difficulties, low confidence, emotional outbursts, anger, sleep problems, family changes, bereavement, illness or adjustment to stressful events. Some children can talk about what feels wrong, while others show distress through avoidance, behaviour, physical complaints, tearfulness, irritability or becoming harder to reassure. Therapy may involve direct work with the child, parent sessions, family work or liaison with school where appropriate. The aim is to understand the difficulty in context and develop practical strategies that help in everyday life.

What child therapy can help with

Emotional regulation and big feelings

Some children feel emotions very intensely and find it hard to calm down once they are upset, frightened, frustrated or angry. Therapy can help children and parents understand triggers, build regulation skills and reduce patterns that keep emotional outbursts going.

Anxiety, fears and separation difficulties

Children may become anxious about being away from parents, going to school, sleeping alone, trying new things, making mistakes or coping with uncertainty. Therapy helps children build confidence gradually while supporting parents to respond in a calm and effective way.

Eating, sleeping and toileting difficulties

Eating, sleeping and toileting problems can place enormous pressure on family life. Psychological support can help identify whether anxiety, habit patterns, sensory sensitivities, control struggles, developmental stage or family stress may be contributing.

School worries, confidence and friendships

Some children struggle with school transitions, friendship difficulties, shyness, perfectionism, bullying, confidence or performance worries. Therapy can help children understand their feelings, develop coping strategies and feel more able to manage school life.

Family change, illness, loss and adjustment

Children can be affected by separation, bereavement, illness, a new sibling, moving home, parental stress or medical treatment. Therapy can help them process change in an age-appropriate way and support parents in understanding how distress may be showing up.

Support for parents, without blame

Many parents come to us feeling worried, exhausted or unsure what to do next. They may have tried several approaches already and feel frustrated that the same difficulties keep repeating. Parent work at Hampstead Psychology is not about blame. It is about understanding the pattern around the child and finding practical, psychologically informed ways forward.

For younger children, parent involvement is often central to effective therapy. Small changes in how a difficulty is understood and responded to can make a significant difference to family life, especially when parents have been caught for a long time in exhausting cycles of reassurance, negotiation, conflict, avoidance or uncertainty.

Explore all issues here >

What keeps child difficulties going?

Children’s difficulties are rarely maintained by one single factor. A child may be anxious, unsettled, angry, withdrawn or hard to reassure for understandable reasons, but the pattern can become more fixed over time through the ways the child, parents, school and wider environment all respond to the distress.

For younger children, short-term solutions can sometimes keep difficulties going. A parent may naturally offer extra reassurance, avoid certain situations, change routines, negotiate around sleep or eating, or step in quickly to prevent distress. These responses often make sense in the moment, especially when everyone is tired or under pressure, but they can sometimes make it harder for the child to build confidence, flexibility and emotional regulation over time.

Difficulties can also be maintained by developmental stage, temperament, sensory sensitivities, family stress, school pressure, physical health issues, previous frightening experiences or uncertainty about what the child needs. Therapy helps by making the pattern clearer, reducing blame, and identifying practical changes that support the child and family in everyday life.

See our other pages here: Couples Therapy, Teen Therapy, Autism Assessment, Parenting Support, Family Support, Fees, Meet the Team, Contact.

How child therapy can help

Child therapy begins with careful assessment. Your psychologist will want to understand your child’s development, emotional wellbeing, family relationships, school or nursery life, routines, strengths and current difficulties.

The work is then tailored to your child and family. Depending on the concern, therapy may involve direct child sessions, parent consultation, family sessions, school liaison or practical home strategies. We do not offer generic advice or a one-size-fits-all approach; the aim is to build a clear understanding of what is happening and use this to guide meaningful change.

ADHD, autism and developmental questions

Some parents seek child therapy because they are unsure whether their child’s difficulties are emotional, behavioural, developmental or linked to ADHD, autism or sensory sensitivities. These questions can be important, particularly when a child is struggling across home, nursery, school, friendships, routines or emotional regulation.

Therapy can help clarify what may be contributing, but it is different from a formal diagnostic assessment. Where an ADHD or autism assessment may be helpful, this can be discussed as part of the wider clinical picture.

How long does support take?

This varies depending on the nature of the difficulty, how long it has been present, and what kind of help is needed. Some families come for focused short-term work around a particular concern. Others need longer-term support where difficulties are more complex or have been present for some time. We review progress together so that the work stays purposeful and helpful.

Child therapy in Hampstead and online

Hampstead Psychology offers child therapy in Hampstead, London and online where clinically appropriate. For babies, toddlers and some younger children, online work is often most useful when it is parent-focused, while for older primary-school-aged children, online therapy may be suitable depending on the child, the difficulty and the goals of the work.

Contact Hampstead Psychology to enquire about therapy for children, teens and families in London or online.

Meet The Team

At Hampstead Psychology, all of our psychologists have extensive training to doctoral level and decades of experience in their field of expertise. You will be matched with a psychologist who has the knowledge and skill to help you understand and overcome your problem - not just in the short term but for good.

Explore how we work here >