Natalie Scira
Registered Play Therapist & Clinical Supervisor
MCPT, B.Teach.Hons, B.Sc.Psych., APPTA RPT-S
About Natalie
Natalie recognises that play is the most powerful and natural way for children to communicate. She wants to help children find a voice through the Therapeutic Powers of Play so that they can move towards healing and achieve the best developmental, emotional and social outcomes. Natalie believes in nurturing each child’s socio-emotional health from early in life to ensure a sound foundation for a happy, healthy and well-adjusted adulthood.
Natalie appreciates the critical role played by the family and the child’s wider community as well as the impact of unique, early life experiences and the way these have been processed and understood. Natalie is welcoming and encouraging of including parents and carers in the therapeutic process and has witnessed firsthand how healing and transformative their presence and role can be. Natalie is passionate about helping to enhance the understanding of challenging behaviours through a neurobiological and Attachment lens and to support the development of relational approaches in navigating them. Natalie’s special interests include Trauma, Attachment & Anxiety.
Natalie holds a Master of Child Play Therapy from Deakin University, where she trained in Learn to Play and as a Child Centred Play Therapist & Filial Therapist. Natalie is a Registered Clinical Supervisor in Play Therapy (APPTA RPT-S), a Casual Academic at Deakin University and has served on the Board of Directors at APPTA (Australasian Pacific Play Therapy Association), the Australian peak Play Therapy registering body. Natalie has undertaken further training in Theraplay, TraumaPlay, Family Play Therapy and Family Attachment Narrative Therapy, Group Child Centred Play Therapy and is a Parent Learn to Play trainer. Natalie is a trained TORA (Teacher Optimal Relationship Approach) and CORA (Contextualised Optimal Relationship Approach) Facilitator for teachers and allied health professionals and also works as a consultant within the Education sector, where she was previously a Primary School Teacher for 15 years.