In our first episode of 2026, we speak to Dr. Laura Winter (Counselling Psychologist and researcher with a special interest in P/politics and social justice) and Dr. Richard Bennett (Clinical Psychologist, CBT / ACT therapist and Clinical Lead on the HICBT course at the University of Birmingham) about P/politics!

Key topics include:

- What we mean by P/politics, and the difference between Politics and politics

- How P/politics shows up in therapeutic environments

- Navigating P/political material as part of therapeutic journeys.

Lots of food for reflection in this episode, and we hope you found it as fascinating as we did!

KSASSISTANT:

Find out more information about the KSAssistant webapp (the tool that takes the scare out of the KSA portfolio process) at https://twolostsouls.co.uk/ksassistant.

ABOUT DR. LAURA WINTER:

Laura Winter (she/her) is an HCPC registered Counselling Psychologist and Reader in Education and Counselling Psychology in the Manchester Institute of Education.

Laura has published widely in the fields of counselling psychology and education, focusing largely on the interplay between social and political issues, education and wellbeing.

You can find out more about Laura's work at https://research.manchester.ac.uk/en/persons/laura.winter/

ABOUT DR. RICHARD BENNETT:

Dr Richard Bennett works as an Associate Professor on the CBT programmes at the University of Birmingham, where he co-leads the Postgraduate Diploma in HICBT, training therapists NHS Talking Therapies. He is qualified as a Clinical Psychologist and Occupational Therapist and regularly contributes to a range of professional training courses across the University.

More information on Dr. Bennett can be found at:

www.thinkpsychology.co⁠ - for therapy, supervision, and other enquiries

https://www.thinkpsychology.co/about.php?page=research-and-publications⁠ - for a list of Rich's publications

www.ACTivatingyourpractice.com⁠ - for training in ACT

https://2oldpsych.alitu.com/⁠ - for Dr. Rich and Dr. Ray Owen's ACT Training Podcast: Two Old Psychologists Talking About Stuff

Rich can also be found at @ThinkPsychol on Insta, Threads, and Bluesky.

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CONTACT TWO LOST SOULS

If you have queries or comments on this episode, or any other, you can email the podcast at ⁠⁠⁠hello@twolostsouls.co.uk⁠⁠⁠.

In this episode, we speak to Dr. Richard Bennett, clinical psychologist, and clinical lead of the HICBT course at the University of Birmingham about Acceptance and Commitment Therapy!

Key topics include:

• What ACT is and why you should use it;
• Differences between ACT and second wave CBT;
• Recent changes to the HICBT curriculum;
• Troubleshooting ACT Metaphors.

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In true ACT style, this is a wonderfully experiential episode, and we hope you enjoy it!

ABOUT DR. RICHARD BENNETT

Dr Richard Bennett works as an Associate Professor on the CBT programmes at the University of Birmingham, where he co-leads the Postgraduate Diploma in HICBT, training therapists NHS Talking Therapies. He is qualified as a Clinical Psychologist and Occupational Therapist and regularly contributes to a range of professional training courses across the University.

More information on Dr. Bennett can be found at:

www.thinkpsychology.co⁠ - for therapy, supervision, and other enquiries

https://www.thinkpsychology.co/about.php?page=research-and-publications⁠ - for a list of Rich's publications

www.ACTivatingyourpractice.com⁠ - for training in ACT

https://2oldpsych.alitu.com/⁠ - for Dr. Rich and Dr. Ray Owen's ACT Training Podcast: Two Old Psychologists Talking About Stuff

Rich can also be found at @ThinkPsychol on Insta, Threads, and Bluesky.

TLS AGENDA TIMER

Access TLS Agenda Timer (lets you visualise your agenda, set visual agendas collaboratively without the hassle of real-life whiteboards, notify you of your progress through agenda items) at https://timer.twolostsouls.co.uk, or download it for Android mobile phones at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=co.twolostsouls.sessiontimer.

Find out more about TLS Agenda Timer on YouTube!

JOIN THE COMMUNITY

Hear about upcoming episodes before anyone else and join the TLS community by joining our mailing list! Sign up now at ⁠⁠⁠www.twolostsouls.co.uk⁠⁠⁠

CONTACT TWO LOST SOULS

If you have queries or comments on this episode, or any other, you can email the podcast at ⁠⁠⁠hello@twolostsouls.co.uk⁠⁠⁠.

What!? Two episodes in one month!?

That's right! In this bonus episode of Two Lost Souls, we speak to Dr. Elizabeth Cotton (aka Surviving Work) about her new book, UberTherapy , in which she shares her perspective on how the therapeutic landscape has changed so far (particularly in relation to IAPT / Talking Therapies), the rise of online therapy platforms, and what this means for the therapeutic systems we work in, and the therapists that work within them.

An explorative, informative, and engaging conversation - and we look forward to hearing your thoughts!

ABOUT DR. ELIZABETH COTTON:

Elizabeth Cotton is an Associate Professor of Responsible Business at the University of Leicester and founder of Surviving Work, which researches mental health and its connection to work. She serves as a Trustee of the British Sociological Association and chairs the editorial board of its journal Work, Employment & Society. Her background includes extensive work with health teams and trade unions, including as Head of Education for IndustriALL (the Miner’s International), and she is a national executive member of the Psychotherapy & Counselling Union. A trained psychotherapist with NHS experience, she also leads the Digital Therapy Project, exploring the future of therapy in the digital age.

Elizabeth's new book, UberTherapy: The New Business of Mental Health (published by Bristol University Press) is OUT NOW!

JOIN THE COMMUNITY

Hear about upcoming episodes before anyone else and join the TLS community by joining our mailing list! Sign up now at ⁠⁠⁠www.twolostsouls.co.uk⁠⁠⁠

CONTACT TWO LOST SOULS

If you have queries or comments on this episode, or any other, you can email the podcast at ⁠⁠⁠hello@twolostsouls.co.uk⁠⁠⁠.