About Us

Maria began her counselling career in 2003 as a founding member of DACS, a charity supporting women struggling with domestic abuse. She then moved to WDVSS working, as a counsellor, with children and families involved in domestic abuse. She has, over the past seventeen years been a school counsellor in several schools across Warwickshire and Leicestershire and was briefly, through Children First, a service provider for the NHS.

With a vast personal experience of autism, Maria has become particularly knowledgeable in this field, recognising the need for, and the lack of, understanding and access to free support around autism and other mental health difficulties, and so founded Echoes Charity with her colleague Elissa Vale.

In her own private practice, New Level therapy, she supports individuals, families, young people and children on a one to one basis, but aims, through Echoes Charity, to provide that support for the many. As well as supporting parents, it is her long-term goal to promote awareness, understanding and needs around autism and mental health, to share supportive and effective strategies in educational and work environments, enabling children, young people and adults who would otherwise struggle, to feel comfortable and to thrive!

Having studied Psychology, Philosophy and done a Post Grad in Education at University, Elissa Vale went on to teach in Primary schools in London. She then worked in business as a conference organiser, office manager and senior account manager for worldwide organisations.

After this, Elissa retrained as a Psychotherapist and Counsellor and was fully qualified and registered in 2001. She co-founded an Emotional Literacy training company, working with teachers and businesses and began her own private therapy practice. As well as working privately, which she still does part-time, Elissa worked at Signpost (a young people’s counselling service in Watford); Relate, training therapists to work in schools and then co-founded Echoes Charity with her colleague Maria Robinson. Elissa works with individuals, couples, families and groups at her practice Your Safe Harbour in Rugby. She works primarily around communication and relationships with others, but also specialises in working with the bereaved, autistic and other neurodiverse clients, IVF, and those who have been abused in the past. This charity is her dream to provide Mental Health support to everyone in need, regardless of circumstance.

Wendy Harrison took a BA Honours in geography at London University in 1965. She taught in a variety of schools in a very satisfying career lasting 38 years. The last 19 of these was in a school for blind and partially sighted children, some of whom were also autistic.

In the last five years of this she became increasingly aware of the need for access to counselling for children with a variety of problems. Therefore she did a Diploma in Counselling at Warwick University and took a placement at Rugby Domestic Violence Support Services becoming very involved in counselling both victims and perpetrators. She was very aware that there was no service for children so, when funding became available, she became Children’s Counsellor and, eventually Chair of the service.

She maintains her belief that many people are in urgent need of counselling but have no access to it. Therefore, she is proud to be in the position of Chair of Echoes and to be part of the work being done.

Andrew has a passion for HR, and a strong belief that his clients should receive the highest quality service and advice. Following a successful career as a people manager in banking, Andrew then transferred to corporate HR within the same industry and found his calling. He went on to head up HR departments both in the UK and overseas, until his decision to depart from corporate HR and set up his own private consultancy, which now has a client base across the entire country. 

He is an advocate for regarding staff as a company’s biggest asset but also actively markets himself as a HR Consultant who doesn’t do ‘pink and fluffy’.  He is able to find a balance between personal and business needs.  He demonstrates to his clients how to remove the pains of employment and HR issues, simplify the employment process whilst ensuring full legal compliance, and use it as a tool to add value to a business.  He has also done a significant amount of work around dealing with Mental Health in the workplace and upskilling managers so theyhave the capability to identify early warning signs’.

My name is Toni Jackson and I am a founding trustee for Echoes Charity. Most of working life has been in public sector roles, often helping and supporting those with mental health needs and hidden disabilities. I am passionate about providing help and support for those who need it in a way that is accessible for them.

I have a daughter and a step-daughter who are both in their late twenties and it has been a delight to watch then grow and flourish as they have got older, providing help and support as they have tried to deal with life’s obstacles. I have recently started running and am part way through half marathon training – although I do continually ask myself why I am doing this! I love reading and can’t relax to sleep without reading for at least half an hour. I love sci-fi and fantasy novels but have surprised myself recently by embracing crime fiction.