Our Team
Chief Executive Officer
Verra Papaspyrou qualified as a counsellor in 2003 and joined CPC. She has worked within social care in East Sussex since 2000.
Previous to becoming the CEO for Counselling Plus in December 2013, Verra managed various services supporting some of the most vulnerable people in society via family support, parenting programmes and young people support services.
email: [email protected]
Clinical Manager
Ann York began her counselling journey in 1996, training with Relate and working in that role for a decade. She later pursued further qualifications in person-centred counselling, completing her training at the University of Brighton in 2016. Ann joined Counselling Plus as a student counsellor in 2015 and has also contributed her expertise to organisations such as Macmillan and Headway.
Building on her experience, Ann went on to complete an Advanced Diploma in Clinical Supervision. She now serves as the Clinical Manager at Counselling Plus, where she oversees the delivery of high-quality therapeutic support.
Clinical Leads
Rachel Burniston (on left) trained as a counsellor in 2013 and qualified in Transactional Analysis psychotherapy in 2016. She joined Counselling Plus as a volunteer in April 2014 and after a diploma in supervision, became a Clinical Lead in February 2023.
Margareta Mayhew-Pilar joined the team as our second Clinical Lead and assessor in 2025.
Office Manager
Laura Smith is the Office Manager, she joined the charity as a member of the admin team in 2011.
Admin Team
Stacey and Jules make up the admin team. Stacey joined in October 2019 and Jules joined in January 2024.
