Lisa Palmer is the Principal Counsellor and Consultant at Keystone Counselling and Consulting. Lisa is a professional counsellor and registered Social Worker (AASW) with over 20 years of experience working with children and their families. Lisa has worked in a range of settings including, Out of Home Care (foster care and residential care) and child protection. She has previously worked for many years as a children’s trauma counsellor in a family violence setting providing assessment and play therapy to assist in a child’s recovery. Lisa also worked for over 10 years in the Take Two Therapeutic program at Berry Street as a senior clinician providing specialised therapy to children and their families who had experienced trauma and attachment difficulties.

Lisa spent her childhood in a rural Aboriginal Community in the Bundjalung Nation (NSW). She has a special interest in working alongside Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and Communities. For many years, Lisa was also the Senior Clinician in the Aboriginal team at Take Two, Berry Street providing culturally appropriate counselling interventions with Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander children, families and communities.

Lisa has also worked extensively with refugee and asylum seeker communities who are survivors of trauma and torture and is experienced working cross culturally and using interpreters.

Lisa has a strong relationship focus and specialises in working with children and families who have experienced trauma and attachment disruption. Lisa has a passion for working with traumatised children and their families and has undertaken additional specialised training in Theraplay®, Dr Bruce Perry’s Neurosequential model, specialised Mental Health Assessment of Aboriginal clients with Dr Tracy Westerman and Advanced Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (DDP) training with Dr Daniel Hughes, in Maine USA.

Lisa is a mother of two and understands the delights and at times challenges that parenting can provide. She has a strong relational focus when working with families and aims to assist in building and strengthening relationships.