Slovensko

About us

The Counselling Centre for Children, Adolescents and Parents Ljubljana (60 years, 1955-2015)

Full Organisation Name:		SVETOVALNI CENTER ZA OTROKE, MLADOSTNIKE IN STARŠE Ljubljana
Short Organisation Name:		Svetovalni center, Ljubljana
Address:		Gotska ulica 18, 1000 Ljubljana
VAT ID number:		60489332
Company registration number:		5050243000
Bank account number:		IBAN SI56 0126 1603 0925 337 (S) Banka Slovenije
Court/business register entry number and date:		10049400, z dne 14.10.1974
Main Activity:		86.220 (Special. zunajboln. zdravstvena dej.)
Phone:		+386 1 5837500
Email:		info@scoms-lj.si
Managing director		Mateja Hudoklin, director

WE LISTEN – UNDERSTAND – ENCOURAGE – PROVIDE COUNSEL

Our organisation has been active ever since the establishment of the Educational Counselling Service in 1955; it was established under the auspices of the city of Ljubljana.

In 1974 it was renamed the Counselling Centre for Children, Adolescents and Parents Ljubljana. In 1995 it was granted the status of WHO Collaborating Centre for the Mental Health of Children and Adolescents.

The Counselling Centre is a professional institution bringing together a wide array of experts and occasionally also outside collaborators. It employs 28 people, 20 of which are specialists: specialists in clinical psychology, psychologists, special teachers, two social workers, two psychiatrists, one pedagogue and one speech therapist.

WHAT IS OUR ROLE?

We operate as a public institution integrating various fields of health care, education and social welfare. We provide professional help for children, adolescents and parents. Parents or adolescents may attend their first consultation on their own request or via appointment made by a school counselling service or general practitioner. Our aim is to determine the problems that a child or adolescent concerned is facing. We select the proper treatment and decide which specialists they should be referred to. Whenever it should prove necessary, and on their parents’ approval, we will also establish cooperation with his/her nursery school, primary/secondary school, general practitioner, specialist doctor, department of social welfare, and other relevant institutions, so that the child or adolescent concerned can be provided holistic help as possible. Our work combines prevention, diagnostics, counselling and treatment therapy.

Our activities comprise:

diagnostic, counselling and therapeutic services,
group work,
voluntary work,
preventive and community oriented work,
education,
development research and innovative activities,
publishing.

DIAGNOSTIC, COUNSELLING AND THERAPEUTIC SERVICES

Individual treatment is based on a team approach of several different specialists who assess the child or adolescent’s problems, monitor him/her, and provide counsel or therapeutic guidance. With parents and teachers, we, on the other hand, develop partnership cooperation, informing them of their child’s problems and encourage them to feel more competent in their role.

WE PROVIDE HELP TO:

CHILDREN

with learning difficulties and specific learning disabilities (especially in reading, writing and arithmetic),
with speech and language disabilities,
dealing with attention deficit disorder, short-term memory deficit and other memory problems,
being fidgety, hyperactive, restless,
feeling unhappy, sad, worried, moody,
feeling afraid and anxious,
feeling lonely, alienated, having difficulties establishing interpersonal contacts,
being puckish, mischievous, undisciplined, rowdy, lying, pilfering, running away from home,
having difficulties with adaptaton to new setting or new environment ( nursery school, school), changes in family or home situations (death, divorce…),
having general or specific motoric problems, as well as sleeping, feeding, urination and defecation disorders,
having experienced a severe trauma, violence or sexual abuse.

ADOLESCENTS

finding themselves in various emotional difficulties,

lacking self-confidence,
finding themselves at odds with their parents, teachers and peers,
not being understood by their parents, teachers,
with learning difficulties and disabilities,
feeling disliked by others,
with motivation and study problems,
not knowing what they want and where they belong,
feeling rejected by the society or feeling alienated, lonely,
having fallen into bad company and taken on inappropriate habits,
having lost their will to live,
as well as everybody else who would wish to visit us and be listened to.

PARENTS

being worried whether their child develops properly,
in need of help in raising their child,
finding themselves in conflict with their child,
not knowing how else to help their child with learning difficulties,
wishing to help their child overcome a difficult experience,
seeking to understand the nature of the problems, experienced by their children or adolescent.

To be able to understand the scope of problems, we identify and help develop the child or adolescent’s abilities thus enhancing his/her internal strengths to cope more with everyday problems.

GROUP WORK

In addition to individual help we recommend for certain children and adolescents to join a group where they will be able to develop various skills, learn appropriate learning strategies and manage their behaviour. Thus, they will also acquire new experience, become acquainted with peers who experience similar problems, as well as improve their skills and regain self-esteem.

We organise and lead groups:

for children with attention deficit disorder,
for children and adolescents with learning difficulties and disabilities,
for acquiring self-control,
for acquiring social skills,
for artistic-therapeutic workshops,
parental groups.

VOLUNTARY WORK

As a supplement to diagnostic and counselling services, our institution offers help by volunteers for children who need additional initiatives in their social integration. Voluntary work is performed by students of various faculties. Once a week they visit children either at home or at school. They not only help them learn, but also talk, play and spend time with these children. In the company of volunteers, the latter can relax, find relief from various pressures and activate their abilities. Volunteers are provided with education and training programmes comprising lectures and supervision meetings, as well as the opportunity to meet their protégés’ counsellors or therapists. Our institution also fosters various ways of cooperation in spreading the volunteers’ ideas and supports the development of new projects.

PREVENTIVE AND COMMUNITY ORIENTED WORK

We organize larger team meetings in cooperation with teachers, parents, pre-school teachers, school counselling services and other specialists directly involved with children, as well as health and social care services, non-governmental and other organisations that may in any possible way contribute to our solving the issues of child and family care. We thus spread the knowledge and awareness of problems affecting many children and adolescents who may not have access to help, and encourage the development of sensitivity to identify and understand their distresses.

EDUCATION

Through direct involvement with children, adolescents, parents and specialists we combine practical experience with theoretical and research findings. We disseminate the acquired in-depth knowledge through seminars and lectures. Particular attention is devoted to the following topics: hyperkinetic disorders, specific learning disabilities, learning motivation, reading for learning, influence of emotional factors on learning, communication at school, development of positive self-concept, developmental features typical of children and adolescents, domestic violence, child sexual abuse (both intrafamilial and extrafamilial), prevention of suicide and suicidal behaviour in children and adolescents.

We provide mentorship for students of various faculties who conduct their practicums, exercises, in-class observations, traineeships; for part-time students and students specialised in various fields.
We disseminate our knowledge to pre-school teachers, teachers and specialists working atnursery schools, schools and educational institutions. We offer a choice between individual and group supervision.

We organise lectures and expert meetings treating topical issues, as well as attend consultations, conferences and congresses, both at home and abroad.

We invite the parents of children who come to the Counselling Centre to attend parental school which includes meetings dealing with development, educational and learning issues.

We provide lectures for parents at numerous schools across Slovenia.

DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH AND INNOVATIVE ACTIVITIES

We carry out and collaborate in various applied research projects concerning the protection and promotion of children’s mental health and learning competence. In collaboration with other researchers and institutions we work on up-dating and developing new concepts and methods, implementing theoretical and research findings into practice and participate in the conceptualization of various systemic documents.

PUBLISHING

We publish both expert and popular publications, as well as books that address development, learning and educational issues. The latter are based on multi-year experience. We offer our cooperation as authors and co-authors of contributions in daily print, expert magazines and other media. Our books are also published by other publishing houses.

OTHER ACTIVITIES

Commission for the Placement of Children with Special Needs conducting examination and guidance for children when placed appropriate educational programmes.
Specialised Group for the Treatment of Psychological Stress and Trauma (conducting assessment of consequences and providing help to overcome various traumatic events).
Court-experts nominated by Courts, they cooperate with Centres for Social Work in cases dealing with post-divorce child custody arrangements, benefits or risks of parent-child contacts, sexual abuse and other forms of violence.

SOCIETIES

The following two societies have their head offices within the Counselling Centre:

The Bravo Society (Društvo Bravo) – the society for helping children with specific learning disabilities. It organises lectures, seminars, training programmes and expert meetings for parents and teachers. It does not only publish its own gazette but also other expert publications.
Slovenian Association for Behaviour and Cognitive Therapies (Društvo za vedenjsko in kognitivno terapijo Slovenije). It educates and trains psychologists and doctors in behaviour and cognitive therapy, as well as conducts publishing activity.

HOW TO CONTACT US

You are all welcome to call us – adolescents, parents, school counsellors and other persons of crucial importance in child development. We will listen to you and make an appointment with you.
Upon your visit, please, do not forget to bring your child’s health insurance card.

WHERE TO FIND US

Gotska ulica 18, SI-1000 Ljubljana; Slovenia
Tel.: +386 (0)1 583-75-00
Fax : +386 (0)1 519-11-20
e-mail: info@scoms-lj.si