The Knightsbridge Practice Team
Professional psychologists and therapists in West London
The Knightsbridge Practice team is composed of experienced professionals who bring together clinical expertise, strategic vision, and a shared commitment to excellence in mental healthcare. Our leadership team ensures that every aspect of the practice - from therapeutic standards to client experience - is held to the highest standard.
​
With backgrounds in psychology, healthcare management, and organisational development, our leaders work collaboratively to create a practice where both clients and clinicians feel valued, supported, and inspired to grow. United by a belief in the power of thoughtful, relationship-led care, The Knightsbridge Practice team plays a central role in shaping the trusted reputation we’re known for today.
Dr Alex Thomas
Counselling Psychologist
Following a successful career in the corporate sector, a personal journey through trauma led Dr. Alex Thomas to discover her true vocation in psychological therapy. The guidance and support she received during that time - from a therapist who offered both depth and clarity - became the foundation for her own commitment to supporting others with the same presence and care.
Dr. Thomas’s therapeutic style is active and engaged, offering a reflective space in which clients can explore meaning, direction, and personal growth. She works with a broad range of emotional concerns and holds particular expertise in trauma, anxiety (including obsessive-compulsive presentations), burnout, substance misuse, and the psychological impact of living with long-term health conditions such as HIV.
She works primarily with adults and has a strong commitment to inclusive, affirming care for the LGBTQIA+ community. Her approach is integrative and relational, drawing upon Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT), alongside psychodynamic and existential frameworks. This flexible approach allows her to tailor each therapeutic experience to the unique needs, histories, and goals of her clients.
Dr. Thomas is known for her calm, thoughtful presence and her capacity to create a non-judgemental space where clients feel respected and empowered. She is a registered member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP), a Chartered Member of the British Psychological Society (BPS), and a registered Counselling Psychologist with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).
Dr Maria Martinez
Chartered Counselling Psychologist
Dr Maria Martinez is a Chartered Counselling Psychologist with extensive experience across the NHS, third-sector organisations, and private practice. Known for her warm, thoughtful, and collaborative presence, she offers a safe and confidential therapeutic space where clients feel deeply heard, respected, and supported in navigating life’s emotional challenges.
Drawing on clinical experience and a genuine passion for emotional wellbeing, Dr Maria Martinez helps clients make sense of their inner world and move toward greater clarity, confidence, and self-understanding. Her work centres on helping people untangle the impact of past experiences, navigate anxiety, depression, self-esteem or relationship difficulties, and rediscover a more grounded connection with themselves.
Dr Martinez works collaboratively with clients to explore the deeper layers of their emotions and life experiences - supporting them to identify patterns, reconnect with their values, and create meaningful change. Her approach is gentle yet insightful, helping clients develop resilience, self-compassion, and a renewed sense of purpose.
​
Her therapeutic style is integrative, combining the depth of Psychodynamic and Existential thinking with the practical tools of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), alongside the empathy of Person-Centred Therapy. This flexible and relational approach allows her to tailor each session to the unique needs, pace, and goals of the individual - whether they seek to process the past, strengthen emotional regulation, or cultivate personal growth.
​
Dr Martinez holds a Doctorate in Counselling Psychology from Regent’s University London, an MSc in Social Cognition from University College London (UCL), and a MA (Hons) in Psychology from The University of Edinburgh. She is a Chartered Member of the British Psychological Society (BPS) and registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC), reflecting her commitment to the highest professional and ethical standards.
​
Her professional background includes work within the NHS, mental health charities, and private practice, offering her a broad understanding of the complexities of human experience. This diverse experience has shaped her belief that therapy is not only about easing distress but about fostering a deeper connection with oneself and one’s life.
​
At The Knightsbridge Practice, Dr Martinez’s aim is to create a space where clients feel seen and supported as they navigate their own path toward healing, authenticity, and emotional balance. She is a culturally competent practitioner who welcomes clients from all backgrounds, identities, and beliefs. She offers a respectful and supportive space for anyone seeking therapeutic support.
Sessions are available in both English and Spanish.
Gloria Sankey
Psychosexual & Relationship Psychotherapist | PGDip Psychosexual & Relationship Therapy | FDN Cert in Counselling and Psychotherapy | MCOSRT (reg.) | MNCPS (acc.)
Gloria is a qualified psychosexual and relationship psychotherapist dedicated to helping individuals and couples navigate the complexities of intimacy, sexuality and emotional bonds. She is registered with the College of Sexual and Relationship Therapists (COSRT), the UK's leading professional body for these specialist fields and is also an accredited member of the National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society (NCPS). She holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Psychosexual and Relationship Therapy and is currently completing the Advanced Diploma in Relationship Therapy with NAOS. Gloria also brings a rich academic foundation, having earned a First-Class BA (Hons) in Finance and an MSc in Corporate Governance with Distinction.
​
With over 25 years of professional experience across the NHS, private healthcare, and the third sector, Gloria is an experienced therapist who offers a deeply informed perspective on the pressures of high-performance environments and the impact these can have on emotional wellbeing and relationships. She has previously worked with the Psychosexual Units at Croydon Hospital and South West London Sexual Health Service, as well as in community-based and private therapy settings.
Gloria’s therapeutic style is compassionate, sex-positive, and client-led. She works collaboratively with her clients using an integrative approach, drawing from a variety of established models, tools and techniques to explore how past experiences, belief systems, and interpersonal dynamics shape their current relationship and sexual wellbeing. Her work incorporates psychoeducation about gender, sex and sexuality, and evidence-based practices such as Sensate Focus, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), and mindfulness in psychosexual therapy. She is deeply attuned to the unique goals and experiences of each client, creating treatment plans that prioritise respect, autonomy and growth.
Gloria has particular interest in helping clients with complex and sensitive concerns, including erectile dysfunction, ejaculation difficulties, painful sex, low sexual desire, issues with arousal and orgasm; issues related to gender, sexuality, compulsive sexual behaviours, kink, BDSM, pornography use, and sexual trauma. Relationship therapy: polyamorous, consensual non-monogamy, infidelity, and communication challenges.
Her integrative, person-centred approach offers clients a safe and affirming space to reconnect with their bodies, reframe unhelpful narratives, and move towards a more confident and embodied experience of intimacy.
Siv Hertling
Psychotherapist | MBACP Registered Member
Siv Hertling is a dedicated psychotherapist who provides a thoughtful, compassionate, and grounded therapeutic environment. Siv works from a relational and integrative framework, with a particular interest in how early attachment patterns and formative life experiences shape psychological development and emotional wellbeing. She is attuned to how formative relationships and past environments, can lay the groundwork for difficulties such as anxiety, depression, low self-worth, and post, traumatic stress. She is attentive to how internalised narratives from childhood, emotional wounds, or coping strategies, may continue to influence how individuals experience themselves, others, and the world around them, shaping present emotions, behaviours, and relationships.
​
Siv supports clients in exploring their lived experience with care and depth, helping them trace the links between past and present. By making sense of how early patterns and relational wounds may still inform current thoughts, emotions, and behaviours, clients are able to re-examine long-held beliefs, find new meaning in their experiences, and begin to reframe their personal narratives. This process has shown to be deeply reparative, supporting emotional resilience, relational clarity, and lasting psychological change.
Siv has worked across a range of clinical settings, including the NHS Adult Eating Disorders Service, where she provided evidence-based therapy within a multidisciplinary team to individuals experiencing severe and complex eating disorders. Siv also has extensive experience with individuals facing substance misuse and co-occurring mental health challenges, including trauma, anxiety, and depression, in high-intensity therapeutic environments. Alongside this, she has offered long-term, integrative psychotherapy in private practice, supporting clients with various presented issues. Her work facilitates deep emotional exploration and sustained psychological growth.
She supports clients through emotional complexities, and deepening self-awareness with a relational and pluralistic approach. Central to her approach is a collaborative process, adapting her work to the unique needs of each individual, drawing on person-centred, psychodynamic, existential and cognitive behavioural modalities.
She is currently undertaking doctoral training in Counselling Psychology (PsychD). Her research explores the phenomenon of sudden improvement during psychotherapy/ sudden improvements during talking therapy, those moments of unexpected insight or relief that can transform a client’s issues. Siv’s academic qualifications include a First-Class Honours degree in Psychology, a Master’s degree, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Psychological Counselling.
Before beginning her work as a psychotherapist, Siv spent more than a decade working in the business and creative industry. This earlier professional experience continues to shape her therapeutic style, allowing her to approach psychological work with curiosity, depth, and an appreciation for each client’s unique story/life.
Siv is fluent in English and Norwegian and also understands Swedish and Danish.
Siv is a registered member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and works in line with its professional and ethical standards.
