Dr Louise Carr

​Specialist Senior Educational Psychologist for Autism Spectrum Conditions & ELSA Lead

​​Dr Louise Carr is a Specialist Senior Educational Psychologist for Autism Spectrum Conditions and is also the ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistants) Lead at EPE. 

Louise completed her doctoral training in 2012 via the University of Nottingham. Her doctoral thesis was an evaluation of a cognitive behavioural therapy-based intervention aimed at reducing anxiety in learners in Key Stages 1, 2 and 3. Louise worked for Telford & Wrekin LA for 10 years, from Year 2 of EP training and continuing post-qualification as an Educational Psychologist; she is excited to now be joining the EPE team from September 2019.

While having a wealth of experience of all kinds of special educational needs and barriers to learning and inclusion, Louise is particularly passionate about the needs of learners with autism spectrum conditions and how schools, as well as their families, can be best helped to understand, support and celebrate neurodiversity. Prior to her EP training, Louise worked for several years in a residential school for learners with complex autism and significant learning and emotional wellbeing needs, both as a care worker and as a member of the school's psychology team alongside education staff. This gave her invaluable experience in understanding the challenges facing autistic learners in their home, school and community environments. At Telford & Wrekin LA, Louise contributed to the authority's Strategic Working Group on autism and delivered DfE-backed Autism Education Trust training to educational staff in schools and settings across the borough. Louise is also an experienced supervisor of EP doctoral trainees at all three stages of training.

Away from work, music plays a huge role in Louise's life - she is a member of two choirs, and regularly enjoys going to live concerts and shows, particularly orchestral music from both the traditional classical and film music genres. Louise is another EPE team member who holds National Trust membership, and enjoys scrambling around castles and other historic buildings. More recently, Louise has been striving to increase her physical fitness and wellbeing, and has taken up running (very slowly!). Her biggest challenges to date have been the 2019 and 2021 Great North Run half-marathons.