Craig Shirley is the co-founder of The OCD Treatment Centre and is a highly passionate, motivated person who has over twelve years of experience working in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Craig also has first-hand knowledge of OCD, having experienced severe symptoms for more than twelve years. Craig found it extremely challenging to access effective therapy for his symptoms, which became the primary motivator to train as a fully qualified therapist and ultimately set up an OCD specialist treatment centre.

After completing a Psychology BSc at the University of The West of England, Craig went on to study for an Advanced Diploma in Integrative Counselling and Psychotherapy at Bridgwater and Taunton College.
Craig completed his placement hours in several reputable professional organizations, including an OCD specific clinic based in London, a private drug rehabilitation clinic in Weston Super Mare, and Personal Recovery Services (PRS) in Burnham-On-Sea, a highly prestigious centre working with a range of different issues including loss, depression, abuse, low self-esteem, relationship breakdowns, and grief.

Craig is a fully registered member of the accredited BACP register. He works following their ethical procedures and policies to ensure that he provides clients with the highest possible service. He also attends regular supervision with a BACP supervisor and works under the NICE guidelines for OCD. In addition, throughout his career, Craig has continued to attend training in several other areas as part of his continual professional development (CPD), including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Rational Emotive Behavioural Therapy (REBT), Mindfulness Based-Stress Reduction (MBSR) an Compassion Focussed Therapy (CFT).

Craig has regularly featured in the media on ITV’s This Morning, Somerset’s Tone FM, BBC Somerset Sound, and Channel 4. Craig has also contributed to the NHS Patient Access App as an expert in OCD and has appeared in several other publications. He has also worked closely with the G. Halley Marville Trust and Dr. Ysanne Marville in facilitating several Mental health conferences Internationally as an OCD expert, providing clear information about the symptoms of OCD, treatment protocols, and the how-to access safe and effective treatment for OCD. He has also worked with the charities OCD Action, Mind, and The OCD Awareness Foundation (OCDAF), facilitating group courses, conference calls for people with OCD, and raising positive and accurate awareness of OCD in the media.

In 2005 Craig won the young persons Mayor Award for ‘Young Person’s Outstanding Contributions to Mental Health’ and was awarded first prize in the Social Enterprise ‘Biz’ idea Award in 2009.