About The Social Space
We Start by Understanding
the Person
A referral can name a diagnosis, a difficulty, a pattern to manage. It won’t tell us who someone is — their strengths, their history, the people and things they care about, the way they experience the world. That is where we begin.
The Social Space is a psychology clinic in Mascot, Sydney, working with children, adolescents and adults through therapy, assessment, group programs, workshops and practical, real-world support. The format changes depending on what someone needs. What doesn’t change is the starting point: understand the person first, then work out what will actually help.
You are not a diagnosis. You are not a behaviour. You are not the hardest day you’ve had.
Why We Exist
Support Shouldn’t Have to Wait for Crisis
Too many people reach us after years of being told to try harder, sit still, calm down or fit in — or after finally finding words for something they have carried for a long time. A child might have spent years managing without the right support. A teenager might have learned to hide how hard things feel. An adult might only now have language for experiences they have spent years making sense of alone.
We can’t change the support someone should have had earlier. We can take seriously what they need now — and where possible, offer support before difficulty becomes crisis, disconnection, or someone quietly deciding they are the problem.
People shouldn’t have to struggle more before their needs are taken seriously.
Director’s Message
About The Social Space Psychology Clinic
When I founded The Social Space, I wanted to create the kind of psychology clinic I believed people and families needed — one where support could be thoughtful and evidence-informed, without losing sight of the person in front of us.
Over the years, I met children, teenagers and adults who had spent far too long trying to manage without the right support. Not because they lacked ability or potential, but because they had been misunderstood, support had come too late, or the focus had been so firmly placed on what was difficult that there was little room left to see the whole person.
That stayed with me and it shaped The Social Space.
Here, we ask more than “What is difficult?” We ask: What does this person need? What matters to them? What are they already doing well? What could make life work better and how can the support we provide make a meaningful difference beyond this room?
That thinking is why our work extends beyond individual therapy. Meaningful change can happen in a therapy room, but it can also happen while practising a conversation, navigating a disagreement, creating something alongside others, preparing for high school, learning with other parents, or connecting through a shared interest.
The Social Space is built on the belief that psychological support can be clinical and human, evidence-informed and practical, individualised and connected to everyday life.
Above all, support should never be about becoming somebody else. It should help people understand themselves more clearly, access useful tools and meaningful support, and create more possibilities for participating in a life that matters to them.
Katerina Stratilas
Clinic Director & Clinical Psychologist
What We Believe
What Good Support Should Feel Like
These aren’t values on a wall. They’re the things we check ourselves against.
Growth Doesn’t Mean Becoming Less Like Yourself
Learning new ways to communicate, regulate or solve problems shouldn’t require erasing someone’s identity, communication style or the things that make them who they are. We don’t treat forced eye contact, masking or suppressing harmless movement as measures of progress.
Strength and Struggle Can Both Be True
A strengths-based approach doesn’t mean ignoring distress or turning every challenge into a positive. People can be capable and struggling, independent in one area and needing real support in another — at the same time.
Sometimes the Environment Needs to Change, Too
A child can learn to say something feels overwhelming — the adults around them still need to understand what that means. A student can build self-advocacy — their school still needs to meet them halfway. Support isn’t only about what the person can change.
Done With People. Not To Them.
People have a voice in what they want help with and what matters to them — young people included. With consent, we also work alongside families, schools and other professionals, without that replacing the person’s own voice in their own care.
Support should expand what’s possible for someone. Not shrink who they are.
Beyond the Therapy Room
Because Life Doesn’t Happen in a Therapy Room
A strategy can make complete sense sitting quietly with a psychologist. Real life is rarely that tidy — it happens in classrooms, at home, in friendships, during disagreements, at lunchtime, in workplaces and inside families. That’s why The Social Space offers more than one way in.
Therapy
Space for individual psychological support, understanding and therapeutic work.
Assessment
Helping individuals and families better understand strengths, needs and patterns of functioning.
Group Programs
Structured opportunities to learn and practise alongside others.
Workshops
Focused, practical learning around particular situations or stages.
Social Groups
Shared-interest spaces where connection can begin around something people already enjoy.
School & Community Programs
Taking practical support into environments where everyday participation happens.
Our Values
What We Don’t Compromise On
Understanding
We take time to understand the individual behind the referral, diagnosis or concern.
Connection
Relationships and belonging matter. We aim to create environments where people can participate meaningfully and feel respected.
Individuality
There is no single way to think, communicate, learn, regulate or connect. Support should reflect the person rather than forcing the person to fit the support.
Practicality
Strategies need to make sense outside the therapy room. We focus on translating psychological concepts into everyday life.
Collaboration
Where appropriate and with consent, we work alongside families, schools and other professionals to support consistency and understanding.
Respect
We respect autonomy, identity, privacy, culture, communication preferences and individual goals.
The People Behind The Social Space
A Team That Takes Understanding Seriously
Our psychologists, support staff and program team bring different roles and backgrounds to The Social Space. What connects the work is a shared commitment to thoughtful, respectful, individualised support.
Not sure where to start?
You might know exactly what you’re looking for. Or you might just know that something isn’t working and you’re not sure what comes next. Either is a reasonable place to start. Our team can help you understand what’s available and work out what’s worth exploring.