Paul Whitehead (Vidyapala)

A bit about me…

Hi, I’m Paul — though some people know me by my Buddhist name, Vidyapala, meaning Protector of Wisdom (no pressure!). I’m an ordained Buddhist with nearly two decades of meditation practice and teaching experience.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been fascinated by life’s big questions: Why are we here? What is our purpose? How can we live more authentically? That curiosity has taken me on many adventures — outwardly, through extensive travel, and inwardly, through years of Buddhist study, silent retreat, Buddhism and meditation teaching.

Professionally, I’ve worked in both front-line and leadership roles in community development and public health, led programmes tackling poverty, and served as a trustee and educational advisor. These experiences deepened my belief that our personal healing is always connected to the wider social and cultural context we live in.

I’m passionate about Gestalt psychotherapy because — like Buddhism — it’s the most effective approach I’ve found for becoming more aware, kinder, and wiser.

I love getting out and exploring the beautiful Peak District with my beloved dog, Tom… who, if I’m honest, calls most of the shots in our relationship!

Embodied Gestalt Psychotherapy

Are you looking for a more mindful, embodied, and creative way to move through suffering?

Perhaps you find yourself caught in overthinking, doubting your decisions, or burdened by worries about what lies ahead. You might be living with grief, the effects of trauma, a life-limiting illness, or facing spiritual questions that feel hard to hold alone.

Your feelings carry meaning — they are pointing toward something that longs to be seen, felt, or understood. Healing doesn’t begin by fixing or turning away, but by meeting your experience with care, curiosity, and compassion.

An Embodied, Creative and Trauma Informed Approach

Gestalt psychotherapy invites you to meet yourself in the here and now—through the body, through dialogue, and through creative exploration.

• Body awareness: tuning into breath, posture, sensation
• Creative experiments: visualisation, voice dialogue, movement
• Dialogic process: allowing parts of you to speak and be heard
• Spiritual and existential inquiry: making space for the sacred in ordinary life.

Therapy with me is not just about talking. It’s about being with your experience as it is — sensing, feeling, and allowing insight to arise naturally. This is not a space for fixing or forcing change, but for uncovering what’s true—and discovering new possibilities for how you relate to yourself and the world. I see the therapy room as a safe space to experiment with new ways of being.

This is a welcoming, LGBTQ+ affirming space.

My qualifications

I’m a Gestalt Therapist with four years of accredited training from the Manchester Gestalt Centre, a UKCP-registered institute.

I have completed four years of Accredited Gestalt Psychotherapy Training* from the Manchester Gestalt Centre, which is a registered training institute of the United Kingdom Council of Psychotherapy (UKCP), the official body for the training and registration of psychotherapists. I’m insured to practice and work to the Codes of Ethics and Practice of the GPTI (Gestalt Psychotherapy Training Institute) which operates under the umbrella of the UKCP.

*Currently awaiting final accreditation

Start with a Conversation

If something in you is ready to shift, I invite you to reach out. Free initial call available.