Woodcote Consulting

Independent Consultancy in Clinical Psychology, Mental Health & Legal Expertise

Dr Alison Longwill

eb156bad-539c-4ec4-a52e-00d2a77b86d5

Clinical Psychologist and Expert Witness PhD, MBA, C.Psychol(Clin), Dip.Clin.Neuro

Dr Alison Longwill is a Chartered Clinical Psychologist with over 40 years’ experience across the NHS, private practice, consultancy, and psycho-legal work. She brings a unique combination of clinical expertise, leadership insight, and proven consultancy skills to organisations and individuals navigating complex challenges.

Alison is a highly experienced Chartered Clinical Psychologist with a career spanning more than four decades in healthcare, consultancy, and expert witness practice. Her background combines:

  • Clinical leadership at senior NHS and academic levels
  • Expert witness practice across civil, family, and criminal proceedings
  • Independent consultancy for government, health, justice, and voluntary sectors

She is known for her ability to handle highly complex cases involving mental health, personality disorders, trauma, substance misuse, and forensic risk.

Alison is a Fellow of the British Psychological Society, a Chartered Scientist, and a registered Clinical Psychologist with the HCPC.

Dr Longwill has provided consultancy and assessments across areas including:

  • Mental health & personality disorder
    Neuropsychology & cognitive assessment
  • Mental capacity evaluations
    Risk assessments for violence, offending & self-harm
  • Trauma & PTSD
  • Substance misuse & dual diagnosis
  • Parenting & custody evaluations
    Equality & inclusion in mental health services

Her clients include NHS trusts, local and central government, the legal sector, charities, and community interest companies

Publications & Contributions

Alison has authored and co-authored numerous reports, academic papers, and evaluations for the NHS, government bodies, and professional organisations. Highlights include:

  • Research and workforce planning reports for the British Psychological Society 
  • Policy contributions for the Department of Health 
  • Academic publications on mental health, personality disorder, substance misuse, and service delivery 
  • International conference presentations on behavioural approaches to chronic illness and compliance 

(A full publication list is available on request.)

Services

⚖️ Expert Witness & Psycho-Legal Services

Psychological & neuropsychological assessments

Civil, family, and criminal court instructions Single joint expert reporting

Courtroom testimony and case conferencing

Capacity, risk, and forensic assessments

🧠 Clinical & Therapeutic Services

Specialist input for complex mental health presentations

Personality disorder and trauma treatment planning

Clinical supervision and staff development

Consultation for NHS and independent services

🏥 Consultancy & Advisory Services

Mental health and social care strategy

Service design and workforce planning

Training and development programmes (e.g., Mental Capacity Act, substance misuse, equality)

Policy and service evaluations for NHS, government, and third-sector organisations

Additional Services

Strategic Planning & Vision Setting

Helping leadership teams define long-term goals, map strategic initiatives, and align resource allocation.

Operational Efficiency & Process Improvement

Reviewing existing workflows, identifying bottlenecks, and implementing leaner, more efficient processes.

Change Management & Organisational Transformation

Guiding organisations through transitions cultural shifts, restructuring, growth phases – ensuring stakeholder buy-in and minimal disruption.

Leadership Development & Coaching

One-to-one or team coaching to strengthen leadership skills, improve communication, decision-making, and drive performance.

Performance Metrics & KPI Development

Establishing meaningful KPIs, dashboards, feedback loops to monitor progress and encourage accountability.

sebastian-pichler-JNCkUF-QwOI-unsplash

How I Work

Discovery Phase

Deep dive into current situation - interviews, data analysis, diagnostics.

Design & Planning

Co-creating strategy, interventions and roadmaps aligned with your goals.

Implementation

Hands-on support to rollout changes, embed new ways of working.

Review & Adapt

Ongoing monitoring, feedback, course corrections to ensure you achieve the intended outcomes