DipTh DipCouns DipSup MSc
Tutor in Pastoral Supervision
Email: p.mcilroy@spurgeons.ac.uk
Tricia McIlroy joined Spurgeon’s College staff in 1998 having formerly been a student at the College. She has been a Baptist minister’s wife for nearly 50 years. Her involvement with Counselling just grew like ‘Topsy’. In the 1980’s whilst running a young mum’s group where they looked at issues such as depression, abuse and parenting, she began to be asked for Prayer Ministry. She soon felt that some of the women needed ongoing help and understanding, so she attended the very first Biblical Institute in Christian Counselling at CWR and then used her skills to counsel within the Church.
The demand for help grew until she and two colleagues set up and ran a Christian Counselling service in the town where she lived. The service was set up as a business, which involved Tricia in learning lots of other things as well as Counselling, such as business management, marketing and even how to give powerful presentations!
During this time she decided she would benefit from doing further Counselling training. She found just what she was looking for at Spurgeon’s in the form of professional secular Counselling courses run in a Christian setting. She came and successfully completed two courses and then just stayed, as a tutor.
Someone has said that you know you are in the right job when your gifting, personality and passion coincide. Tricia believes this happened for her in becoming a tutor at Spurgeon’s in that she gets great satisfaction from facilitating others’ learning, she is outgoing and enjoys interaction with people, and is passionate about Counselling.
As well as teaching at Spurgeon’s, Tricia is in private practice as a Counsellor, Psychotherapist and Supervisor. She offers Supervision to Christian Ministers as well as to Counsellors and Psychotherapists. For 10 years she was a member of the Steering Group of the Churches Ministerial Counselling Service (CMCS).
She and her husband, Bill, have faced the challenge of bringing up three children, who all seem to have survived the experience and are wonderful people and committed Christians. Their eldest, David, is Vice Chair of Governors at Spurgeon’s and from time to time (Please remove) teaches the Theology of Law at the college, from time to time. They also have six lovely and talented grandchildren. Bill is involved with Spurgeon’s too as a Field Placement Tutor.
Tricia, along with Bill, enjoys walking and gardening, in particular growing vegetables and fruit. She also enjoys time with her children and grandchildren, and assists in looking after an elderly disabled friend, as well as being a member of her church.
