Chris Wake

Let’s meet… Chris Wake

Chris is a qualified psychotherapist and experienced mediator who specialises in disputes with relational dimensions, including intra-family, community, civil, commercial and workplace mediations.

Boasting an MSc in Counselling and Psychotherapy, Intermediate Systemic Practitioner training with the Association for Family Therapy (AFT), and membership with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP), Chris brings both professional depth and a person-centred approach to mediation.

Prior to his work as a psychotherapist, Chris spent 15 years in international development with the UK Government and international charities, including assignments in South Africa, Afghanistan and South Sudan. This background equips him with a detailed understanding of cross-cultural dynamics, enabling him to connect with people from diverse cultural backgrounds and handle disputes with international or multicultural aspects with ease.

Chris’s mediation work centres on relational cases, where improving the quality of interactions and relationships is crucial to conflict resolution. His areas of focus include workplace disputes, intra-family and community conflicts. He can also handle civil and commercial cases involving breakdowns in interpersonal relationships.

Passionate about helping people transform their relationships, his path to mediation began with community mediation work with Wandsworth Mediation Service in London, later expanding to workplace and intra-family cases. Motivated by a desire to foster sustainable conflict resolution, he combines his psychotherapy background with his mediation skills to empower participants to reach resolutions supported by strengthened relationships.

Transforming strong emotions into constructive discussions

Chris’s mediation approach is rooted in creating a relaxed, safe environment where participants can engage in challenging but transformative conversations. He listens intently, allowing space for emotions to be expressed constructively, and he leverages this understanding to identify the underlying interests driving the conflict. Through carefully chosen questions, he enables participants to uncover the core issues, understand each other’s perspectives and collaboratively develop solutions to address their shared priorities.

As a trained psychotherapist, Chris understands that strong emotions are natural in conflict and can reveal what truly matters to the participants. He believes in honouring these emotions, managing them calmly and helping participants transform them into insights that guide productive discussions and effective resolutions.

To support participants in reaching sustainable agreements and ensure the feasibility of potential solutions, Chris reality tests the positions, offers and proposals with all participants. He also works with them to plan for future challenges, reinforcing the durability and long-term success of the resolution.

Chris’s ultimate goal is to guide participants toward mutually beneficial, sustainable agreements, grounded in improved relationships and deeper understanding.