Latest news letter from the President
Dear Members,
It was lovely to see so many of you at this month's AGM, along with the various events we've hosted throughout June. It's been a wonderful time to reconnect with colleagues and friends—whether through workshops, meet-ups, or the AGM itself.
I hope each of you had the chance to attend and enjoy some of these offerings.
For those who couldn't make it, here's a little glimpse of what you may have missed. Please find our June in Review report below.
A.H.A. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
Welcome to the 2025 AHA Board
At this year's AGM, we warmly welcomed the newly ratified Board members. Two current directors, John Pemberton and Kylie Playford, have been re-elected for a further two-year term, providing valuable continuity and experience.
We're also delighted to officially welcome Patricia Speers to the role of National Secretary, following her excellent service as Acting Secretary since early in 2025.
Please find the newly ratified AHA Board below.
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A.H.A. Board of Directors / 2025 - 2026 |
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Danielle Aitken - President |
Director |
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John Pemberton - Vice President |
Director |
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Hope Wesley – Treasurer |
Director |
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Patricia Speers – Secretary |
Director |
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Kylie Playford |
Director |
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Martine Humphreys |
Director |
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Angela Baxby |
Director |
The A.G.M. celebrated our achievements and the incredible momentum we've built over the past year. It was a moment to reflect with pride on how far we've come—not just as an Association, but as a profession gaining stronger national recognition. The voice of Clinical Hypnotherapy has never been clearer or more widely heard.
From major media interviews to a growing presence on social platforms and public advocacy, we're being seen and heard across Australia. In just 12 months, we've hosted over 35 meet-ups, multiple workshops, and a phenomenal National Symposium. Our national marketing campaign reached 3.4 million Australians, generating over 19 million impressions. The message "Try Hypnotherapy First" gained visibility through podcasts, radio, outdoor media, and online campaigns. We were featured on 3AW morning breakfast show twice, Ticker News, national pod cast shows, social media, radio and in regional newspapers—boosting our credibility and reach.
These campaigns have driven significant engagement with our website, particularly to the Find a Hypnotherapist and Training Schools pages. At the AGM we also shared a preview of upcoming marketing initiatives for the year ahead, so please stay tuned as these roll out.
We celebrated the success of our 2024 Symposium in Perth and thanked the incredible team behind the scenes who brought it to life. We welcomed Emily Hruska as our new Workshop Coordinator and farewelled Secretary Dani Beck with heartfelt gratitude for her contribution.
A number of governance updates were also noted. We have reduced formal member meetings to two per year: the AGM in June and the SGM in December. New applicants will now be required to provide a police check, while existing members must continue to hold a current Working with Children Check. Other updates include the requirement to log supervision every 3 to 6 months, and a new cap of 10 CPD points per category, per year—encouraging broader, more diverse development.
Also Please note CPR is not required annually. Your CPR expires with your first aid. If you have any questions, please refer to administrator@ahahypnotherapy.org.au .
We acknowledged the continued advocacy and lobbying efforts being made by the AHA on behalf of the profession, and we celebrated the strategic focus of our marketing, designed specifically to spotlight you, our members, and direct potential clients to the Find a Hypnotherapist section of the website.
Most significantly, we reflected on some powerful breakthroughs: the increased uptake of Clinical Hypnotherapy in mainstream government health settings is a significant step forward for public acceptance and professional credibility. We've also connected with ACA and Massage & Myotherapy Australia to explore referral pathways and collaborative opportunities.
This past year has shown us what's possible when we lead with unity, passion, and purpose. Whether it's through your client work, professional development, or contributions to the broader field, you are part of something meaningful. The message is loud and clear: Together, we thrive.
SUPERVISION
We see many of you have already taken up the practice of regularly logging your supervision. We really appreciate all who have and would just like to remind anyone who is yet to do so, we are now into the fourth month of the membership year and will need to see supervision logged by the end of September in order to stay compliant with Health funds and Audit requirements.
As part of the Australian Hypnotherapists' Association's commitment to professional excellence, we're reminding all members of the current supervision policy to ensure you receive full credit for your sessions.
Please be aware of Supervision Group size limits
AHA policy allows a maximum of 6 supervisees per group supervision session, plus one qualified supervisor.
- Sessions are awarded 1 point per hour
- Most sessions run for 2 hours, assisting members in meeting the 24-point annual requirement
- This typically equates to one session per month.
The numbers are capped because smaller groups allow for the following:
- Individual attention and feedback
- Active participation from all members
- Deeper reflective learning and case exploration
- Greater value from each supervision session
This structure supports safe, ethical, and effective clinical practice which benefits both you and your clients.
What has Changed
Our recently updated supervision logging system has revealed that some members have unknowingly been attending supervision groups that exceed the permitted numbers.
Please be aware, sessions that do not meet the AHA format requirements will no longer be accepted toward your annual supervision point total. Please note: This is not a new requirement. In fact, the group size was previously smaller, so everyone should be aware of allowable group sizes.
What You Need to Do
- ✔ Check with your supervisor that your group follows the AHA policy
- ✔ Ensure your sessions include a ratio of no more than 6 supervisees + 1 supervisor.
- ✔ Contact the AHA if you're unsure or need support
We're Here to Help
If you're unsure about your current group setup or have questions about this policy, please don't hesitate to reach out.
EXCITING COLLABORATION
As previously mentioned, the AHA had the pleasure of meeting with Ann Davey, CEO of Massage & Myotherapy Australia, along with her dedicated team and we're delighted to share that we have now submitted an introductory referenced journal Article title The Quiet Power of Clinical Hypnotherapy: A Journey into the Mind's Innate Healing Potential. The journal readership is extensive. We shall keep you posted on when it is published.
HEALTH FUNDS
We continue to liaise with Australian Regional Health Group (ARHG) with regard to being approved to appear on the ARHG accredited ancillary provider listing for health funds, which is a valuable resource for subscribed health funds. We are thrilled that as we have the highest of industry standards with regard to education levels and other parameters we are well placed for a good outcome in this process. We await further updates and will keep you informed of the process.
MARKETING
We're about to kick off this year's marketing campaign, which includes both social media and radio components—designed to direct more members of the public to the Find a Hypnotherapist page on our website. Keep an eye out as this rolls out!
We've planned a dedicated three-month social media campaign, and in August, we'll launch a new radio campaign. These efforts build on the strong results of last year's strategy and aim to further raise awareness of Clinical Hypnotherapy across the wider community.
MEMBER SURVEY
As previously mentioned, to ensure our work continues to reflect the needs of our members and the evolving landscape of our profession, we'll be conducting a member survey. Your insights will help guide future initiatives and will contribute to the broader understanding of our field.
SYMPOSIUM 2025
Ready to reconnect, learn, and be inspired?
AHA SYMPOSIUM 2025
"The Many Applications of Clinical Hypnotherapy"
WHEN: Saturday 15th November | 9am–5pm AEDT
WHERE: Sydney Masonic Centre + Zoom Hybrid
WHAT'S ON: Join us for a powerful day exploring how clinical hypnotherapy is making a difference across diverse areas of client care, including:
Sex addiction
Post-trauma growth
Breaking habits & addictions
Creative strategies for kids & teens
Hypnosis in psychotherapy
The healing power of laughter
Earn 7 CPD points
Connect with colleagues
Learn from expert presenters
Walk away informed, inspired & energised
Tickets at the following link :
https://www.ahahypnotherapy.org.au/events-workshops/aha-events-calendar
MEMBERSHIP NOTICEBOARD
Congratulations to the following members on their successful membership applications.
Congratulations to our new Professional Members:
- Anjana Agarwal
- John Pemberton
Congratulations to our new Clinical Members
- Kym Peoples
Also
Congratulations go to Dr Peter Richard-Herbert. Of Macquarie Street Therapy for his "Lifetime Achievement Award" presented at the ACA Adelaide annual conference and Awards Dinner for Excellence in Counselling.
Well done Peter!
If anyone has any award successes to shear in the newsletter member notice board, please send them through to president@ahahypnotheray.org.au
THERAPY BOOK REVIEWS
For those of you who prefer to listen to their book reviews, a new audio version of the book reviews will soon be available. We will keep you posted on the progress of this.
In the meantime you can still pop over to the new book review hub: 'Books to Inspire' if you are looking for something recommended to read -https://www.ahahypnotherapy.org.au/articles-research-and-resources/books-to-inspire
Also don't forget, If you have read a great book that you think is worth sharing, you can write a book review for the Hub and be awarded 2 CPD points.
MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
If you want to answer some fun fact questions and provide a picture of yourself, we can spotlight you in the months ahead.
To be involved all you need to do is fill in the following form and upload a picture of yourself to the following link https://members.ahahypnotherapy.org.au/administration-forms/members-spotlight/
KEEPING IN TOUCH
Don't forget to check into the Facebook group and Instagram for everything current and interesting conversations.
- * https://www.facebook.com/groups/257684736308035
- * https://www.facebook.com/ahahypnotherapy.org.au/
- * https://www.instagram.com/australianhypnotherapistsassoc/
DATES FOR THE DIARY
The next meeting dates are as follows: NB: All, Sydney / Melbourne time.
- * Supervisor Meet-up-: September 25th : 12.30 - 2.30 p.m. AEST
- * Graduate meet-up: July 16th - 3.00 p.m. to 5.00 p.m. AEST
- * World's biggest Member meet-up: July 18th 4.00 p.m. to 6.00 p.m. AEDT
- * Clinical Peer meet-up: July 1st / August 5th - 11.00 a.m. to 1.00 p.m. AEDT
- * AGM meeting: June 2026 - TBC
- * Symposium: 2025 NSW Date: November 15th 2025
Warm regards,
Danielle Aitken
National President
Australian Hypnotherapists Association
e president@ahahypnotherapy.org.au
w www.ahahypnotherapy.org.au
f AHA Facebook
