I am so desperately sorry for those that loved her and for her family. What a loss.

Rest well beautiful soul ❤️

She will be much missed in our profession, but so much more by her family and friends.

I would like to send my deepest sympathy to them and everyone who knew her. RIP Maria.

This was my first award which I was very proud to receive and I was and still am really thankful to her and her team and for this and all her support.

Such a sad loss. My thoughts are with her family and colleagues. RIP Maria.

I am really saddened she is no longer here and that I never met her in person.Rest in peace Maria x

My concern now lies with your 3 beautiful children. You were such a loving and caring Mum always fighting for the best for them whilst simply loving them with the ferocity they deserved. It was so apparent from your posts on social media what your children meant to you. I pray that they have someone to hold them tight now as they learn to live with their loss.

Sending love and huge gratitude to you wherever you are Maria. And my care and compassion go to your children, family, friends and all who mourn your loss. Xx

She was also a funny, brave, compassionate woman who knew what was fair and unjust in modern society.

I was so excited for her future work and dedication to getting clear answers to the many confusing projects that hit us in the therapy profession. She had our backs. I hope she felt this and that I would have defended her and her integrity no matter who challenged it. And there were some!

I am sad, devastated, shook, angry and grief stricken by her passing. I will remember her forever.

RIP beautiful ❤️🌸🩷

I will always remember that first National Counsellors Day Conference in Lincoln, how we grew our respective FB groups at the same time and the support,  encouragement and warmth you offered so consistently.

Rest peacefully, precious warrior.

I sought her out for information and valued opinion. Her insights were so valuable to me.

Immediately trustworthy, gained by her outright determination to help and to do so in such an open and transparent way.

I’m sure in many circles Maria, your impact will keep you in the hearts and minds of those who knew you and respected you.

Sending love to all of her children , her family and friends.

Rest Easy, Maria.

You did good ❤️ xx

Holding you and your beautiful children in my thoughts.

Jen

And my heart goes out to her friends and family xxxx

Always incredibly generous with her time, I can't thank her enough. I hope her ideas and her energy continue to ripple out into a community she helped build and cared so much about.

My deepest condolences are with her family and friends.

within the profession was an inspiration and she is a massive loss to our profession.

My condolences to her family and friends.

I hugely admired her. She was such a strong woman despite at times not wanting to have to be strong. She always fought for her children and I feel immense sadness for them. They were lucky to have such an amazing female role model and they will of course feel the weight of her loss for a long time to come.

I am so deeply saddened but feel privileged to have shared time with her, and her family and close friends will be in my heart.

Goodbye Maria, I will always remember you xx

She leaves a legacy of compassion and strength. Of gentle spirit, but a voice that demanded to be heard. She made a difference. To me, and to thousands of others.

I’m devastated that we’ve lost Maria way too soon. I know I will strive to continue to do my part in continuing the incredible legacy she has left. If I can be just a fraction of the activist and advocate that she was, I’ll be happy.

I met Maria once and had several conversations on line.

She was always generous with her knowledge and time.

Personally, she helped me find a specialist counsellor in Newcastle for a friend's relative.

A truly inspiring woman who achieved so much for so many.

My thoughts are with her children; they had such wonderful times together.

Well that was until I went on a counsellors retreat you organised, it was so amazing and so healing and I returned to work and when things get tough I think of the retreat and tell myself this will pass. So thank you Maria for noticing what was needed, you made an impact to others. Thinking of your loved ones. Fly high beautiful xxx

You have been a huge force in the counselling profession and I find my self quoting you.

A very sad loss. RIP.

I followed you on social media and admired your sharing life and work experience, energy you had for our profession, love & care you gave ❤️

Zekiye

We last worked together on the Open Letter sent to BACP in October 2023. As always, Maria was generous, thoughtful and kind. I am shocked and saddened in equal measure at this most awful news and send my thoughts to her family and friends.

She helped me see things through a critical lens and made me better at my job. She was hugely supportive when I was made redundant and outside of BACP we formed a friendship.

She had so much passion for her profession and was excited for her future plans. She had great ideas - all with the end result of making things better for others.

She spoke with me often about her children. Shared her son playing guitar and how proud she was. We compared notes on raising strong daughters.

The world will be a lesser place without Maria. I hope her family know what an impact she had and what a legacy she leaves.

I will miss her very much.

Fought so many battles stood up for what you beloved in

Very lucky to have met you and support the work you did, xxx

She worked hard to make the world a better place than she entered it and that is something we should all aspire to.

A life cut short far too soon.

My thoughts and prayers 🙏🏼 are with them..You will be missed my lovely.

Thank you for the support u gave and advocated...thank u for our chats!!.....💜

Lesley-Anne. X

I knew of her tireless work, campaigning and the retreats she helped create. She worked tirelessly for the profession. She will be greatly missed. Gone too soon x

https://www.partnersforcounsellingandpsychotherapy.co.uk/

She was a visionary and a leader – and a brilliant organiser. Courageous and kind. I have really not met anyone like her in our field before. This is a tragic loss, when a young

person dies at the height of their powers.

Andrew Samuels

Graham xx

I was constantly amazed at her drive, commitment and compassion at the same time as single handedly raising her family.

Maria you were one incredible lady and the world is poorer without you in it.

Thank you for caring so deeply about us and the profession. You have made such a positive impact on so many lives.

She loved and was loved xx i will miss you so much xx

Maria, you will be missed by so many, and although I am deeply, deeply sadden to hear of your death, I am so glad to have known you albeit, in the scheme of things, briefly. You inspired me and gave me much needed support at a time when I was struggling both professionally and personally. I will never be able to thank you enough. I send my heartfelt love and condolences to all your family, friends, colleagues and those like me who only met you in virtual world, but who's world you had a huge impact on none the less. May you rest in enteral peace Maria 💜 love forever Joycey B

Sending love to her family and friends in their loss.

We began corresponding to organise yearly counsellor retreats and our zoom calls and messages were precious and inspiring to me. She was incredibly supportive and incredibly knowledgeable and shared her time and experience so graciously.

She was certainly a force of nature with her entrepreneurial zest and channelled activist outrage and action, but she often talked more softly of families, motherhood and backgrounds. In her authenticity as a human, she was one of the best of us.

Sadness doesn’t touch the sides of how devastated I am for her 3 beloved children. She deserved longer and she will not be forgotten. I hope wherever she is, she is feeling the depth of love she inspired.

I am deeply shocked by this news. Maria was a driving force in and a champion of the counselling community, a true leader. Her death is a huge loss to all of us. I didn't ever meet her in person, which I now regret, but I have valued her contributions hugely as a member of Counsellors Together and I consider the Counsellors' Day Conference to be a must-attend event.

My thoughts and good wishes go out to all who knew her personally,

Steve

The times we talked will always hold a special place in my heart. You offered your guidance so generously, allowing me to learn from your wisdom. You gave me a space to rant, swear, and cry, as well as to joke, laugh, and release the heaviness of the work.

My heart goes out to your family, friends, and all those whose lives you touched.

Go well Maria, your legacy lives on through your beautiful children and the amazing work you did. My thoughts are with your family 🪷 x

Sending love and strength to her children, family and everyone affected by this loss. Rest in power, Maria. You are missed.

Sometimes it feels like I met the lovely Maria in person (even though I unfortunately didn't get a chance to)...But this surely speaks to her vibrant, warm, revolutionary and dynamic presence in her online work at her exceptional National Counsellors' Day webinar that I attended, as well as the very many times I had the good fortune of chatting with her over Facebook counsellors' groups.

I recall joining those online groups and noticing that Maria was one of the counsellors on there who very openly, willingly (and always with so much humility) welcomed those of us who were trainees...to me there were times that it was even like having a big sister in Maria!

From early on I experienced her as so brave and authentic to herself, even (and perhaps Especially) during potentially challenging group debates. She was frequently the voice of reason and social justice.

I felt incredibly proud to be treated as a peer by her too. I'm grateful to have learnt from Maria lessons and insights that will stay with me, and I know I'm not alone in that.

Sending warmth, love and light to Maria's children. Thinking of you all x