About Pebbles Ireland
Pebbles Ireland provides creative, thoughtful and individualised therapeutic and wellbeing support for children, young people, families and professionals.
Curiosity, connection and care are at the heart of our work. We look beyond what can be seen on the surface, make space for different ways of communicating and experiencing the world, and recognise that each person’s needs, strengths and experiences are unique.
Our services include play therapy, creative well-being classes, parenting support, workshops & programmes and professional services.
Across each area of our work, we combine therapeutic knowledge, creativity and practical learning to provide meaningful support that meets people where they are.
Hi, I’m Aoife Fennell
The Play Therapist behind Pebbles Ireland.
I have spent more than 15 years working with children and young people across creative, educational, community and therapeutic settings.
My background spans music, theatre, mindfulness and Play Therapy, and each has shaped the way I work today.
As an Accredited Integrative Holistic Play Therapist, Accredited Creative Mindfulness Practitioner and Trainee Clinical Supervisor, I draw from a range of approaches to consider the whole person regardless of age. This includes their relationships, experiences, environment, wellbeing, and individual ways of communicating with and experiencing the world.
My work with children, young people, families and professionals is grounded in curiosity. I look beyond what is visible on the surface and explore what emotions, behaviour, play, relationships and patterns of response may be communicating.
Rather than asking, “How do we stop this behaviour?”, I am interested in asking:
“What might be happening beneath the surface, what need is being communicated, and how can we respond with understanding and support?”
This curiosity is at the heart of my approach. Whether I am supporting a child to express themselves through play, helping a young person explore their experiences, working alongside parents and families, or creating a reflective space for professionals, the aim is to help people feel heard, understood and supported.
I bring together professional knowledge, creativity, lived experience and a holistic understanding of each person’s wider world, recognising that every child, young person, family and professional is unique.
Why Pebbles Ireland?
Pebbles Ireland grew from a simple belief: support should meet people where they are, not ask them to fit into a particular way of working.
Every child and young person communicates differently. Every family has its own experiences, strengths and needs. Every professional brings a unique perspective to their work and reflection.
We also recognise that healing and growth do not happen in isolation. They are nurtured through safe relationships, meaningful connection and a deeper understanding of the person within the context of their wider world.
At different times, different kinds of support may be helpful. A child may need a therapeutic space to explore and process their experiences through play. A young person may benefit from creative opportunities to understand their emotions and strengthen their wellbeing. A parent may need support to recognise what is happening beneath a behaviour, while a professional may value a safe, reflective space to explore their practice.
Pebbles Ireland brings these pathways together in one supportive place, guided by connection, creativity and curiosity, and shaped around the individuality of every person we work with.
A Different Perspective
Professional knowledge, shaped by lived experience too.
Alongside my professional training and experience, I bring my own lived experience. I am autistic and a Type 1 diabetic.
These are only parts of who I am, but they have shaped my understanding that people can experience the world, their bodies, environments, and everyday life in very different ways.
They have strengthened the curiosity I bring to my work and my belief that we should look beyond what we see on the surface rather than making assumptions about another person's experience.
For me, that means asking: What is being communicated? What might be needed? How can we support that?
My lived experience does not mean I know what another child, parent or person is experiencing. Their experience is their own. These experiences contribute to the empathy, curiosity and holistic perspective I bring to my work.
My Professional Journey
Membership & Accrediting Bodies
