Alan is the Principal of the Whitstable Osteopath Practice. The practice was first established in 1993 and for many years, Alan was Whitstable’s only osteopath.

He is a Registered Osteopath and is a graduate of the European School of Osteopathy. Of all the established schools of Osteopathy, it is the foremost proponent of Cranial Osteopathy and other functional approaches to treating patients. These approaches are gentle but very effective ways of helping people with pain and poor mobility, but Alan also uses structural Osteopathy where it is needed. He also employs visceral techniques, which are applicable to problems of digestion, reproduction, excretion, breathing etc.

Today, Osteopathy is mostly known for helping with musculoskeletal problems, but it was conceived as a complete system of medicine and can therefore be used to help with a large number of conditions.

This is what Alan does. He is a practitioner of Osteopathic Medicine, which has enormous scope, rather than just a manipulator of muscles and joints, an approach which can be somewhat limited. He has worked at the Osteopathic Centre for Children, which is closely associated with the Great Ormond Street hospital. Alan also has another practice at Lydd, near to the south coast of Kent.

He is a founding member of the Canterbury Osteopathic Group, a longstanding member of the International Cranial Association (ICrA), and has been associated with the Sutherland Cranial College for many years, which is the world’s leading school of Cranial Osteopathy for graduate Osteopaths and the oldest established.

Serafina is a graduate of the European School of Osteopathy (ESO), as Alan is. She’s gained considerable experience working at the Maidstone clinic and has now joined us in Whitstable.

Additionally she is a qualified massage therapist with seven years’ experience. She is also a practitioner of Reiki. Further, she has a qualification in dry needling which is akin to acupuncture and often very effective for pain control.

Serafina is able to bring all these treatment methods to her practice as well as her skills as an Osteopath, so the scope of her work is wide.

She enjoys treating patients of all ages and backgrounds and can often help with back and neck pain, headaches, postural problems, digestive issues and sports injuries.

She can also assist with symptoms relating to pregnancy and childbirth. The treatment of babies and children is also part of her remit. Serafina is the mother of two boys and says of them that: ’They are my life’! Of course this partly accounts for her interest in treating children and her understanding of children’s health.

Serafina is an outgoing and positive person. She loves sport and enjoys playing volleyball & tennis. She’s also approachable, empathetic, understanding and very keen to use her many skills to the benefit of the people of Whitstable.

Kelly qualified from the British School of Osteopathy in 2001. In 2005, she completed her two year Peadiatric training at the Osteopathic Centre for Children.

Although Kelly has a special interest in the treatment of babies and older children, she still greatly enjoys treating a broad range of general complaints using both traditional and Cranial approaches.

Kelly is available for occasinal Friday sessions, but will not be available routinely.