Aims History and Activities

 The London Psychoanalytical Society was founded by Ernest Jones on 30th October 1913. With the expansion of psychoanalysis in the United Kingdom the Society was renamed the British Psychoanalytical Society in 1919.  Soon after, the Institute of Psychoanalysis was established to administer the Society’s activities. These include: the training of psychoanalysts, the development of the theory and practice of psychoanalysis, the provision of treatment through the London Clinic of Psychoanalysis, the publication of books and journals, maintaining a library, furthering research, and holding public lectures. The Society has a Code of Ethics and an Ethical Committee. The Society, the Institute and the Clinic are all located at Byron House.

The Society is a component of the International Psychoanalytical Association, a body with members on all five continents that safeguards professional and ethical practice. The Society is a member of the British Confederation of Psychotherapists; the BCP publishes a register of British psychoanalysts and psychoanalytical psychotherapists. All members of the British Psychoanalytical Society are required to undertake continuing professional development.

Founded in 1924, the Institute of Psychoanalysis has trained generations of psychoanalysts, many of whom have become leaders in the field of mental health. The Institute of Psychoanalysis welcomes applicants from all types of professional and academic backgrounds, from all over the world. Many students are psychiatrists or medically qualified, some are child or adult psychotherapists, psychologists, social workers or academics, and some come from another background altogether. The Institute of Psychoanalysis is the only organisation in the United Kingdom to offer a training leading to the title ‘psychoanalyst’ as recognised by the International Psychoanalytical Association.

The Society currently has 447 members and 43 students. Many psychoanalysts live in or near London but a significant number practice in other parts of the British Isles and abroad. Members of the Society come from a diversity of countries and cultures, offering treatment in over 22 languages, including Armenian, Catalan, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Iranian, Norwegian, Portuguese, Polish, Punjabi, Russian, Swedish, Turkish, and Urdu. Today as in the past, approximately half of the British Psychoanalytic Society are women. A list of qualified psychoanalysts is available here www.psychoanalysis.org.uk/uklist.htm             

Psychoanalysts work with patients intensively (fifty-minutes a day, five days a week) and less intensively (fifty-minutes a day, one, two, three, or four days a week). Psychoanalysts work in public organisations as well as in private practice. Over 250 psychoanalysts work in the National Health Service; many hold distinguished positions in psychiatry, child psychotherapy, adult psychotherapy, psychology, social work, and family therapy. A significant number also work in universities; 18 are professors. It is their judgement that their private psychoanalytic experience deepens and enhances their public work in the NHS and higher education.

The London Clinic of Psychoanalysis currently has over 100 patients in treatment.  Treatment is low-cost; patients are invited to contribute to help cover the running costs of the Clinic. The Child and Adolescent Department provides assessment and treatment for patients between 2 and 17 years of age.

The Institute of Psychoanalysis is the foremost publisher of psychoanalytic literature. The 24-volume Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud was conceived, translated, and produced under the direction of the British Psychoanalytical Society. The Society, in conjunction with Random House, will soon publish a new, revised and expanded Standard Edition. With The New Library of Psychoanalysis the Institute continues to publish the books of leading theorists and practitioners. The International Journal of Psychoanalysis is published by the Institute of Psychoanalysis. Now in its 84th year, it has the largest circulation of any psychoanalytic journal.

The British Psychoanalytical Society library is probably the finest psychoanalytical library in the world, holding over 25,000 volumes. The Archive of the British Psychoanalytical Society contains an important collection on the origins and history of psychoanalysis. It is used and appreciated by scholars worldwide.

Since it was founded in 1924, the Institute of Psychoanalysis has offered lectures to the public. The Society continues to offer a wide variety of public courses and events, including An Introduction to Psychoanalysis, a two-term introduction to the basic principles and recent developments in psychoanalysis; and On the Way Home, a series of evening events in which an eminent writer or thinker discusses his or her work with a psychoanalyst. Recent speakers have included A.S. Byatt, Brenda Maddox, Oliver Sachs, and Rose Tremain. Details of these and other events can be found at www.psychoanalysis.org.uk/events.htm .

Through its work – and the work of its individual members – the British Psychoanalytical Society has made an unrivalled contribution the understanding and treatment of mental illness. Members of the Society have included Michael Balint, Wilfred Bion, John Bowlby, Anna Freud, Melanie Klein, Joseph Sandler, and Donald Winnicott.

For further information please contact Nick Hall, Institute Manager, 020 7563 5005. For information about treatment for adults, adolescents or children contact Trudy Turmer, Clinic Executive Officer, 020 7563 5002. For psychoanalytic training contact the Executive Education Officer 020 7563 5015. For the library contact Mr Saven Morris, 020 7563 5008 and for general enquiries 020 7563 5000 Website: www.psychoanalysis.org.uk