Our story

A friendship that became Katja’s Place.

Katja’s Place was established in 2021 by Cameron Griffiths in memory of his close friend and colleague, Katja Attwood, who passed away in 2019.

Cameron and Katja met in 2014 and developed a close professional friendship. They regularly shared ideas about client care, service delivery, and how therapy clinics could better support children and families. Together, they hoped to one day create a service that reflected these values.

Although Katja never had the opportunity to see that dream realised, Katja’s Place was created in honour of her memory and the vision they shared — a service dedicated to understanding, supporting, and empowering children and their families.

What we stand for

The values that shape our service.

From the way we support children and families to the way we support our team, these values shape every aspect of our service and help create meaningful, sustainable outcomes.

Pillar one

Neuro-Affirming Practice

We believe children should be supported, understood, and valued for who they are. Our focus is on helping children develop skills, access supports, and participate meaningfully in everyday life while respecting their unique strengths, needs, and identities.

  • Celebrating Neurodiversity

    Every child experiences and interacts with the world in their own way. We focus on understanding and valuing these differences, recognising each child's strengths, interests, and unique perspectives.

  • Meaningful Participation

    We focus on helping children participate meaningfully in everyday life rather than encouraging them to simply meet social expectations. Therapy goals are centred on improving wellbeing, independence, communication, self-advocacy, and participation in activities that are important to the child and their family.

  • Guided by Lived Experience

    Many members of our team have lived experience of neurodivergence, either personally or within their families. This perspective helps shape how we listen, learn, and deliver support, ensuring neurodivergent voices remain central to the way our service evolves.

Pillar two

Genuine Client Focus

Being the right fit for your family matters more to us than filling a diary. From your very first conversation with us, our focus is on understanding your child’s needs, your family’s goals, and how we can best support you.

  • Detailed intake process

    Every new referral begins with a thorough intake process, including a conversation with the practice owner. This helps us determine whether our team, experience, and service model are the right fit for your child and family. If we’re not the best match, we’ll do our best to connect you with a service that may better meet your needs.

  • Flexible & responsive

    Families are unique, and therapy should reflect that. We take the time to understand your circumstances, communicate openly, and provide flexible, responsive support wherever possible.

  • Working in partnership

    We believe families know their children best. We take the time to listen, share our observations, and work collaboratively to develop goals and strategies that are meaningful to your child and family.

Pillar three

Care for Staff

The way we support our staff is reflected in the care they provide to children and families. By creating a positive, sustainable workplace, we enable our team to bring their best to every interaction.

  • Individual schedules

    Our staff have genuine control over their schedules, without performance targets or rigid productivity expectations. This flexibility helps them maintain a healthy work-life balance and provide thoughtful, consistent support to the families they work with.

  • Therapy with personality

    We encourage our staff to bring their authentic selves to therapy. Meaningful relationships often grow through shared interests, humour, and genuine connection, helping children feel comfortable, engaged, and understood.

  • We sweat the back office

    We invest significant time and care into the systems, administration, and processes that support our service. By reducing unnecessary administrative burden, our therapists can spend more time focused on what matters most — supporting children and families.

Our team

The people behind the service.

Four friendly faces, one shared approach — get to know the people you’ll see at Katja’s Place.

  • Jodie Bowden

    Occupational Therapist

    An occupational therapist with five years of experience working with children — and a habit of sharing the things she loves with the kids she sees.

    Read more →
  • Rose Haley

    Allied Health Assistant

    An allied health assistant with a background in early childhood education and support work.

    Read more →
  • Tara Graham

    Allied Health Assistant

    An allied health assistant with a background in the arts, bringing creativity, music, and performance into her work with children.

    Read more →

Jodie, Rose, and Tara help run our school-holiday group activities, adventure days, and overnight camps.

In loving memory

Katja

Katja Kotaniemi Attwood (1989–2019)

Katja’s Place is named in her memory — an occupational therapist whose warmth and vision shaped everything we do.

Read Katja’s story →

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