Our People

We're proud of our team at the Triple P Centre. Our experienced psychologists are specialists in parenting support, and child and family therapy. We'll work with you to tailor the approach that suits you best.

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Jackie Riach:
Dip Teaching, M.A, Dip Ed Psych, MNZPSS

Jackie is manager of Triple P New Zealand. She specialises in working with children, adolescents and their families and has practised across a variety of settings.

Jackie has worked as a psychologist for the Ministry of Education, Special Education Service in Auckland. As a senior psychologist working in the UK, Jackie was responsible for leading multi-disciplinary behaviour support projects across the London Borough of Camden.

Jackie has extensive skill and experience working collaboratively with children, adolescents and families to assist them to find positive solutions to manage social- emotional functioning and challenging behaviours. She provides consultation as well as individual therapy to children, adolescents and parents.

Prior to undertaking her Educational Psychologist training, Jackie completed teacher training and taught for six years. Her masters thesis examined children’s development of phonological awareness and literacy development. Findings from her thesis were published in Reading Research Quarterly (1992) and she presented her findings at the World Congress on Reading. She has expertise in the assessment of learning needs.

Jackie’s areas of special interests are: Complex and challenging behaviour, Learning and education, Anxiety, Family relationships.

Jackie is a registered psychologist. She is an accredited Triple P Trainer and an accredited Triple P Provider in all types of the program. Jackie is a certified provider of the Secret Agent Social Skills Program (SAS) for children on the Autistic Spectrum.

She is also is the mother of two teenagers.

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Michelle Melville-Smith:
B.A, M.A (Hons), MNZPS.

Michelle is highly skilled in consulting on child behavioural, social and emotional issues and working effectively with parents on strategies to cope with these issues. For parents who are separated Michelle can help develop communication strategies and she has considerable experience in mediation. She also works with separated parents to help them to understand the needs of their children. She promotes strategies for helping them to meet their own needs.

Michelle is experienced in couples counselling and in supporting people to become more aware of how they can enhance their relationships. She provides professional supervision on matters in relation to child and family issues.

Michelle also works with children providing counselling on issues including anger management, coping with anxiety, dealing with loss and grief. She has worked with children in residential care and their parents.

Michelle’s areas of special interest are: Helping parents to be empowered and to improve family life, Working with vulnerable children and their families, Assisting families going through separation and divorce

She is a registered psychologist and an accredited Triple P practitioner. She is a trainer for Triple P International (Trainer of the Year, 2007).

Michelle is the mother of three young daughters.

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Sally Rugg:
M.A (Hons), Dip Clin Psych

For 25 years, Sally has worked with families and children with complex needs. She has extensive experience providing parenting support to parents from very diverse backgrounds – from private clients to the populations of men’s and women’s prisons.

She has particular expertise working with families where there has been abuse, neglect or violence.

Sally’s areas of special interest are: Separation, Blended families, Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

Sally is a registered clinical psychologist and an accredited Triple P practitioner. She is the mother of three teenagers.