Clinical Therapist | Assessment Consultant | Addiction Counsellor
Language: English
Nannett Hayles is a dedicated and compassionate therapist with a broad base of experience supporting children, adolescents, adults, couples, and families across diverse clinical and educational settings. Her areas of focus include addiction counselling, family therapy, psychoeducational assessment, and intensive interventions for children with developmental challenges. Nannett brings a client-centered, strengths-based approach to her work, helping clients build insight, resilience, and healthier ways of coping.
Nannett holds a Master of Education in Educational Psychology from the University of the West Indies, a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology (Honours), and a Postgraduate Diploma in Addiction and Mental Health, for which she was named to the Dean’s Honour List. She is also in the process of completing advanced certification in Marriage and Couples Therapy and is committed to ongoing professional development in evidence-based practice.
Nannett brings over five years of experience delivering intensive intervention to children on the medium- to high-functioning autism spectrum. Prior to immigrating to Canada, her work in this area included direct therapeutic intervention, development of individualized support plans, and consultative services for both parents and educators. She regularly trained support staff and provided professional development workshops for education officers within the Ministry of Education in Kingston, Jamaica, strengthening their ability to support neurodiverse learners in school settings. Additionally, her psychoeducational assessment work included identifying learning difficulties, emotional regulation concerns, and other developmental challenges. She also worked closely with families and schools to create tailored support plans that promote academic and personal success.
Currently, at Toronto Psychological Services & Research Centre (TPSRC), Nannett provides supervised therapy and assessment services to youth, adults, couples, and families. She is also a member of TPSRC’s reunification therapy team, where she supports families navigating high-conflict dynamics and strained parent-child relationships. She supports individuals facing a range of emotional, behavioural, and relational challenges, including anxiety, school-related concerns, substance use, trauma, and parent-child conflict. Her therapeutic approach incorporates cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT), trauma-informed care, and systemic family work. Nannett is particularly skilled at using CBT techniques to support both child and parent, helping improve emotional regulation, family communication, and school engagement.
Nannett brings a globally informed perspective to her work, shaped in part by her Caribbean heritage and extensive clinical experience in Jamaica. Clients often find her expressive communication style and vibrant warmth to be disarming and deeply human—qualities that foster trust and encourage openness, especially couples and families navigating complex emotional terrain. Clients describe Nannett as approachable, empathic, and practical. Her ability to combine warm therapeutic presence with clear, goal-directed support has made her an effective ally for those seeking change in their lives. She is passionate about empowering individuals, couples, and families to reach their full potential and is deeply committed to the value of collaborative, culturally attuned care. Her clinical work is supervised by Registered Psychologist, Ghia Townsend, MSc. C. Psych. PsyD