Sara Portnoy is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist who has  worked with children and their families for more than 30 years. Since 2004, she has worked at University College Hospital in London (UCLH) with children and their families where the  child has a complex medical  condition. She also works for a Paediatric Palliative Care and Bereavement team, visiting families in their own homes. Between 2016-2019 as part of the Refugee Resilience Collective she worked with refugees and non-governmental organisations in France.

Her therapeutic work is informed by narrative practices and mindfulness. She has developed “The Beads of Life”, a methodology for working with people where there is a challenge dominating their lives. At UCLH she has been co-running “Beads of Life”  groups for young people with a diagnosis of cancer alongside AYA peer mentors . These groups have enabled AYA to have a story that makes sense of their experiences. It has decreased their sense of isolation from their peer group and increased their understanding of the influence they have on their own lives as well as the lives of others. It also helps them to connect with a sense of what matters to them in their lives.