Dr Catherine Durkin

Dr Catherine Durkin is a Consultant Forensic Psychiatrist with more than a decade of experience as an NHS consultant. She specialises in women’s mental health, with particular expertise in neurodevelopmental conditions, complex trauma and the influence of hormonal changes on psychological wellbeing.

She is the Clinical Lead for the Women’s Service Line within the Health and Justice Division of Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust (CNWL). Alongside her NHS responsibilities, she provides private psychiatric consultations at The Somerville Clinic in Harley Street, London.

Her career has been shaped by extensive work with women in the criminal justice system, where she has focused on addressing complex mental health needs and improving access to appropriate, compassionate care.

Dr Durkin’s specialist interests include:

• ADHD and autism in adult women, including presentations that may be overlooked or misunderstood.
• Complex PTSD and trauma-related conditions, including the lasting psychological effects of adverse experiences.
• Hormone-related mental health conditions, particularly premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) and mental health changes associated with perimenopause and menopause.
• Mood and anxiety disorders, including depression, bipolar disorder and anxiety.
• Complex psychiatric presentations, including psychosis, obsessive-compulsive disorder and personality disorders.

She also has experience in forensic psychiatric assessment and medico-legal work as an expert witness.

Dr Durkin previously served as Joint Presidential Lead for Women and Mental Health at the Royal College of Psychiatrists, alongside Dr Philippa Greenfield, during the 2023–2026 leadership period. In this role, she helped develop the College’s position statement on menopause and mental illness and co-led the Women’s Mental Health Matters strategy, published in 2026. Her research interests include the prevalence and impact of ADHD among women in custody. She also helped establish a neurodevelopmental pathway for women across CNWL’s women’s prisons, supporting more systematic recognition of these needs.

Dr Durkin takes a trauma-informed, holistic approach to psychiatric assessment and treatment. She considers the relationship between psychological symptoms, developmental history, life experiences, physical health and hormonal changes, recognising that these factors can interact in complex ways