OUR SERVICES

Counselling

Free and confidential counselling to support and improve mental health and emotional wellbeing.

How counselling

can help…

Counselling can help with a variety of problems, and when a person has become ‘stuck’ or troubled with their current situation. Counselling can also help if you have experienced difficulties in your past, growing up or just need a space to talk without judgement.

We offer up to 18 sessions of weekly therapy for parents/carers of children aged 0-19 years (25 years SEND) across Warwickshire. Our sessions are available face to face in some locations across Warwickshire and also by telephone or online via Zoom.

How we work
Our counsellors endeavour to promote autonomy by facilitating a trusting therapeutic relationship with clients. This is achieved by remaining non-judgemental, offering empathic understanding and holding the client through their counselling experience.

Why do we work in this way?
By holding the sentiment ‘It is not what is wrong with you, but what has happened to you’ at the core of our work, we learn that being ‘Trauma informed’ in our relationship with clients can facilitate better outcomes and help avoid the stigma which often comes when experiencing mental health problems.

What kind of things can I talk about?
There are many issues/problems which can be talked through in sessions, such as depression and anxiety. Other issues can include (but are not limited to):

• Obsessive behaviour
• Stress/worries
• Family difficulties
• Gender issues
• Bereavement and loss
• Traumatic events
• Physical problems
• Phobias
• Low mood

• Eating problems
• Sexual assault/violence
• Pregnancy/birth issues
• Parenting issues
• Cultural/faith issues
• Self confidence
• Relationship issues
• Self-esteem
• Anger issues

Counselling Service Details

Counselling Service Details

 

Please find below important details about our Counselling service. Please read through this information before completing a referral.

 

  • We are a voluntary organisation based in Kenilworth providing one to one counselling for parents and carers who have a child under 19 (25 SEND) living in Warwickshire. We are not a statutory service, this means we are not funded like the NHS so we largely rely on gaining funding or donations to be able to offer this service free to parents/carers.
  • We are also able to take referrals for clients who are not parents/carers but live in Warwickshire and have been a victim of domestic abuse. We also have a limited project in Bedworth for boys and men aged 14-30. If you wish to refer to one of these two projects please register your interest by first emailing counselling@parentingproject.org.uk (we will contact you first before asking you to fill out a referral form).
  • Clients will need to have childcare in place and be able to attend a telephone assessment lasting approximately one hour and then be able to commit to weekly sessions (up to 18) which will be at the same time/day each week.
  • We offer weekly sessions by telephone, online using Zoom and face to face in limited areas (options will be discussed in the assessment appointment).
  • Our appointments are Monday-Friday 9am-3.30pm with limited later appointments on Wednesday late afternoons.
  • Once we receive a referral into our service we will only correspond with the client due to confidentiality and the counselling contract agreed with the client.
  • We are unable to accept referrals for clients wishing to discuss adoption issues or those who have an ongoing/active court case or police investigation.
  • We are not an emergency crisis service. If the client feels that they are in need of immediate support they will need to contact their GP or in an emergency dial 999.

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

We hold different waiting lists for different areas/modes of sessions, so this will depend on the location/mode. All waiting lists are monitored and we keep clients informed and updated on when they are likely to be seen.

All information collated by our counselling service is held confidentially and never shared. We have exclusions to this and at assessment the counsellor will explain these exclusions to you, this includes our safeguarding policy and sharing of information where necessary.

Once we receive a referral into our service we only correspond with the client, this is due to confidentiality and our counselling contract we agree with the client.

We offer counselling within the following locations, children centres (CFC), GPs, and Community areas:
Alcester CFC, Stratford CFC, Westgate CFC, Kingsway CFC, Lillington CFC, Rugby CFC, St Michaels CFC, Stockingford CFC.

We also offer sessions online and by telephone.

Each location/mode is different and our waiting lists vary. As we are not an emergency or crisis service we do not prioritise one client over another. Clients will be seen in the order they are assessed. In most cases booking in is straightforward however, if you have specific needs in terms of type of therapy offered we may need to refer you to a different centre/or therapist, to ensure the most appropriate therapist works with you.

We will contact you by email to offer your appointment. Please ensure you provide us with your most recent contact details so we can reach you. If we do not get a response to our text, phone call or email offering you an appointment we will assume you have chosen not to enter into our service at this time. If you move home, or change your contact details, or wish to change to a different location in Warwickshire please also let us know by text or email.

Once we have contracted with you we do not share any information other than to say we have engaged with you. If your referrer contacts us to see if you are attending we only share that you have engaged with us. We direct your referrer (or any other agency) to speak with you if they require any further information. The only time we may need to share is where a safeguarding issue is raised or if the law requires us to do so, this is always explained and contracted at the start of counselling. We do not share information with outside agencies, professionals, family members etc. even if you request us to do so by verbal or written agreement.

Our counselling service is free at the point of delivery for those who may not have the means to access 18 sessions of therapeutic counselling. We are continually seeking funding and fundraising to be able to offer this quality service locally so if you feel you would like to make a contribution then any amount is gratefully received and valued. Details can be found on our website on how to donate. Each pound helps us maintain this valuable service.

We are unable to offer childcare unfortunately, this will need to be arranged prior to attending counselling. We request babies are not brought into sessions whilst attending ongoing sessions. Counselling can continue over the course of 6 months, a newborn can soon become a very alert and aware 6 month old.

Counselling is attended in the same location/mode on the same day and time each week. For counselling to be of benefit, weekly attendance is requested. Any missed or cancelled appointments will come out of the allocated 18 sessions. Please note, we do not hold appointments for continued cancellations or missed appointments. We may suggest you re-refer into counselling if you are unable to attend the weekly sessions.

You can change your mind at any point from referral to being in therapy, please text or email us, or let you your counsellor know if you have already been allocated sessions. This does not prevent you from referring yourself again at any time. Counselling is a choice and attending is without any obligation.

Our counsellors do not carry work phones so any cancellations must be done via the counselling office, you will be provided contact details when we arrange any appointments with you. Our counselling@parentingproject.org.uk email address can be used for any other communication however this is the general counselling office not individual counsellor’s email.

Attending counselling is an individual experience and what one person uses their counselling hour for maybe different to another. It can be goal orientated or it can be a space to hear your thoughts out loud without any agenda. We are an organisational member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and their website may also provide information about counselling and what it is in more detail www.bacp.co.uk.

What we do like to stress is that counselling is a choice. It’s an equal, collaborative and above all confidential relationship where change can happen at your pace. We do not hold a medicalised view of mental health but instead hold the view that life experiences, early relationships, trauma and loss can impact our current lives even if we feel they are in the past or ‘dealt with’. We do not diagnose, write reports or share information with other professionals, even if you request us to. The sentiment we hold is not ‘what is wrong with you’ but ‘what has happened to you’.

Everything shared in a session is in confidence. We never share content of your sessions with referrers or other professionals who may be working with you. Exclusions to confidentiality will be discussed in your first session.

COUNSELLING FEEDBACK

Feedback from some of the people who have used our counselling services…

Feedback from some of the people who have used our counselling services…

“I am so glad I was able to have counselling with this service. It has changed every aspect of my life for the better and I would recommend it to anyone.”
“My experience was amazing. It gave me confidence to change bad habits from childhood and understand myself more.”
“It helped me to see that I was stuck after my mum’s death. It has helped me to process it all and move on in a positive way.”

More about Counselling

More About Counselling

To find out more about our service please email
counselling@parentingproject.org.uk

Make a Referral

Make A Referral

To make a referral please complete our online referral form https://live.sgioba.com/parentingproject/register/

Download our Counselling leaflet: