Copleston Community Counselling

Approximately 500 people a week come to the Copleston Centre. In a fast-changing local area, our vision is to be a hub for the whole community through offering a diverse programme that benefits health, well-being and community.

We are requesting £29,216 to develop our affordable sliding-scale counselling service to focus on young people on low incomes aged 18-25. Counselling beneficiaries will be young people with mental health challenges and on low incomes. Our experience demonstrates that providing this low-cost and affordable service in a well-known and inclusive community centre removes some of the stigma associated with counselling support and increases access to people on low incomes.

 Integral to the service is the provision of placement and supervision to opportunities for trainee counsellors from City Lit. Our service will comprise a diversity of supervised trainees counsellors and clients who are representative of all sections of our community. 

With pressures on the mental health of young people opportunities to access affordable counselling limited, our service is in high demand. Counselling waiting lists across the borough are long and young people are in greater need - whether because of increased social isolation, anxiety, body image or the effects of the cost of living crisis on individuals, family and community, he need is rising..

 Consultation and evaluation involving clients, trainee, qualified and supervising counsellors has led us to offer 16 weeks of counselling rather than 8, which affects our numbers, but more importantly improves the counselling outcomes for the client and stops the 'revolving door' scenario. 

 With 3 trainee counsellors each seeing two clients for up to 16 weeks, and monthly clinical supervision and support, at least 3 trainee counsellors and at least 27 clients will benefit from the service.

As part of our service evaluation, we will monitor the difference the service makes in achieving its objectives. The difference we want it to make is:

To provide a safe, welcoming and non-stigmatising space in which young people can get the support they need

To provide at least 27 young people with up to 16 counselling sessions

To reduce ‘revolving door’ referrals

To attract counselling students and young people from diverse backgrounds and referral routes

To provide clients with the following skills, strategies and insight to: 

·      cope with everyday life 

·      build emotional resilience 

·      deal with personal issues 

To provide opportunities for signposting to in-house and partner services

To give trainee counsellors experience of practicing in a community setting

To provide placements for people to develop their skills and get counselling qualifications

The funding will support a much-needed Peckham-based affordable sliding-scale counselling service for young people of diverse backgrounds and provide opportunities for counselling students to gain skills and qualifications. investment in young people’s mental health and well-being and in developing careers in counselling benefits not only for the people receiving counselling and undertaking training, but the whole community. 

 We have an established and well-known counselling service that is part of a broader range of therapeutic and well-being services we offer, from Art Therapy, Mindfulness and a Women’s Restorative group. After our last cohort of student counsellors had qualified and volunteered with us for a year, since August 2025 we have had a break in the service to evaluate and restructure with a new focus. This project is a result of that and has been planned in response to evaluation and on demand and need.

Budget

Project Management 4680

Clinical Supervisor 8640

Assessments 1850

Trainee Counsellor Expenses 2160

Room hire 7200

Communication and marketing 1440

Administration 3246

Total 29216