Counselling Service (Open to the Public)

Colchester Institute Counselling Service Important Updates

We are currently welcoming new referrals and have a number of appointment times available. Please review the information about our service and approach, complete the Self-Referral form and submit, you will be contacted shortly.

To ensure we are able to meet the needs and requirements of our clients, we are pleased to confirm that we are now able to offer counselling by a number of platforms. As well as face to face sessions on campus we also offer telephone counselling or video calls.

If you have any further questions please contact us on cics.info@colchester.ac.uk

What is Counselling?

What is Counselling?

Person-Centred Counselling offers a confidential, safe and non-judgemental environment where you can gain and develop insight into yourself, current situations and life experiences. Through talking and sharing you will be able to explore thoughts and maybe difficult feelings and develop a clearer understanding of yourself so that you can cope more effectively in life and allows potential for growth and change. The counsellor will be supportive in this but will not give advice or their own opinion.

Counselling Service

Colchester Institute Counselling Service

Colchester Institute Counselling Service is an organisational member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and works within the BACP Ethical Framework which provides a foundation for good practice.

The service has been running since 1990 and we have links with Community Mental Health Teams, GP Practices and many Voluntary Organisations.

The service runs throughout the academic year but breaks will be negotiated over Christmas, Easter and Summer.

The Counsellors

  • All counsellors are individual members of the BACP and work within the BACP Ethical Framework.
  • They are all professional trainee counsellors working towards the completion of their counselling training.
  • All counsellors are required to monitor counselling through on-going supervision.
  • All trainee counsellors are required by the training programme to tape record the counselling sessions for supervision and course work purposes only.

Please note that as the counsellors are students in training, it is not appropriate to request reports and/or the release of confidential counselling notes for legal purposes. It is advised that counselling is sought with a qualified BACP counsellor if reports or case notes are required in support of a legal claim.

Appointments & Fees

All sessions are 50 minutes

Appointments Available: Monday – Friday, day times and evening.

You will have an initial assessment session with the counsellor to decide whether counselling is for you and whether the counsellor feels the service is right for you. After an initial session you will have a 6 week contract with your counsellor, which can be extended for a following 11 sessions if appropriate to do so. If your counsellor finishes their training during this time then the sessions will end and an arrangement will be made known to you if further counselling is required.

Your appointments will be arranged for the same time and location each week.

There is a fee of £5 per counselling session*

Fees are payable via the Colchester Institute Online Store in advance of sessions.  Please see the Sessions Fees guidance sheet for further information.  If online or card payments would be difficult for you we can discuss this during the assessment process.

Counselling Fees – Online Payments

We appreciate coming to counselling can be daunting but we aim to provide you with the best possible service. If you have decided that counselling is for you then you can contact our services on the number provided or you can fill out a referral form on the link below. Do not hesitate to call us for more information.

*Under certain circumstances some clients may be eligible for a discretionary fee reduction.

Contact Us

In response to government guidance in relation to Coronavirus Safety Measures we respectfully ask that you do not visit our campus unless you have a pre-arranged appointment. To reduce the number of people visiting campus Queries should be directed to us via telephone or email using the contact details below.

cics.info@colchester.ac.uk

Counselling Self-referral Form

If you would like to make an appointment to receive counselling from us, please fill in your details and we will arrange an appointment for you as soon as possible.

Counselling Evaluation Form
Counselling Training

Our Person-centred Counselling higher education programmes provide a professional training in humanistic person-centred counselling / psychotherapy. These courses are designed for those who have an interest in mental health, the human condition and a willingness to work with others in times of significant distress. On graduating, you will be able to explore career opportunities in a variety of organisations such as schools, college or universities, GP surgeries, hospitals or dedicated advice centres.

BA (Hons) Counselling and Psychotherapy

DipHE Person-Centred Counselling