Terms of Service

What can you expect from me?

Explore life's challenges with Adult Counselling Therapy Ltd (ACT) - offering personal growth therapy and mental health support from Hampshire.

The attractiveness of my counselling service is the provision for sharing personal problem experiences, thoughts and feelings, in a safe, confidential environment (see privacy and confidentiality page for full details) without judgement and opinion. I will listen to you with empathy and I will help you navigate and process what is going on for you. I will also provide you with tools to help you continue to build on your self-awareness. 

If during the session there is a clear need for additional specific counselling help, I would always take the ethical position to provide you, the client, with opportunities to attain further help and provide suitable information to make those arrangements.

My extensive experience working in multiple industries particularly my 20 year career in a public sector role, linked with varied personal experiences and working as a counsellor for established Winchester based charities, makes me someone who can listen to you without judgement, without opinion and with unconditional positive regard, congruence and empathy. 

Adult Counselling Therapy Ltd provides a one-to-one counselling service. I hold appropriate insurance cover for the counselling services I provide and the location of my practice room. This document will show any updates made in this regard and I make every effort to ensure my services are ethically sound. 

My counselling service is for anyone over the age of 18.

What can I expect from you?
 

I expect my clients to be respectful towards me. I expect my clients not to be under the influence of alcohol or recreational drugs during our counselling sessions. I am here to enable you to talk about your problem thoughts, feelings and behaviours in a safe space, however, counselling will not be of any benefit to you if you are intoxicated in anyway during the therapeutic session. 

Service cost. Each session is £60 per 50 minute counselling therapy session whether face to face or over video call. If an alternative rate is in place as part of a specific arrangement with a company or charity then that will be the fee to pay. Some companies and charities offer a number of paid-for sessions and will pay me directly so in those circumstances no fee will be charged to you. 

Note, that ideally I work with clients who commit to a regular weekly session during our therapeutic relationship. It is important that there is momentum to your therapy experience so you can benefit fully from the process.

The duration of your counselling time with me is something you are in control of. It can be decided together during a conversation with me during any session. I suggest a minimum of 6-12 sessions to start with, any less might not provide you with adequate time to make sound personal gains. If there is a requirement for more long term counselling, I can accommodate this. 

My hope is that our sessions will be something you look forward to. Please remember to keep the appointments made and please do not be intoxicated in anyway. In these circumstances the full session fee will be charged but no session can take place. Thank you. 

How do I access this counselling service?

1. Click on one of the booking website links, complete the contact page on the website and send a message with your enquiry and contact details, or email directly to contact@adultcounsellingtherapy.co.uk. 

2. I will send you a registration form for completion and return. This form will ask you for some personal information including what you are looking to gain from your sessions. The reason for this is so an initial assessment can be made as to whether I might be the right therapist, with the right skills and qualifications, with the required availability, to suit you and meet your needs. In addition, providing your detailed information at this stage enables me to look after your welfare from the very outset of our contact together (see Privacy Policy page for further details on data management).

3. I will ring you, or email you using the contact details you provide and let you know if I am able to provide you with counselling that meets your needs. If I can, I will offer you a regular date and time for your counselling sessions and send you a contract (working agreement) via email for your perusal. The contract will need to be agreed and signed in the first session if in person, or electronically if online. If I am not able to offer you counselling I will delete all details I have for you. If I do provide you with counselling therapy I will keep your details safe as per the policy (See 'Privacy and Confidentiality Policy' page). 

4. How to Pay - Sessions are 50 minutes duration and the fee per session payable in advance - Please note - Adult Counselling Therapy Ltd has a NO CASH policy. Payment is to be made via card machine at the therapy room, or I can send an online link via email for use prior to any session or group of sessions, should you wish to pay for multiple visits in one go. I will provide an invoice for your records upon request.

5. I will then hold a session with you at the therapy room or I will make contact with you at our agreed date and time via video call as previously arranged. The first session will include a review of our contract (working agreement) and I will ask you to complete an overview assessment form (Core10) which involves answering ten quick questions to help me understand the current difficulties you are experiencing. I will also ask you to complete the same form during our final session together, to monitor the progress made.

6. Cancellations or missed appointments - if you wish to cancel an appointment, please allow a minimum of 24 hours notice otherwise the missed session fee will still be charged. If you miss two consecutive sessions and do not make contact, I will assume you no longer wish to continue therapy and I will make your time slot available to another client. If you are cancelling a paid-for session through an organisation, the same applies and I will not be able to offer you regular therapy sessions if those that are offered are not utilised. 

I will endeavour to give you reasonable notice of any sessions I need to cancel and there will be no charge to you for these cancellations.

No availability? - If I am able to support you through a counselling process, but I am unable to offer you a regular slot immediately, I can put you on a waiting list and contact you as soon as a place becomes free. You may then decide whether or not you still require the service. 

Contact between sessions - is usually limited to administrative issues, for example rearranging or cancelling appointments. For this purpose please email contact@adultcounsellingtherapy.co.uk - I will endeavour to respond within 1-2 working days, although this is not always possible. Please note I do not accept 'friend requests' from clients on social media.

Complaints - if for any reason you are unhappy with your therapy, please feel able to discuss this with me. Formal professional conduct complaints can be raised through the BACP (British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy). 

Please note - this is not a crisis service. If you need to talk to someone urgently about a mental health related matter please call Samaritans 116123, NHS 111, or emergency service via 999 if required. 

Accessibility for those with impaired vision - I hope I have made the website accessible, clear and easy to read, as well as easy to navigate around. I have used larger than normal text to allow those with visual impairment to read the content more easily. I am more than happy to assist anyone who wishes to view this information in a different format or larger text, if required. 

Dyslexia friendly - where possible the text within this website is light on dark background and paragraphs are also left hand aligned, to aid those who have to manage dyslexia. 

Thank you for your interest in Adult Counselling Therapy Ltd. 

Best Wishes

James