Littlehampton · in person in Hove or online
Addiction counselling and rehab advice for Littlehampton
Typing rehab into a search from Littlehampton, whether the worry is your own or a brother's, partner's or child's, usually means things have become serious. Across West Sussex, DAWN is the drug and alcohol service that decides on and books a detox or a residential stay. I offer one-to-one addiction counselling before, during or after that, either in the Hove room 37 minutes' drive along the coast or over secure video.
The practical facts for Littlehampton
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From Littlehampton by car
- About 37 minutes with clear roads (20.4 miles); longer at busy times.
- By train
- Direct trains from Littlehampton towards Brighton call at Hove on the way.
- Free local drug & alcohol service
- West Sussex Drug & Alcohol Wellbeing Network (DAWN), 0330 128 1113
- Fees
- £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90, £120 for 120. The first 15-minute call is free.
- Registration
- BACP registered member, no. 109340 (check the register); UKCP student member in advanced psychotherapy training.
From the harbour to an assessment: who does what
Drink, drugs and gambling take a particular shape in a harbour town.
Littlehampton has a seaside rhythm, with Harbour Park and the beach busy in summer and quieter months either side, and work in shops and care often runs on shifts that finish late. A third of households in the built-up area live in flats, which can make a problem hard to hide from the people beyond the wall, and hard to get any distance from. For a Littlehampton family hunting for rehab, the way in is DAWN, the Drug and Alcohol Wellbeing Network that Change Grow Live runs for West Sussex, reached on 0330 128 1113. Once they have talked it through with the person, the team can line up help while living at home by the Arun, a detox, or a stay in residential care. Counselling is a separate strand of help: a private, regular conversation about how the drinking or using came to run things, and what you would like in its place.
Counselling that fits around DAWN, work and family
Our sessions are one to one and outpatient, and you can start now, mid-habit, with nothing yet changed. We look at the hours when the pull is strongest, maybe after a late care shift, in a quiet winter week when seasonal work dries up, or on a Sunday with no train and nothing planned, and at what drinking, using or betting has been giving you. An older story is often running underneath, and it gets room as well. If a detox or a spell in residential care is the plan DAWN settles on, coming home to Littlehampton afterwards can be the most exposed stretch, and a fixed weekly hour gives you something steady to return to. Partners, parents and adult children can book sessions of their own, to talk about the worry, the covering up and where their own limits lie. As background only, alcohol-specific hospital admissions in Arun ran at 581.8 per 100,000 in 2023/24, similar to England's 611.7 per 100,000, a district figure that cannot speak for any one Littlehampton household. My own recovery sits behind more than 25 years of practice, so you can be honest about the parts you have kept from everyone else.
Starting points for Littlehampton families
Who assesses for rehab
Ring DAWN on 0330 128 1113. Change Grow Live staff decide with you whether help at home, a detox or a stay away suits best, then set it up.
Wanting to drink less
Arun Wellbeing runs a free Alcohol Reduction Service for adults who live or work in West Sussex, one to one by phone, video or face to face.
Home life bent around a habit
Carers Support West Sussex has a service for people looking after a relative or partner whose drinking or drug use has taken over home life.
Friends and family affected
If a relative's drinking is wearing you down, the council's West Sussex Wellbeing has help aimed at family and friends, and our hour can be wholly about you.
Public health figures for the area
These are local authority figures from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. "Similar to England" means the difference is not statistically significant. The figures describe a whole population over a period, not any one person.
Free drug and alcohol support for Littlehampton
Free help around Littlehampton starts with DAWN, run by Change Grow Live, for drug and alcohol assessment and treatment. Families have Carers Support West Sussex and the friends-and-family help from West Sussex Wellbeing, while West Sussex Mind runs its Pathfinder support hub on Maltravers Drive, with individual and group sessions for Littlehampton. Counselling with me can run alongside all of it.
- Free drug and alcohol serviceWest Sussex Drug & Alcohol Wellbeing Network (DAWN)0330 128 1113Run by Change Grow Live. Free and confidential.
- Local organisationSt Barnabas House bereavement servicesHospice bereavement support.
FRANK (on 0300 123 6600) and Drinkline on 0300 123 1110 are free and confidential, and Alcoholics Anonymous and SMART Recovery run peer-support meetings you can find online. For gambling, the National Gambling Helpline is free, day or night, on 0808 8020 133 (NHS gambling support).
If raising someone's drinking or drug use with them feels unsafe, or someone at home is hurting, threatening or controlling you, the National Domestic Abuse Helpline is free, day or night, on 0808 2000 247. In immediate danger, call 999.
Detox and residential rehab are arranged through the free local drug and alcohol service named here. It assesses what you need, arranges medically assisted withdrawal where that is safe and needed, and can refer for community or residential treatment. My part is one-to-one counselling before, alongside or after that treatment, to help the changes last.
If you need urgent help now
If you need help right now, please don't wait for a session.
In this area you can also text SUSSEX to 85258.
If you, or someone you live with, drink heavily every day, or take drugs such as benzodiazepines or GHB daily, do not stop suddenly without medical advice. Withdrawal can cause seizures and can be dangerous. Your GP or the local drug and alcohol service can arrange medically assisted withdrawal. Call 999 or go to A&E if someone in withdrawal is shaking visibly, unusually restless or agitated, confused, seeing or hearing things that are not there, or has a fit. For milder symptoms, such as a slight tremor or sweating, contact your GP or NHS 111 the same day (NHS guidance). Counselling works alongside medical support, not instead of it.
What people in Littlehampton ask before starting
Where do I start if I want rehab for someone in Littlehampton?
Assessment for a detox or residential place goes through DAWN, which Change Grow Live runs for West Sussex, on 0330 128 1113. The person drinking or using will need to be part of that process. While you wait for them to be ready, Carers Support West Sussex helps relatives, and you can book counselling for yourself straight away.
Can I come to Hove from Littlehampton for addiction counselling in person?
Yes. The drive is around 37 minutes, and the direct train through Worthing runs about once an hour off-peak from Monday to Saturday, with no Sunday trains on that line. Weekly sessions at Intergen House are practical from Littlehampton, and secure video is there for the weeks when travelling is difficult or you would rather stay home.
Is there anything in Littlehampton itself to help me drink less?
Arun Wellbeing, run by the county and district councils, offers a free Alcohol Reduction Service by phone, video or face to face, and West Sussex Mind's Pathfinder hub on Maltravers Drive holds one-to-one and group sessions. Where your own drinking is heavy and daily, look at the urgent help box on this page before changing anything, then agree the plan with DAWN or your Littlehampton GP.
My son is using drugs. Can I have counselling for myself from Littlehampton?
You can, whatever he decides to do. Sessions can be entirely about you: the fear, the sleepless nights, the arguments and the question of where your limits sit. For the strain of living with his use, Carers Support West Sussex runs a service aimed at people in your position, and when he is ready, his assessment starts with a call to DAWN on 0330 128 1113.
How much do sessions cost, and is the first call free?
Sessions are £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90 minutes and £120 for 120 minutes, the same in person in Hove or by video. The first 15-minute call is free, with no obligation to book. There is no NHS referral needed to see me privately.
One phone call, from whichever side of it you're on
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.