Croydon · online by video, with the Hove room for occasional sessions
Bereavement and grief counselling for Croydon
When someone you love has died and Croydon carries on at its usual pace, grief counselling gives you a weekly hour where the loss comes first. Sessions mostly run over secure video from Addiscombe, Purley or wherever you live, you decide the pace, and nobody expects you to pass through stages or feel better by a set date. A free 15-minute call opens the door, and you share only what you choose.
If you are thinking about ending your life, call 999 or the Samaritans free on 116 123, day or night. More urgent help is on this page.
The practical facts for Croydon
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From Croydon by car
- About 63 minutes with clear roads (44.0 miles); longer at busy times.
- By train
- Direct trains from East Croydon to Brighton; change there for Hove, one stop.
- Free bereavement helpline
- Cruse Bereavement Support helpline, 0808 808 1677
- 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.
When the trams keep running after a death
Croydon is built for keeping moving. The trains out of East Croydon leave on time, the trams keep running, and the office or shop floor usually expects you back soon after the funeral. Grief rarely keeps to that timetable. You might find yourself avoiding the road to Croydon University Hospital in Thornton Heath because it was the last place you saw your mum, or stopping short in the Whitgift Centre at the sight of a coat like your husband's. In a borough where so many families have roots in other countries, the person who died may have been far away, and you may have said goodbye over a video call while relatives gathered somewhere else. Your family's ways of mourning may sit awkwardly beside a workplace that has moved on by the following month. And if you live alone in Addiscombe or South Croydon, the evenings after a death can be very quiet in a very busy place.
Talking about the person, not a stage you should have reached
In grief counselling with me there's no map you're expected to follow and no point at which you should be over it. We start with the person who died: who they were to you, and what the weeks since have been like. Then we follow whatever comes. Sadness is part of it, and so are the things people find harder to say aloud: anger at the person for leaving, guilt about a last conversation, or relief after months of watching someone suffer or years of a difficult relationship. None of it needs tidying before you bring it. If the death was sudden, or by suicide, you decide how much we talk about and when. Losing a parent can stir up the whole family history, and losing a partner can take away the very person you'd normally turn to with something this hard. If you've noticed the drinking creeping up since the funeral, we can talk about that honestly, and the Croydon Integrated Recovery Service is there if you'd like specialist support beside our sessions. If you find yourself not wanting to go on, please tell me, and use the crisis numbers on this page at any hour.
Losses that Croydon life can shape
Last weeks at Croydon University Hospital
If the person you love died after time on the wards in Thornton Heath, the hospital and the road there can carry those final weeks. We can talk about them at whatever depth you choose.
A death in another country
When a parent dies far from Croydon and you can't reach the funeral, grief can feel unfinished. Counselling gives you somewhere to mourn them properly from here.
Back at work too soon
Office and retail jobs in the town centre leave little room for grief. A weekly hour can hold what you keep in all day behind the counter or at the desk.
When the caring has ended
After looking after a parent or partner, you lose a role as well as a person. Mind in Croydon's carers' services and Carers First Croydon on George Street are worth asking what support they offer you.
Free bereavement support for Croydon
Whether the death happened in Thornton Heath or in another country far from Croydon, you can ring the free Cruse Bereavement Support national helpline, listed with the other numbers here. Mind in Croydon, a local charity since 1967, sets up one-to-one counselling when you ring them directly, and Croydon NHS Talking Therapies welcomes you to refer yourself if the loss has left a lingering heaviness or worry. Grief counselling with me can run alongside whichever of these you choose.
- Free bereavement helplineCruse Bereavement Support helpline0808 808 1677Free, from trained volunteers. Open Monday and Wednesday to Friday 9.30am to 5pm, Tuesday 1pm to 8pm.
- Free NHS talking therapyCroydon NHS Talking Therapies0203 228 4040Free NHS talking therapy for low mood or anxiety that has settled in after a loss. You can refer yourself, with no GP referral needed.
- If drinking or drug use is part of itCroydon Integrated Recovery Service (Drug and Alcohol Service - Croydon)0300 123 9288Run by Change Grow Live (CGL). Free and confidential.
- Local organisationMind in Croydon carers' services
- Local organisationCarers First Croydon
If someone at home is hurting, threatening or controlling you, the National Domestic Abuse Helpline is free, day or night, on 0808 2000 247.
If you need urgent help now
If you need help right now, please don't wait for a session.
The South London NHS Mental Health Crisis Text Service (SLaM) is another option: WhatsApp 0303 330 1511 or text 80991.
What people in Croydon ask before starting
How soon after a death can I start bereavement counselling from Croydon?
At whatever point it feels right to you. Some people get in touch within weeks of the funeral, others years later when an old loss surfaces again. Use the free 15-minute call to tell me a little about the loss and how Croydon life has felt since; if we agree to go ahead, we pick a first slot that fits around work or family. If it feels too early, keep my number and come back when you're ready.
Is there free grief support in Croydon?
A free call to Cruse Bereavement Support on 0808 808 1677 reaches its national grief line from anywhere in Croydon, Purley or New Addington. Locally, Mind in Croydon's one-to-one counselling can be arranged by phone, so ask them about any charge or wait. When the weight of a loss has dragged on into lasting low mood or worry, you can phone Croydon NHS Talking Therapies yourself on 0203 228 4040, with no GP letter needed.
Could my grief sessions happen on a screen at home in Croydon, without the trip to Hove?
Yes, and from Croydon that's usually the practical choice, since the room in Hove is about 63 minutes away by car. Talking about someone you've lost can be easier somewhere familiar, perhaps with something of theirs nearby. If meeting face to face ever matters, the direct East Croydon line to Brighton puts an occasional 90- or 120-minute session in Hove within reach.
My mother died abroad and I couldn't get to her funeral from Croydon. Is that something we could talk about in counselling?
Missing a funeral can leave grief feeling unfinished, as though the goodbye never happened. In counselling you can talk about her, about the distance, and about whatever kept you here, including any guilt or anger that comes with it. Marking the loss in your own way and your own time can matter, and we can think together about what that might look like for you, here in Croydon.
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.
When you want to talk about who has died
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.