Harrow · online by video, with the Hove room for occasional sessions
Counselling and therapy for Harrow
Perhaps life in Harrow has felt heavy for a while and you have no tidy label for why. You can still write to me. I'm a BACP-registered counsellor working one to one from a single room in Hove, 97 minutes away by road, so from Harrow we would normally meet over secure video from home and skip the drive entirely. A visit to Hove stays open whenever you'd like one.
The practical facts for Harrow
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From Harrow by car
- About 97 minutes with clear roads (76.4 miles); longer at busy times.
- Free NHS talking therapy
- Harrow Talking Therapies, 020 8515 5015
- 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.
A hilltop village, a busy centre and many languages
Harrow has two faces. Up on the hill there's Harrow School and St Mary's Church, while down below, Greenhill and the St Anns and St George's shopping centres make up one of London's 13 metropolitan centres. From Harrow-on-the-Hill the Metropolitan line and Chiltern trains head for Marylebone, and Harrow and Wealdstone has non-stop services to Euston, so plenty of days begin and end on a platform. It's also one of the most varied boroughs in London: in the 2021 Census, 45.2% of residents were Asian or Asian British, and more than half were born outside the UK. Harrow Council's own needs assessment notes that Asian communities seem to reach mental health services less than their need suggests, pointing to stigma, culture, language and access. It also finds that adults aged 25 to 44 carry the most need, and that men here come forward less often. None of that says anything about you in particular, but it may explain why asking for help can feel harder here than it should.
Getting in touch before you know what's wrong
You're welcome to contact me with nothing more than a sense that things aren't right. Some people from Harrow arrive with a clear reason, such as a marriage under strain, a parent who has become unwell, or a redundancy. Others mention broken sleep, a short temper with the children, or an evening drink that has slowly turned into several. Some carry expectations from family or community about keeping problems private, and talking to someone outside that circle can feel like a relief and a betrayal at once. All of this belongs in the room. Over the opening weeks we sort through the pressures one by one, notice which of them feed each other, and settle on a focus that makes sense to you. Should your GP, or a group run in your own language, look like a better match for part of it, I'll tell you honestly and help you reach them. My approach is integrative, with Internal Family Systems among its sources; the detail lives on the how I work page. Behind more than 25 years of practice sits my own recovery, so I listen without judgement, whatever you bring.
Strains a Harrow week tends to bring
Two railway lines into London
Metropolitan line trains from the hill or the non-stop run to Euston from Wealdstone, and a working week that leaves you home late with nothing left.
Keeping things within the family
Harrow Council suggests stigma, language and culture may keep some Asian residents from seeking help, so speaking to someone outside your community may feel easier.
Studying at Northwick Park
Students at the University of Westminster Harrow Campus, in art, design, film, media or music, can find deadlines and money worries pile up quickly.
Older age on a thin budget
Nearly one in five older adults in Harrow is income deprived, and the council links that financial stress to wellbeing in later life.
Public health figures for the area
These are local authority figures from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. The figures describe a whole population over a period, not any one person.
Free and low-cost support for Harrow
Free help in the borough can sit beside our weekly hour. Harrow Talking Therapies, the NHS service run by CNWL with Mind in Harrow, can be contacted directly on 020 8515 5015 if worry or a low mood is dragging on. Mind in Harrow also runs the Diya Peer Support Group for South Asian residents and the Somali Hayaan Project. For anyone aged 12 to 25 who lives or studies in the borough, The WISH Centre offers free self-harm support.
- Free NHS talking therapyHarrow Talking Therapies020 8515 5015Free NHS talking therapy for anxiety, low mood and related difficulties. You can refer yourself, with no GP referral needed.
- If drinking or drug use is part of itVia Harrow0300 303 2868Free and confidential.
- Local organisationBereavement Care (Harrow and Hillingdon)
- Local organisationSt Luke's Hospice (Harrow and Brent): Bereavement Support
- Local organisationHarrow Carers
- Local organisationBuild on Belief HarrowRecovery community.
For gambling, the National Gambling Helpline is free, day or night, on 0808 8020 133 (NHS gambling support).
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.
Locally, the CNWL Mental Health Single Point of Access is on 0800 0234 650.
If you 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 Harrow ask before starting
How long would I wait to see a counsellor from Harrow?
The free consultation comes first: 15 minutes on the phone or a video link, at a time that suits you. If you'd like to go ahead after that, I'll tell you which weekly times are open and you choose whichever fits around your Harrow week. With no travel involved, an evening hour after getting back from Euston or Marylebone is perfectly workable.
Can I refer myself to Harrow Talking Therapies without my GP?
Yes. Where worry or a heavy, flat mood has settled in, you can ring Harrow Talking Therapies yourself on 020 8515 5015; it is the NHS service run by Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust together with Mind in Harrow. Waiting times there vary. You can use it alongside private counselling with me or instead of it, and we can weigh up which suits you on our first call.
Is video counselling from Harrow as good as meeting in person?
For most people it works well. You see and hear me clearly, we keep a regular weekly slot, and you skip a trip of more than an hour and a half each way. Your own room can make it easier to say difficult things. Should you ever want an in-person hour, we can book one at Intergen House in Hove and carry on by video the rest of the time.
Can I have counselling in Harrow without my family knowing?
Yes. What you tell me stays between us, within the confidentiality limits I explain at the start. With video you can join from anywhere private, such as a workplace meeting room, a spare bedroom or a friend's home, and nothing arrives in the post. If you'd rather talk with people who share your background, Mind in Harrow's Diya group and Somali Hayaan Project can sit alongside our sessions.
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.
Begin with a short talk, from Harrow Weald to Kenton
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.