Leatherhead · in person in Hove or online
Counselling and therapy for Leatherhead
Whether you're in the town centre by the Mole or out in Ashtead, Fetcham or Bookham, you can contact me while whatever is wrong still has no name. I work as a BACP-registered counsellor, by secure video into your own home or in person in my room in Hove, a little under an hour's drive south.
The practical facts for Leatherhead
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From Leatherhead by car
- About 58 minutes with clear roads (47.0 miles); longer at busy times.
- By train
- From Leatherhead, change at Clapham Junction for trains towards Brighton and Hove.
- Free NHS talking therapy
- Mind Matters Surrey, 0300 330 5450
- 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.
Business parks, quiet villages and long days either side
Leatherhead grew up beside a ford on the River Mole, and its old industrial land turned into business parks that brought in large employers such as Esso and Unilever.
So a working week here might mean an office on Ermyn Way, or a train from the station to London Victoria or Waterloo and back again in the dark. Close by, Ashtead, Fetcham and Bookham can feel settled and comfortable from the outside, which can make it harder to admit to anyone that you're not coping. A pleasant street doesn't stop someone feeling lonely, worn down or stuck. Leatherhead Community Hub on Kingston Road says part of its purpose is reducing social isolation, and that tells you something real about the town: even somewhere this well connected, people can go a long time without a proper conversation about how they are.
When you only know that something isn't right
Plenty of people get in touch without a clear label. It might be a low hum of worry that won't switch off after the commute home, sleep that has gone ragged, a marriage that feels distant, a bereavement that hasn't settled, or evening drinking that has crept up. Sorting it into the right category isn't your job. In the early sessions we look at what is actually happening in your week and what has changed, and from there we decide together what to focus on. I work in an integrative way, choosing approaches that suit you, and the how-I-work page explains them. Other help can run alongside counselling where it fits: your GP for questions about medication, or Combat Stress if you've served in the forces, and I'll help you find the right door. I've been doing this work for over 25 years, and I came to it with recovery in my own background, so you can speak plainly about the difficult parts, and we can take them at your pace.
What people in and around Leatherhead often bring
The office never quite closes
A role on one of Leatherhead's business parks, with the emails and the pressure following you home to Givons Grove or Fetcham long after the working day should have ended.
Evenings lost to the Waterloo train
The commute to Victoria or Waterloo eats the evening, and the time you'd once have spent with friends or on yourself has quietly disappeared.
Isolated in a busy town
Few people to talk to honestly, even with neighbours close by. The Community Hub on Kingston Road can help with company; counselling gives you a private space for the rest.
Feeling it after leaving service
If you served in the forces, Combat Stress at Tyrwhitt House offers specialist veterans' support in town, and general counselling can sit alongside it for the rest of 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 Leatherhead
Leatherhead has good free support close at hand. Mary Frances Trust, at 23 The Crescent, offers one-to-one support and groups for Surrey residents aged 16 and over, with no waiting list. For worry or a low mood, Mind Matters Surrey will take a call from any Mole Valley resident directly on 0300 330 5450. The Advice Café at Leatherhead Community Hub covers money and debt worries, and Heads Together Counselling meets young adults at the Leatherhead Institute.
- Free NHS talking therapyMind Matters Surrey0300 330 5450Free 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 iti-access0300 222 5932Free and confidential.
- Local organisationAction for Carers Surrey
For gambling, the National Gambling Helpline is free, day or night, on 0808 8020 133 (NHS gambling support).
Private counselling with me can run alongside any of these; you do not have to choose one or the other.
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 Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS FT Mental Health Crisis Helpline is on 0800 915 4644.
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 Leatherhead ask before starting
Can I get counselling in Leatherhead without waiting weeks?
There's a free 15-minute call to begin with, and you can use it to ask anything you want about how sessions would run. When we both agree it feels right, you choose from the slots I actually have open. Free support doesn't have to wait either: Mary Frances Trust in Leatherhead has no waiting list, and you can phone Mind Matters Surrey yourself on 0300 330 5450.
Where can I find free counselling or emotional support in Leatherhead?
Several free routes exist. NHS Talking Therapies across Mole Valley and the rest of Surrey comes from Mind Matters Surrey, and no GP letter is needed if worry or low mood is what you want help with. Mary Frances Trust offers emotional wellbeing support in the town centre for anyone aged 16 and over. If you're 18 to 24, Heads Together Counselling from YMCA East Surrey holds free sessions at the Leatherhead Institute, and the Leatherhead Youth Project supports younger people.
Is it worth driving from Leatherhead to Hove for sessions?
It comes down to the shape of your week. Driving down takes roughly 58 minutes in each direction, while rail sends you north to Clapham Junction to change first, and that adds up over a run of weekly sessions. Video from home in Leatherhead or Bookham tends to be easier for regular sessions, with a trip to Hove now and then, perhaps for a longer 90 or 120-minute session that makes the travel feel worthwhile.
I'm a veteran living near Leatherhead. Should I see you or Combat Stress?
Combat Stress runs its treatment centre at Tyrwhitt House on Oaklawn Road, and for difficulties connected to service it's a specialist place to start, with a 24/7 helpline. I offer general counselling for whatever else is going on, such as relationships, work, grief or drinking, and that can run alongside their support or follow on from it.
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.
Talk it over first, from Leatherhead or the villages
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.