St Leonards-on-Sea · online by video, with the Hove room for occasional sessions
Counselling and therapy for St Leonards-on-Sea
If you're in St Leonards-on-Sea and can't yet tell whether it's worry, grief, a relationship or something harder to pin down, an open first session is a reasonable place to start. I'm a BACP-registered counsellor. My room is in Hove, just over an hour west by car, so from St Leonards our regular sessions would mostly happen over secure video, with a trip to Hove now and then if you want it.
The practical facts for St Leonards-on-Sea
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From St Leonards-on-Sea by car
- About 62 minutes with clear roads (41.0 miles); longer at busy times.
- By train
- Direct trains from St Leonards Warrior Square to Brighton; change there for Hove, one stop.
- Free NHS talking therapy
- Health in Mind, 0300 0030 130
- 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.
Regency terraces, new arrivals and old neighbours
St Leonards was laid out from 1826 by James Burton as a planned resort, and it still has that shape: the gardens at Warrior Square, St Leonards Gardens and Gensing, the long front past Marine Court and the Royal Victoria Hotel, and the climb up through Maze Hill to Upper St Leonards.
It joined Hastings in 1875, yet many people here still think of it as its own place. Newcomers from London have settled here in such numbers that the town has picked up the nickname Dalston-on-Sea, and that brings its own mix. You might have arrived a few years ago and still feel halfway between two lives, or you might have lived in Gensing or Bulverhythe all along and watched the street change around you. The county's own borough profile names the seafront, St Leonards included, among the most deprived parts of Hastings, so money worries can sit alongside everything else.
Starting when you can't yet say what's wrong
You can get in touch without a label for what's going on. Some people come because sleep has gone, because a move to the coast hasn't felt the way they hoped, or because a relationship, a job or a family pattern keeps catching them out. Others simply know they've felt flat or on edge for too long. In the first sessions you talk and I listen for what matters most, and together we decide what to work on and how often to meet. If it turns out that an old event is still running the show, there are gentle ways to work with it, such as the Rewind Technique, without you going over every detail. If drinking has become part of how you get through the evenings, you can bring that too, and we can talk about whether the free STAR Drug and Alcohol Service would help alongside our sessions. My practice goes back more than 25 years, and recovery in my own life is what first drew me to this work. Questions about medication belong with your St Leonards GP surgery, and their medical care can continue alongside our weekly conversations.
What people in St Leonards might bring
Moved down from London
St Leonards has drawn so many Londoners it gets called Dalston-on-Sea. Settling in can be lonelier than expected, with old friends far away and new ones slow to come.
Money worries on the seafront
The county names the seafront, St Leonards included, among the most deprived parts of Hastings. Worry about bills and rent can wear you down, and counselling gives it room.
Shifts on The Ridge
If you work at the Conquest Hospital on The Ridge, nights and weekend rotas can leave little time for yourself. Video sessions from home can move with your shifts.
Caring for a parent or partner
When looking after someone takes up most days, the Association of Carers at 104 Sedlescombe Road North runs carers cafés and befriending, while our sessions keep an hour aside for your own thoughts.
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 and low-cost support for St Leonards-on-Sea
Several free routes are close by in St Leonards. Health in Mind provides NHS Talking Therapies across East Sussex for anxiety and low mood, and it takes self-referrals. Counselling Plus Community on London Road offers affordable counselling with a free assessment, and the Seaview Project Wellbeing Centre on Hatherley Road is an open drop-in.
- Free NHS talking therapyHealth in Mind0300 0030 130Free 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 itSTAR Drug and Alcohol Service (East Sussex STAR)0300 303 8160Run by Change Grow Live. Free and confidential.
- Local organisationCoastal Routes Recovery
- Local organisationCare for the Carers
- Local organisationSt Michael's Hospice Bereavement ServicesHospice bereavement service at 25 Upper Maze Hill.
- Local organisationAssociation of Carers
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.
In this area you can also text SUSSEX to 85258.
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 St Leonards-on-Sea ask before starting
Is there somewhere in St Leonards I can go in the evening if I'm struggling?
Yes. Staying Well Hastings is a walk-in for adults in distress at the St Leonards-On-Sea Wellbeing Centre, Carisbrooke House, Stockleigh Road, open weekdays 5pm to 10.30pm and weekends 3pm to 10.30pm. You can also text SUSSEX to 85258. In an emergency, call 999 or go to the 24-hour emergency department at the Conquest Hospital.
From St Leonards, would we meet in person or online?
Mostly online. Driving to Western Road in Hove takes roughly 62 minutes, while the Southern semi-fast from Warrior Square reaches Brighton once an hour, leaving one more change for Hove. Weekly sessions by secure video save you that, and you can join from anywhere private at home. If now and then you'd rather sit in the room, the train from Warrior Square with a change at Brighton will get you to an occasional session in Hove.
Once I contact you from St Leonards, how soon could a first session happen?
No GP referral is needed to book the free 15-minute call. On that call we talk about what's happening for you and I offer the times I have free, so a first session can often follow soon after. If you'd also like to try Health in Mind or an assessment at Counselling Plus Community, you can do that too.
I've only just moved to St Leonards. Is it too soon to look for a counsellor?
Whenever you feel ready is the right time. A move to the coast can stir up more than people expect, from missing old friends to questions about why you left. Working by video means your sessions can carry on wherever you settle, whether that's Gensing, Maze Hill or West St Leonards, and you can start with the free call.
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 call from St Leonards
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.