Winchester · online by video, with the Hove room for occasional sessions
Counselling and therapy for Winchester
When something about life in Winchester, from Fulflood to St Cross, has begun to press on you without a clear name, an hour of one-to-one counselling is a reasonable place to begin. My only room is in Hove, a 94-minute drive away, so Winchester sessions mostly happen over secure video, from your own sofa with no commute, and you can come down to Hove now and then if you'd like that.
The practical facts for Winchester
- Where sessions happen
- A private room at Intergen House, 65-67 Western Road, Hove BN3 2JQ, or secure video.
- From Winchester by car
- About 94 minutes with clear roads (72.6 miles); longer at busy times.
- Free NHS talking therapy
- NHS Talking Therapies Hampshire, 023 8038 3920
- 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 county town that runs on timetables and term dates
Winchester can look settled from the outside.
The cathedral, the River Itchen running past the City Mill and the Great Hall on Castle Hill give the city a calm that visitors notice first. Underneath, plenty of lives run to someone else's clock. South Western Railway sends three trains an hour to London Waterloo, and if you catch the fastest, 61 minutes each way, the working day starts early and ends late. Others spend the week in the county council offices on Castle Hill, on shift at the Royal Hampshire County Hospital on Romsey Road, or living by the term dates of the University of Winchester. It is a small city where people tend to recognise each other, from Hyde to Highcliffe, and being known by sight can stop you telling even a friend that things are hard. So worries stay private until they leak out as broken sleep, a short temper or a body that won't settle.
Coming to counselling without a neat label
Nobody needs a label or a tidy explanation to book a first session. You might arrive with something specific: a marriage under strain, a parent in decline, a promotion that has made you dread Monday mornings, or a loss you thought you had put behind you. Or it might be harder to pin down, a sense that you're going through the motions, or that the glass of wine after the Waterloo train has become a habit you'd rather not look at. Early sessions untangle the strands, which ones matter most to you and what feeds them, and then we settle on a focus together. Should another service fit your situation more closely, I'll tell you plainly and name it. Worry is common across the county: Hampshire's share of adults scoring high for anxiety stood at 26.3% in 2022/23, statistically similar to England's 23.8%. That figure says nothing about you in particular, though it may help to know that wanting to talk is ordinary. Behind my 25+ years in practice sits a recovery of my own, so whatever you bring, you won't need to soften it for my sake.
What a cathedral city week can put on you
The Waterloo commute
Three trains an hour to London Waterloo make London jobs possible from here, and they also make for long days, late suppers and weekends spent recovering.
Shifts on Romsey Road
If you work at the Royal Hampshire County Hospital, nights and weekends can leave you looking after everyone except yourself. Video sessions can be fitted around a rota.
Students and staff on campus
Living in a student village at the University of Winchester, far from family, or working there through the pressure of term, can bring a loneliness that is hard to admit.
Low-cost help in the city
The Olive Branch on St. Clement Street and the Trinity Winchester Counselling Service both offer longer runs of donation-based or fee-free counselling, worth knowing about whichever route you choose.
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 Winchester
Private sessions with me sit alongside several free or low-cost routes in Winchester. NHS Talking Therapies Hampshire (previously italk) accepts self-referral for anxiety and low mood. The Olive Branch Counselling Service asks for donations based on household income, the Trinity Winchester Counselling Service offers 12-18 sessions with no weekly fee, and Winchester Youth Counselling supports people aged 11-25. Solent Mind Winchester Wellbeing Centre is another place to turn.
- Free NHS talking therapyNHS Talking Therapies Hampshire023 8038 3920Free 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 itInclusion Recovery Hampshire0300 124 0103Free and confidential.
- Local organisationThe Princess Royal Trust for Carers in Hampshire (Hampshire Carers Support Service)
- Local organisationWinchester Bereavement Support
- Local organisationWinchester Hospice bereavement support (Allium café)
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.
In this area you can also text HANTS 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 Winchester ask before starting
Is face-to-face counselling possible from Winchester, or is it all online?
Face-to-face sessions take place in my one room at Intergen House in Hove, about 94 minutes' drive from Winchester, or by rail, changing trains at Southampton Central. Week to week, secure video is usually the easier route, keeping a regular slot with me from home in Weeke, Hyde or wherever you live in the city. An occasional longer session in Hove can be arranged whenever you'd like one.
Is there an NHS waiting list for counselling in Winchester, and can I see someone privately sooner?
NHS Talking Therapies Hampshire (previously italk) lets you refer yourself for anxiety or low mood on 023 8038 3920, and its waiting times are set by the service. Here, a brief free consultation comes first, then I tell you which weekly slots are free and you choose, without a queue behind it. You can use both routes, one after the other.
Who can I contact in Winchester tonight if I'm struggling to cope?
If things feel unbearable tonight, text HANTS to 85258 to reach the Shout text service for Hampshire and Isle of Wight at any hour, or call Samaritans on 116 123. If anyone's life is in immediate danger, call 999 or go to accident and emergency at the Royal Hampshire County Hospital on Romsey Road. Further crisis numbers for Hampshire are gathered in the urgent help box on this page.
Can I get counselling by video from a University of Winchester student village?
Yes. As an adult student you can book sessions by video from your room in Burma Road or West Downs student village, or from a shared house, with no trip to Hove. If you're 25 or younger, Winchester Youth Counselling offers free counselling to 11 to 25 year olds in the district, which may suit you well. The first consultation with me is free either way, so you can talk it through.
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.
An unhurried first word, wherever you are in Winchester
When you feel ready, a short conversation is the easiest way to see whether we are a good fit. There is no obligation.