Alcohol
For when drinking has stopped feeling like a choice.
Online Addiction Counselling · Crewe
Online addiction counselling for Crewe, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Crewe, from the town centre and the station to the streets around the railway heritage, with the same BACP-registered, confidential support as an in-person session, and no journey.

In and around Crewe
Life in Crewe
Crewe grew entirely around the railway, and so much of its identity and security has been tied to the works and the junction. The decline of heavy rail engineering, insecure work and a town shaped by shift patterns all weigh on people here.
Crewe was made by the railway, and the railway made Crewe. The great junction still pulls the West Coast lines together here, and the town grew up around the works, with Bentley now building its cars out at Pyms Lane. Queens Park offers its Victorian greenery, the Heritage Centre keeps the engineering story alive, and Crewe Alexandra hold the football faith at Gresty Road. Neighbourhoods like Wistaston, Coppenhall and Shavington have their own character, with the wider Cheshire plain and Nantwich close at hand. So much of the town's identity and livelihood has been tied to the railway and to shift work, and when that kind of certainty shifts, it can leave people feeling the ground move under them.
Where the old industries have gone and there is a strong culture of just getting on with things, online keeps support discreet and within reach however stretched the week.
Crewe is the headquarters and manufacturing home of Bentley Motors and grew historically around its railway works and junction in Cheshire East.
Areas covered
Wherever you are in Crewe, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
These figures are local context from official sources, not a description of you, but they show the scale of what people in and around Crewe are living with, and why local support matters.
the rate of hospital admissions for alcohol-related conditions (narrow definition) was 472 per 100,000 in 2023/24, below the England average of 504.1 per 100,000. Source: OHID Fingertips – Admission episodes for alcohol-related conditions (narrow) (2023/24).
the rate of deaths from drug misuse was 5.9 per 100,000 in 2022 - 24, above the England average of 5.8 per 100,000. Source: OHID Fingertips – Deaths from drug misuse (2022 - 24).
Local data last reviewed June 2026. Each figure shows the year and links to the official source it was read on.
Addiction counselling here treats the pain beneath the habit, not just the symptom, alcohol, drugs, gambling, food or behavioural, so recovery is something you grow into rather than force.
The approach is the same wherever you live, so rather than repeat it on every page you can read it in full, the methods, what each session covers and fees, on the main addiction counselling page and on how I work.
Sessions run over a secure, encrypted video link held to the same strict BACP confidentiality as meeting in person. After a free fifteen-minute call to check we are a good fit, you join each session from any private space using a phone, tablet or laptop, no software to install, no waiting room and no journey at either end.
I work online from Hove, seeing people across Crewe by secure video or phone. Wherever you are, in Wistaston, Coppenhall, Shavington or nearer the station, the session comes to you, with nothing to arrange but a quiet hour. For anyone working shifts, meeting from home is often far easier to fit in than a fixed clinic slot. We'd find a regular time that works around your rota and keep it as steady as we can.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
For when drinking has stopped feeling like a choice.
Compassionate, confidential help with substance use.
Breaking the cycle of compulsive gambling, guilt and debt.
Support for food and process addictions.
Help for those living alongside someone's addiction.
We treat the cause, not just the symptom.
Addiction Counselling in Crewe
Crewe grew entirely around the railway, and so much of its identity and security has been tied to the works and the junction. The decline of heavy rail engineering, insecure work and a town shaped by shift patterns all weigh on people, and an addiction can take hold in that uncertainty. I'm Bradley Riddell, a counsellor based in Hove, and I work with people across Crewe online, by secure video or phone. From the station area to Wistaston or Coppenhall, the session comes to you, in confidence, fitting around shifts, with nothing to travel to and no local clinic to be seen at.
Not sure if it is right for you? A free fifteen-minute call is a no-obligation way to talk it through.
Book a free 15-minute callMy online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Crewe, free local drug and alcohol support is available through Cheshire East Council's drug and substance misuse support.
For confidential information and advice, FRANK (on 0300 123 6600) and Drinkline on 0300 123 1110 are free, and Alcoholics Anonymous and SMART Recovery run peer-support meetings you can find online.
Other local and national support verified for this area includes:
This is not a crisis service. If anyone is in immediate danger call 999. For urgent mental health support, call NHS 111 and choose the mental health option. The Samaritans are free, day or night, on 116 123, or text SHOUT to 85258.
Crewe questions
Yes. I work with people right across Crewe, from the town centre and the station outwards, and anywhere else in North West, by secure video, no need to travel to Hove, and just as confidential as meeting in the room.
No. We begin wherever you are. The work is about understanding the need the behaviour has been meeting, not passing a test first.
Yes. The same approach applies to gambling, food and other compulsive behaviours, because we work with the underlying pattern rather than only the substance.
Completely. Sessions are private, online means no waiting room, and everything is held under the BACP Ethical Framework.
Yes. Because we meet online, we agree times around your rota rather than around fixed clinic hours. Whether you're on days or nights at the works or elsewhere in Crewe, we find slots that suit, and adjust as your shift pattern changes.
Usually within a week. We begin with a free 15-minute consultation, then book your first session by secure video or phone. I work from Hove and see people across Crewe online, from Wistaston to Coppenhall, so there is nothing to arrange but a quiet hour and no clinic list to wait on.
NHS Talking Therapies and services through Leighton Hospital are free, though waits vary. Privately with me it is a free 15-minute consultation, then GBP 80 for 60 minutes, GBP 100 for 90 and GBP 120 for 120 minutes, all clearly set out.
I do not work in person here; my room is in Hove and Crewe sessions are all online. That suits shift patterns well, since there is no travel. We can use quieter daytime slots or evenings depending on your rota, and keep it as steady as we can.
Yes. Because we meet online, we can use quieter daytime slots or evenings depending on your rota, without a journey on top. Shift patterns make regular appointments hard, so we'd aim for a steady time where possible and adjust around changing shifts when we need to.
A free fifteen-minute call is the simplest place to start, no obligation, just a chance to see if we are the right fit.
Also available online across North West: Chester, Stoke-on-Trent, Warrington. See all of North West.
All counselling & therapy in Crewe: Substance Use · Drinking Problems · Anxiety · Depression · Relationship · Trauma · Counselling & Therapy · Psychotherapy.
Closer to the Sussex coast? The same addiction counselling is available in person in Brighton & Hove, or see all in-person areas.