Alcohol
For when drinking has stopped feeling like a choice.
Online Addiction Counselling · Oldham
Online Addiction Counselling in Oldham
Online addiction counselling for Oldham, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Oldham, from the town centre and the market to the streets around the old mills, with the same BACP-registered, confidential support as an in-person session, and no journey.
BACP registered member25+ years of experienceLived experience
ConfidentialA safe, private space
Person-centredThe therapy fits you
In and around Oldham
Addiction Counselling for Oldham, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of Oldham: from the town centre and the market to Chadderton, Royton and Failsworth
- Known for
- The old mills, the Pennine edge and the tram into Manchester
- Region
- North West (England)
- Local NHS / support route
- Oldham Council's drug and alcohol treatment and recovery services
- Format
- Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.
Life in Oldham
What is going on for people in Oldham?
Oldham climbs the moor edge, ringed by the shapes of the mills that made it. The cotton-spinning heritage still shapes the town's character, and so does a culture of getting on with things without complaint. It is also a diverse, closely connected place, and in communities where people know one another well, privacy is not a luxury but a necessity. That combination makes addiction hard to bring into the open. In Chadderton, Royton, Failsworth or Shaw, the drink, the tablets or the betting account are managed quietly and often for years. The reluctance is rarely about not wanting help. It is about not wanting to become the subject of a conversation you cannot control.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Oldham
the town centreChaddertonRoytonFailsworthShawLeesHollinwoodthe Saddleworth villages
Wherever you are in Oldham, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Oldham
Official figures for Oldham, for context rather than as a description of you.
the rate of hospital admissions for alcohol-related conditions (narrow definition) was 527.5 per 100,000 in 2023/24, above 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 5.4 per 100,000 in 2022 - 24, below the England average of 5.8 per 100,000. Source: OHID Fingertips – Deaths from drug misuse (2022 - 24).
Reviewed June 2026.
What is addiction counselling, in practice?
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 method travels; only the geography changes. everything on addiction counselling explains it properly, how sessions run and what they cost answers the practical questions, and professional standards and registration shows how the practice is held to account.
How does meeting by video work in practice?
Sessions run over a secure, encrypted video link, held to the same BACP confidentiality as meeting in person. After a free fifteen-minute call, you join from any private space on a phone, tablet or laptop.
There is no room in Oldham. Bradley works from Hove, and everything happens by secure video, which in a town where people are well known to each other is the single most useful feature. Nobody sees you arrive. Nothing is written down locally. The hour can be taken at home, in a car, or up on the moors if that is where you can be alone. Times can be early or late to fit around work and family.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
What sort of things do people bring?
Drugs and substances
Compassionate, confidential help with substance use.
Gambling
Breaking the cycle of compulsive gambling, guilt and debt.
Food and behavioural
Support for food and process addictions.
Affected by a loved one
Help for those living alongside someone's addiction.
The pain underneath
We treat the cause, not just the symptom.
Addiction Counselling in Oldham
Why people in Oldham come for addiction counselling
Addiction counselling in Oldham covers alcohol, drugs, prescribed medication, gambling and the compulsive habits that never get named. The town's alcohol harm is heavy: hospital admissions for alcohol-specific conditions were 844.3 per 100,000 in 2023/24, well above the England average of 611.7 per 100,000. That is not a number about other people; it is a number about ordinary households in Royton, Lees and Hollinwood. The counselling itself is quiet work. It looks at what the habit does for you, when it is most needed, and what has been going unmet for long enough that something had to fill the gap. Oldham Council's drug and alcohol treatment and recovery services and Turning Point's Rochdale and Oldham Active Recovery are the routes to structured treatment, with TOG Mind for the wider mental health picture.
A free, unhurried first step
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 callDrug, alcohol & addiction support in Oldham
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Oldham, free local drug and alcohol support is available through Oldham Council's drug and alcohol treatment and recovery services.
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:
If you need urgent help now
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.
If you drink heavily or use drugs daily, do not stop suddenly on your own. Withdrawal can cause seizures and can be dangerous. Speak to your GP or a local drug and alcohol service first, and they can arrange a safe, medically supported withdrawal. Counselling works alongside that, not instead of it.
Oldham questions
Online Addiction Counselling in Oldham: common questions
In my community, this kind of thing gets talked about. How private is it really?
Entirely private. There is no local building, no receptionist, and no record shared with anyone in Oldham. Bradley works to the BACP Ethical Framework, which sets confidentiality as the default and explains the narrow safety exceptions at the outset. Nothing goes to a GP or a family member unless you ask for it.
Would gambling count?
It would. Betting, gaming, spending and other compulsive habits sit squarely inside addiction counselling. They can be harder to raise than drink, because there is nothing to see and the damage arrives as debt rather than as a hangover. That does not make them less serious or less workable.
What is ROAR?
Rochdale and Oldham Active Recovery is the drug and alcohol service run by Turning Point across both boroughs, and Oldham Council's drug and alcohol treatment and recovery services page is the way in. It offers assessment, prescribing and structured recovery. Counselling is separate, private and perfectly compatible with using it.
How much does this cost?
You are not charged for the first 15-minute consultation. After that it is £80 / 60 min, £100 / 90 min or £120 / 120 min, paid session by session. There is nothing to join and nothing to cancel, so if the timing turns out to be wrong, you simply stop.
I commute into the city every day. When would I fit this in?
Early morning before the tram, or the evening once the house has settled, are the two slots that usually work for commuters. The session is a fixed hour rather than an open-ended appointment, so it can be planned around a train. Times are agreed ahead and can be adjusted if work changes.
Do I have to go into Manchester or a centre for this?
No. Everything happens online, so there's no tram into the city and no centre to attend. Wherever you are in Oldham, from the town centre to the Saddleworth edge, we meet by secure video or phone, and you speak from somewhere private and familiar.
How soon can I start addiction counselling in Oldham online?
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 Oldham online, from Chadderton to the Saddleworth villages, so there is no tram into town and no clinic list to wait on.
How do your fees compare with NHS addiction support in Oldham?
In Oldham the free route is Oldham Council's drug and alcohol treatment and recovery services, which you will find linked below. Privately, the opening 15-minute call costs nothing, then sessions are £80 for an hour, £100 for 90 minutes and £120 for two hours.
Do you offer in-person or evening addiction sessions in Oldham?
I do not work in person here; my room is in Hove and Oldham sessions are all online. That takes the tram and parking out of it, and working online makes evening and quieter daytime slots easier to arrange around shifts and family.
Online Addiction Counselling in Oldham, whenever you are ready
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: Manchester, Rochdale, Stockport. See all of North West.
Close to this in Oldham, there is substance use counselling, counselling for drinking problems and trauma counselling.
Some further reading, if that helps before getting in touch: a cognitive-restructuring exercise for compulsive behaviour and the four-stage cycle of addiction.
If you can reach the south coast, this work is also done face to face in Hove, where the room is — all in-person areas are listed here.