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Online Addiction Counselling · Wakefield
Online Addiction Counselling in Wakefield
Online addiction counselling for Wakefield, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Wakefield, from the cathedral and the centre to the streets around the Hepworth gallery, 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 Wakefield
Addiction Counselling for Wakefield, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of Wakefield: from the cathedral and the centre to Sandal, Horbury and Lupset
- Known for
- The cathedral, the Hepworth gallery and the old coalfield
- Region
- Yorkshire & North East (England)
- Local NHS / support route
- NHS drug & alcohol service finder (see below)
- Format
- Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.
Life in Wakefield
Why people in Wakefield get in touch
Wakefield sits at the centre of the former West Yorkshire coalfield, and the pits took more than jobs with them when they closed. What remains is a district that gets on with things quietly, and quiet is exactly the weather a compulsion likes. It shows in the anxiety figures: 30.3% of adults reported a high anxiety score in 2022/23 against an England average of 23.8%. Whether the postcode is Sandal or Lupset, Ossett or Normanton, the pattern tends to be private. A betting account opened after the football, a nightly drink that crept forward an hour, a phone that will not be put down. Nobody outside the house ever hears about any of it.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Wakefield
SandalHorburyLupsetAgbriggKettlethorpeOutwoodStanleyOssettNormantonWrenthorpe
Wherever you are in Wakefield, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Wakefield
Official figures for Wakefield, for context rather than as a description of you.
the rate of hospital admissions for alcohol-related conditions (narrow definition) was 523.6 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 10.6 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).
Reviewed June 2026.
What actually happens in addiction counselling?
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.
Because the work itself is the same wherever you live, the detail sits in one place rather than all of them: everything on addiction counselling sets out the methods, how I work covers the practicalities, and professional standards and registration covers accountability.
What happens in an online session?
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.
Sessions take place online by secure video and nowhere in person. Bradley works from Hove, so there is no room in Wakefield and nothing to be spotted going into. In a district of small towns where people recognise cars, that anonymity is usually decisive. Appointments can be fitted before an early start, in the middle of a weekday when a house in Outwood or Horbury is empty, or after the children are asleep. Start with the free 15-minute consultation and decide from there.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
Which difficulties does addiction counselling address?
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 Wakefield
Why people in Wakefield come for addiction counselling
The most common thing people say in a first session is that they should have done this ages ago. They usually mean they have spent years treating a compulsion as a discipline problem, and losing. Addiction takes in gambling, gaming and compulsive spending as readily as it takes in drink and drugs, and betting apps are built for exactly the sort of evening the district has plenty of. So we look at the whole loop rather than the last twenty minutes of it. What set it going, what it delivered quickly, what it charged by morning, and what has been quietly arranged around it. The NHS 'find a service' directory lists free local drug and alcohol services, and Turning Point Inspiring Recovery is the Wakefield district service for drink and drugs. Counselling works beside those. Where use is daily, involve your GP before anything changes.
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 Wakefield
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. You can find your nearest free NHS-funded drug and alcohol service via the NHS “find a service” directory (search “Wakefield”).
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.
Wakefield questions
Online Addiction Counselling in Wakefield: common questions
This is a small district and people know each other - how private is it?
Entirely private. There is nowhere to be seen arriving, no local administrator handling your details and no shared record with any service in the district. You pay me directly, and nothing goes to your GP or anyone else unless you specifically ask for it.
Is gambling something you work with, or only substances?
Gambling very much included. It builds the same cycle of anticipation, brief relief and concealment, and it can run for years without a single physical sign. Gaming and compulsive spending are approached identically, because the object matters less than the mechanism.
What does it cost, and what free help exists in Wakefield?
Charges are £80 / 60 min, £100 / 90 min and £120 / 120 min, and there is no fee for the opening 15-minute consultation. Turning Point Inspiring Recovery provides free confidential drug and alcohol help for the district, and the NHS 'find a service' directory will point you to it.
I work early shifts - are there appointments before the day starts?
There are. Early slots exist precisely because so many people cannot use a conventional working-hours appointment. With no travel involved, a session can begin at an hour that would be impossible if you had to get across the district to reach somebody.
What happens in that first conversation?
We talk about what is happening now, how long it has been like this, and what made you look for help at this particular point. You are not asked to commit to stopping or to explain yourself. At the end we agree whether it seems worth carrying on.
Are you based in Wakefield?
No, I work from Hove and see Wakefield clients by secure video call. For people out in the former pit villages, where getting to appointments can mean a real journey, meeting online often makes support far easier to keep up week to week.
How soon could I begin addiction counselling from Wakefield?
Usually fairly soon. Working online means I am not tied to Wakefield clinic hours, so we can find a slot that fits around The Hepworth and the wider district. It starts with a free 15-minute consultation about your addiction, then a regular weekly session once we agree things suit you.
Is private addiction counselling in Wakefield worth it over the NHS route?
Privately I charge £80 an hour, £100 for 90 minutes and £120 for two hours, with a free 15-minute call first. Wakefield also has NHS routes, through your GP or Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust, at no cost; those can involve a wait, so private sessions suit anyone wanting to begin addiction work now.
Can addiction counselling fit around work in Wakefield, and is it online?
Sessions with me are online only for Wakefield, as I am based in Hove. People working near The Hepworth and the wider district often prefer this, fitting addiction counselling around the day without travel across the city. I offer daytime and some early-evening appointments, and we would keep the same weekly slot wherever possible.
Online Addiction Counselling in Wakefield, 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 Yorkshire & North East: Leeds, Barnsley, Huddersfield. See all of Yorkshire & North East.
People who come for addiction counselling in Wakefield often also look at substance use counselling, counselling for drinking problems and trauma counselling.
There is more on this in my writing: the four Rs framework and illness or indulgence?.
Within reach of Sussex? addiction counselling is offered in the room in Brighton as well as online; see the full list of areas.