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

In and around Walsall
Life in Walsall
Walsall is a Black Country market and manufacturing town that has felt the long decline of industry keenly, with real deprivation in parts. Insecure work and money pressure are part of daily life for many, and the stoic, get-on-with-it culture can make asking for help feel difficult.
Walsall is a Black Country market and manufacturing town with leather in its history: saddles and fine leather goods once went out from here across the world, a craft still marked by the Leather Museum. The Arboretum and its autumn illuminations are a point of local pride, and the New Art Gallery brought a striking modern landmark to the town. Willenhall's locks, Darlaston's metalwork and the bustle of the street market speak to a working identity that has felt the long decline of industry keenly. Where insecure work and money pressure are part of daily life, and a stoic culture makes asking hard, a confidential hour to talk can help lift some of the weight.
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.
Walsall is served by the Walsall Manor Hospital and hosts the University of Wolverhampton's Walsall campus, in a borough with a long leather and manufacturing heritage.
Areas covered
Wherever you are in Walsall, 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 Walsall are living with, and why local support matters.
the rate of hospital admissions for alcohol-related conditions (narrow definition) was 731.5 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 6.6 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).
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.
Walsall sits close to the M6 and its junctions, with the station on the line towards Birmingham and Rugeley and a busy bus network linking Bloxwich, Darlaston and Willenhall. Much of the daily travel is by road, though. For online counselling that all falls away. The consulting room is in Hove and Walsall is served by video, so you can meet from a private space at home rather than fitting a journey into the day.
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 Walsall
Walsall is a Black Country town that has felt the long decline of industry keenly, and the stoic, get-on-with-it culture here can make admitting to an addiction feel almost impossible. Where insecure work and money pressure are part of daily life, a habit can quietly become the way you cope. Counselling with Bradley Riddell offers a confidential hour to look at it honestly, without judgement and at your pace. The room is in Hove, so Walsall is served by video, from Bloxwich to Willenhall to the town centre, and you meet from a private space at home rather than travelling.
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 Walsall, free local drug and alcohol support is available through Walsall Council's drug and alcohol 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.
Walsall questions
Yes. I work with people right across Walsall, from the town centre and the arboretum outwards, and anywhere else in Midlands, 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.
No, the room is in Hove, so Walsall is served online rather than in person. For many people that proves easier, with no trip into town or parking to sort. A private space and a reliable connection are all you need to meet.
Fairly quickly. Walsall is served online from the Hove consulting room, so there is no local waiting list. We begin with a free 15-minute consultation, then arrange a first full session, often within the same week, at a time that works around your day.
Sessions are £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90 and £120 for two hours, after a free 15-minute consultation. NHS addiction support in Walsall is free through your GP or community services but can mean waiting, while private counselling starts sooner and more flexibly.
The room is in Hove, so Walsall is served online rather than face to face, with no trip into town from Bloxwich or Darlaston. Because it is by video, evening sessions can often be arranged, which helps where a stoic culture makes asking for help hard.
No, the room is in Hove, so Walsall is served online rather than in person. For many people that proves easier, with no trip into town or parking to sort. A private space and a reliable connection are all you need to meet.
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 Midlands: Wolverhampton, Dudley, Birmingham. See all of Midlands.
All counselling & therapy in Walsall: 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.