Online Counselling and Therapy · London

Online Counselling and Therapy in London

Online counselling and therapy for London, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across London, from the inner boroughs to the streets around the City, with the same BACP-registered, confidential support as an in-person session, and no journey.

Online across the UKSecure videoFree 15-min consultation
BACP registered member25+ years of experienceLived experience
Bradley Riddell, BACP-registered counsellor offering online counselling and therapy for London, introducing his approach
ConfidentialA safe, private space
Person-centredThe therapy fits you

In and around London

Counselling and Therapy for London, at a glance

Areas covered online
All of London: from the inner boroughs to the outer suburbs, Zone 1 out to the edges of the M25
Known for
The City, the West End, the river and the great parks
Region
London & South East (England)
Local NHS / support route
your local borough's NHS Talking Therapies service
Format
Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.

Life in London

Why people in London get in touch

You may not have a name for it yet. On paper things function - the job, the shared flat in Hackney or Ealing, people you see at weekends - and still something has gone quiet. London is unusually good at hiding that. A whole day can pass in which you move through crowds, from a platform in the morning to a desk near the West End, without a single conversation that gets below the weather. Then a Sunday arrives and you realise you have not felt much all week. Plenty of people delay getting help because they assume a diagnosis is required first, or a reason serious enough to earn the hour. Neither of those is true.

the City financial districtGuy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation TrustUniversity College Londonthe West End

Areas covered

Neighbourhoods in and around London

IslingtonCamdenHackneyShoreditchBrixtonCroydonEalingGreenwichCanary WharfWandsworthWalthamstow

Wherever you are in London, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.

The local picture

The local picture in London

Official figures for London, for context rather than as a description of you.

Reviewed June 2026.

What would we do together in counselling and therapy?

Counselling and therapy here is one steady starting point for whatever you are carrying, anxiety, low mood, addiction, relationships or the past, integrative and led by you, so we begin with what matters most and shape the work around you.

Rather than say the same thing on every page, the substance lives on counselling and therapy in detail, with session lengths and fees for the practical questions and my BACP registration for registration and ethics.

What do I need for 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 are held online by secure video, from wherever you happen to be. Bradley is based in Hove, so nothing depends on crossing the capital after work, and nobody watches you walk into a building. For a first attempt at counselling that lowers the cost of trying enormously. A free 15-minute conversation comes first, with no obligation afterwards, and you can decide from your own sofa whether it felt like a fit.

Book a free 15-minute call

What I help with

What sort of things do people bring?

Anxiety and worry

When your mind will not settle and everything feels urgent.

Low mood and depression

For the flatness, exhaustion and loss of interest that drain the colour from things.

Addiction and habits

Alcohol, drugs, gambling or behaviours that have stopped feeling like a choice.

Relationships

Conflict, distance and trust, as a couple or on your own.

Trauma and the past

When something you have been through still shapes your present.

Life feeling stuck

For the big transitions, losses and crossroads that leave you unsure which way to turn.

Counselling and Therapy in London

Why people in London come for counselling and therapy

This is the door to use when you cannot yet say what is wrong. The work is shorter than psychotherapy and firmly in the present: what the last few months have actually been like, what is draining you, what you would want to be different by the autumn. Six to twelve sessions is a common shape, and a good number of people stop there satisfied. No label is needed to begin - not a diagnosis, not a crisis, not a tidy account of your upbringing. In a capital where the teaching hospitals and universities, University College London and Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust among them, set a quiet standard for coping without complaint, that permission matters more than it sounds. The free route is your local borough's NHS Talking Therapies service, which takes self-referrals; Thrive LDN, the citywide movement backed by the Mayor of London and the NHS, shows what else is around.

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 call

Finding support in London

My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In London, you can refer yourself directly to your local borough's NHS Talking Therapies service for free NHS talking therapy, with no GP referral needed.

Private sessions with me usually mean you can start sooner and stay with the same counsellor throughout; I am glad to work alongside any NHS or GP support you already have.

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.

London questions

Online Counselling and Therapy in London: common questions

I am not in crisis. Is it too early to book anything?

No, and earlier is usually easier. Most people who get in touch are managing, going to work and telling nobody. You do not need to have deteriorated to justify an hour. Start with the free 15-minute call and describe it however it comes out, including saying you are not sure what the problem is.

What will this cost me if I only want a few sessions?

You pay per session, with nothing booked in advance beyond the next one. Sessions are £80 / 60 min, £100 / 90 min or £120 / 120 min, and most people beginning here take the 60-minute slot weekly. Nothing at all is charged for the 15-minute consultation. Stopping once you have got what you came for is entirely normal.

Should I try my borough's NHS service before paying for this?

Many people do both, and there is no conflict in that. Your local borough's NHS Talking Therapies service is free and takes self-referrals directly, though waits vary a great deal across the 32 boroughs. Good Thinking, London's free NHS digital wellbeing service, is available immediately while you wait.

Do I need a quiet flat to do this properly?

You need about an hour where you will not be interrupted, which is not the same as silence. London sessions happen from bedrooms, parked cars, empty meeting rooms and gardens. Headphones handle most of the privacy problem. If your living situation makes even that hard, say so and we will work around it.

Everyone I know in London says they are stressed. How do I know mine is worth talking about?

That comparison is the thing that keeps people out of counselling here for years. Stress that lifts at the weekend is one thing; stress that has flattened your sleep, your appetite or your interest in people for months is another. If you are asking the question at all, it is usually worth an hour.

I share a flat. Is it genuinely private?

It usually is. We find a time when you have the place to yourself, and a quiet corner with headphones is normally enough. Many people in London's shared housing find an online session easier to keep private than sitting in a local waiting room.

How quickly can I begin counselling online if I live in London?

Generally within days. There is no waiting list to join, so after a free 15-minute consultation we can usually start that same week. Sessions are held securely online from anywhere in London, whether you are in Zone 1 or out towards the M25, with no cross-city journey to add.

How do your fees work versus the NHS in London?

You pay £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90 minutes or £120 for 120 minutes, following a free 15-minute consultation. NHS Talking Therapies is free to self-refer to but can mean waiting, while private sessions with Bradley let you start sooner and keep a consistent weekly time.

Can counselling really be done online around London working hours?

Yes. Because there is nothing to travel to, you can join from home or on a lunch break, with evening slots available once you are back from the office. Many Londoners in shared flats find a quiet corner and headphones keeps the online hour more private than a local waiting room.

Online Counselling and Therapy in London, 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 London & South East: Watford, Slough, Reading, Guildford. See all of London & South East.

Close to this in London, there is anxiety counselling, depression counselling and psychotherapy.

Some further reading, if that helps before getting in touch: where to start when you cannot name it and how change actually sticks.

Within reach of Sussex? counselling and therapy is offered in the room in Hove, where the room is as well as online; see the full list of areas.