Online Counselling for Drinking Problems · Leeds

Online Counselling for Drinking Problems in Leeds

Online counselling for drinking problems for Leeds, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Leeds, from the centre and the waterfront to the streets around the arcades, 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 for drinking problems for Leeds, introducing his approach
ConfidentialA safe, private space
Person-centredThe therapy fits you

In and around Leeds

Counselling for Drinking Problems for Leeds, at a glance

Areas covered online
All of Leeds: from the centre and the waterfront to Headingley, Chapeltown, Armley and Roundhay
Known for
The arcades, the waterfront and the universities
Region
Yorkshire & North East (England)
Local NHS / support route
Local council drug & alcohol service (see below)
Format
Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.

Life in Leeds

Why people in Leeds reach out

Leeds is the financial and cultural capital of West Yorkshire, a fast-growing city of finance, law and two big universities. The pace of professional life, rising costs and the gap between its prosperous and its struggling neighbourhoods all take a toll, and the busy centre can hide a great deal of private strain.

Leeds is the commercial and cultural heart of West Yorkshire, a city of Victorian arcades like the County Arcade and Victoria Quarter, a revived waterfront around Granary Wharf and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, and a compact centre ringed by red-brick terraces. The financial and legal district around Park Row and Wellington Place sits a short walk from the two universities and the student streets of Hyde Park and Headingley. Channel 4 has made its national home here, and the railway station is among the busiest outside London, feeding the M1 and M62 that thread out towards Bradford and the wider county. Beyond the centre, leafy Roundhay and its lake give way to Otley, Wetherby and the edge of the Dales.

University of LeedsLeeds Beckett Universitythe financial and legal sector around Wellington PlaceLeeds Teaching Hospitals (the LGI and St James's)

With the academic year setting a relentless pace, online sessions flex around terms, deadlines and shift work rather than fighting them.

Leeds is home to the University of Leeds and Leeds Beckett University and to Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs St James's University Hospital and Leeds General Infirmary; it is also one of the UK's largest financial and legal centres outside London.

Areas covered

Neighbourhoods in and around Leeds

HeadingleyHyde ParkChapel AllertonRoundhayKirkstallMeanwoodHorsforthArmleyBeestonHolbeckMorleyPudsey

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

The local picture

The local picture in Leeds

These figures are local context from official sources, not a description of you, but they show the scale of what people in and around Leeds are living with, and why local support matters.

Local data last reviewed June 2026. Each figure shows the year and links to the official source it was read on.

The counselling for drinking problems itself

Counselling for drinking problems here looks beneath the habit at what drives it, you do not need to have hit rock bottom to begin, and signposts medical, detox and peer support where useful.

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 counselling for drinking problems page and on how I work.

How online sessions 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 from a base in Hove, on the south coast, and see people across Leeds by secure video call rather than from a room in the city. For a busy Leeds working week that often suits well: there's no cross-city trip or parking to arrange around the appointment, and we'd agree a regular slot you can join from home, from the office at Wellington Place, or wherever you can speak privately.

Book a free 15-minute call

What I help with

How online counselling for drinking problems in Leeds can help

Daily or binge drinking

Support whatever your pattern looks like.

The cause, not the habit

Looking beneath the drinking to what drives it.

Anxiety and low mood

Working with what the alcohol has been managing.

Privacy at home

Sensitive support without anyone needing to know.

Signposting

Links to medical, detox and peer support where useful.

Without the anaesthetic

Reconnecting with the person beneath the drinking.

Counselling for Drinking Problems in Leeds

Why people in Leeds come for counselling for drinking problems

In a city built around finance and law, after-work drinks in the bars near Park Row can be part of the culture, and it's easy for drinking to slip from social to something heavier without a clear line being crossed. I'm Bradley, a counsellor based in Hove who works with people across Leeds by secure video. You don't need to have hit a crisis to look at your drinking; often it's the quiet worry that it's become a daily habit. We'd meet at a regular time you can keep from home or the office, and work through it privately and without judgement.

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

Drug, alcohol & addiction support in Leeds

My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Leeds, free local drug and alcohol support is available through Leeds City Council's Forward Leeds drug and alcohol service.

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.

Leeds questions

Online Counselling for Drinking Problems in Leeds: common questions

Can I get online counselling for drinking problems if I live in Leeds?

Yes. I work with people right across Leeds, from the centre and the waterfront outwards, and anywhere else in Yorkshire & North East, by secure video, no need to travel to Hove, and just as confidential as meeting in the room.

Do I have to stop drinking completely to start?

No, and you do not need to have hit rock bottom. We look at the role drinking plays and find a steadier way forward at your pace.

Can you help me cut down rather than quit?

For many people moderation is a valid goal, and we will be honest together about what is realistic for you.

What if I've tried before and relapsed?

Relapse is part of many people's recovery, not a failure. We learn from it rather than start the count again from zero.

Do I have to stop drinking completely to start counselling?

No. Counselling isn't about being handed rules. Some people aim for abstinence, others to cut back or understand their drinking better. We start from where you are and what you want, and figure out together what change would actually help you.

How soon could I begin drinking problem counselling from Leeds?

Usually fairly soon. Working online means I am not tied to Leeds clinic hours, so we can find a slot that fits around Wellington Place and the legal quarter. It starts with a free 15-minute consultation about your drinking, then a regular weekly session once we agree things suit you.

Is private drinking problem counselling in Leeds worth it over the NHS route?

Privately I charge 80 pounds an hour, 100 pounds for 90 minutes and 120 pounds for two hours, with a free 15-minute call first. Leeds also has NHS routes, through your GP or Leeds Teaching Hospitals, at no cost; those can involve a wait, so private sessions suit anyone wanting to begin drinking work now.

Can drinking problem counselling fit around work in Leeds, and is it online?

Sessions with me are online only for Leeds, as I am based in Hove. People working near Wellington Place and the legal quarter often prefer this, fitting drinking 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.

Do you offer counselling in person in Leeds?

No. I'm based in Hove and work with people across Leeds by secure video call rather than from a room in the city. For many that suits a busy Leeds working week well, since there's no cross-city trip or parking to arrange around the appointment.

I work in the city centre, how would sessions fit around that?

Sessions happen online, so you can join from home, from a quiet room, or from wherever you can speak privately, without travelling into the centre or losing time to the commute. We'd agree a regular weekly slot that works around your week in Leeds.

Online Counselling for Drinking Problems in Leeds, 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: Bradford, Wakefield, Sheffield. See all of Yorkshire & North East.

All counselling & therapy in Leeds: Addiction · Substance Use · Anxiety · Depression · Relationship · Trauma · Counselling & Therapy · Psychotherapy.

Closer to the Sussex coast? The same counselling for drinking problems is available in person in Brighton & Hove, or see all in-person areas.