Online Relationship Counselling · Portsmouth

Online Relationship Counselling in Portsmouth

Online relationship counselling for Portsmouth, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Portsmouth, from across Portsea Island, Southsea and Old Portsmouth to the streets around the Spinnaker Tower, 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 relationship counselling for Portsmouth, introducing his approach
ConfidentialA safe, private space
Person-centredThe therapy fits you

In and around Portsmouth

Relationship Counselling for Portsmouth, at a glance

Areas covered online
All of Portsmouth: across Portsea Island, from Southsea and Old Portsmouth to Fratton, Cosham and Copnor
Known for
The Spinnaker Tower, the harbour and the seafront
Region
London & South East (England)
Local NHS / support route
NHS Talking Therapies Hampshire (italk)
Format
Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.

Life in Portsmouth

Why people in Portsmouth reach out

Portsmouth is the most densely populated city outside London and a historic naval base, and the forces connection runs deep. Long deployments, frequent moves and the strain on families left behind leave their mark, and on a tightly packed island city privacy can feel in short supply. Reaching out here often means doing so quietly, without anyone needing to know.

Portsmouth is packed tightly onto Portsea Island, a city where the sea is never far and the naval base and Historic Dockyard sit at its heart. Life around Southsea, Fratton, Cosham and Copnor is bound up with the Royal Navy and the ferry port, alongside the University of Portsmouth and the wards of Queen Alexandra Hospital up at Cosham. The forces connection shapes many families here, with deployments, postings and long stretches apart, and on such a densely built island there is rarely much distance between neighbours. That closeness can make privacy feel scarce, and reaching out for support something people would rather do quietly. Having a confidential ear, away from the base and the street, can make all the difference.

HM Naval Base Portsmouththe University of PortsmouthQueen Alexandra Hospitalthe Historic Dockyard

With deep forces connections, deployments and frequent moves leave their mark; online counselling travels with you and stays consistent through postings.

Portsmouth is home to His Majesty's Naval Base Portsmouth (a principal Royal Navy base), the University of Portsmouth and Queen Alexandra Hospital.

Areas covered

Neighbourhoods in and around Portsmouth

SouthseaOld PortsmouthFrattonCoshamCopnorNorth EndPortseaMiltonBuckland

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

The relationship counselling itself

Relationship counselling here, for couples or individuals, slows down the pattern you are caught in and builds healthier ways of hearing and being heard.

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 relationship counselling 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.

On a crowded island city, even a short trip can mean traffic across the few roads on and off Portsea, so many people welcome not having to travel at all. Online sessions are held securely from home, whenever suits. The practice room is in Hove, a train along the coast if you can reach the Sussex side for an in-person meeting, but for Portsmouth the work is done online, discreetly and without anyone needing to know.

Book a free 15-minute call

What I help with

How online relationship counselling in Portsmouth can help

Communication and conflict

Breaking the cycle of the same argument.

Trust and repair

Rebuilding safety after betrayal or addiction.

Distance

Finding your way back to closeness.

Long-distance couples

Sessions you can join from different places.

Anxiety and reassurance

Working with people-pleasing and the need for control.

Individual work

You do not need to come as a couple to change the dynamic.

Relationship Counselling in Portsmouth

Why people in Portsmouth come for relationship counselling

In Portsmouth the forces connection runs deep, and it tests relationships in particular ways: long deployments, frequent moves, and the strain on the partner left holding home together while the other is at sea. On a tightly packed island city, privacy can feel in short supply too. Relationship counselling with Bradley gives you both a confidential hour to bridge the distance, held securely online so it works whether you are together, apart or between postings. You join from home. The practice room is in Hove along the coast if you would ever prefer to meet in person, but most Portsmouth couples do this work online.

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 Portsmouth

My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Portsmouth, you can refer yourself directly to NHS Talking Therapies Hampshire (italk) 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.

Portsmouth questions

Online Relationship Counselling in Portsmouth: common questions

Can I get online relationship counselling if I live in Portsmouth?

Yes. I work with people right across Portsmouth, from across Portsea Island, Southsea and Old Portsmouth outwards, and anywhere else in London & South East, by secure video, no need to travel to Hove, and just as confidential as meeting in the room.

Can I come on my own, without my partner?

Yes. A great deal can change when one person shifts the pattern; you do not need to attend as a couple to do useful work.

Can we join the session from different locations?

Yes. Online makes it easy for couples in different places, or juggling childcare, to attend together.

Will you take sides?

No. We look at the pattern the two of you create together and where it gets stuck, not at who is to blame.

My partner is often away on deployment. Can we still do couples counselling?

Yes. Online sessions are well suited to service couples, because you can both join wherever you are, including from different locations when one of you is away. We keep a regular time so the work continues through deployments rather than stopping and starting.

How soon can we begin couples counselling online in Portsmouth?

Usually within a week. There is no waiting list, so after a free 15-minute consultation we arrange a first session around postings and shifts. It is held securely online, joined from home in Southsea, Fratton or Cosham, with nothing to travel across Portsea Island to reach.

What are the fees, and how does that compare with the NHS in Portsmouth?

Sessions are £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90 minutes and £120 for 120 minutes, after a free 15-minute consultation. NHS Talking Therapies in Portsmouth is free but can involve a waiting list, whereas private work with Bradley lets you choose a time that fits naval and shift-work hours.

My partner is often away on deployment. Can we still do couples counselling from different places?

Yes. Online sessions suit service couples well, because you can both join wherever you are, including different locations when one of you is at sea. Evening slots are available, and we keep a regular time so the work continues through deployments rather than stopping and starting.

My partner is often away on deployment and I'm managing at home alone. Can counselling help with that?

Yes. The strain of deployments, moves and long separations is something many forces families in Portsmouth carry. Online sessions fit around childcare and the up-and-down of a service routine, and can be held whether your partner is home or away, entirely privately from your own front room.

It's such a close-knit island city. How private is this really?

Very private. There is no local waiting room to be seen in and nobody on your street need know. You join securely from home, and everything discussed stays confidential, which many people in Portsmouth value given how closely the city is packed together.

Online Relationship Counselling in Portsmouth, 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: Southampton, Chichester. See all of London & South East.

All counselling & therapy in Portsmouth: Addiction · Substance Use · Drinking Problems · Anxiety · Depression · Trauma · Counselling & Therapy · Psychotherapy.

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