Drugs and substances
Confidential support for any kind of substance use.
Online Substance Use Counselling · Chichester
Online Substance Use Counselling in Chichester
Online substance use counselling for Chichester, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Chichester, from the cathedral quarter and the city centre to the streets around the Market Cross, 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 Chichester
Substance Use Counselling for Chichester, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of Chichester: from the cathedral quarter and the city centre to Summersdale, Whyke and nearby Bognor
- Known for
- The cathedral, the Market Cross and the harbour
- Region
- London & South 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 Chichester
Why people in Chichester reach out
Chichester is an elegant cathedral city near the harbour and the Downs, and its calm, affluent feel can make difficulties harder to voice. In a place where appearances matter and where many residents are retired or self-employed, low mood, anxiety and isolation can go unspoken for a long time before anyone reaches out.
Chichester is an elegant cathedral city where the Market Cross, the Festival Theatre and the harbour set a refined, unhurried tone, with the South Downs on one side and the tidal creeks of the harbour on the other. Its working life gathers around the University of Chichester, the theatre and its festival, the Goodwood estate up on the Downs, and a good many self-employed and retired residents in Summersdale, Whyke and out towards Fishbourne. That calm and comfortable feel can, though, make difficulty harder to voice. Where appearances carry weight and independence is prized, low mood, anxiety and loneliness can go unspoken for a long while. Somewhere impartial to set that down, without judgement or local ties, can quietly lift a great deal.
On the coast the nearest specialist can be a long way inland; a secure video link closes that distance completely.
Chichester is a cathedral city home to the University of Chichester, Chichester Festival Theatre and St Richard's Hospital.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Chichester
SummersdaleWhykeFishbourneParklandsPortfieldGraylingwellDonningtonFishbourne Road
Wherever you are in Chichester, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Chichester
These figures are local context from official sources, not a description of you, but they show the scale of what people in and around Chichester are living with, and why local support matters.
the rate of deaths from drug misuse was 3.9 per 100,000 in 2022 - 24, below the England average of 5.8 per 100,000. Source: OHID Fingertips – Deaths from drug misuse (2022 - 24).
3 adults per 1,000 were in treatment at specialist drug-misuse services in 2020/21, below the England average of 4.5 per 1,000. Source: OHID Fingertips – Adults in treatment at specialist drug misuse services (2020/21).
Local data last reviewed June 2026. Each figure shows the year and links to the official source it was read on.
The substance use counselling itself
Substance use counselling here is non-judgemental and one-to-one, working with the pain, fear or loneliness the substance has been managing, at a pace that protects your sense of safety.
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 substance use 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.
Chichester lies at the western edge of Sussex, and its rail and road links can make trips to appointments elsewhere slow going. Online sessions remove the journey: you meet securely from home whenever suits your week. The practice room is in Hove, further along the coast if you would like to meet in person, but for Chichester the work is done online, discreetly and without any need to travel across the county.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
How online substance use counselling in Chichester can help
The false self
Letting go of the protective self that no longer serves you.
Specialised attention
One-to-one sessions shaped entirely around you.
Self-discovery
Rediscovering the authentic self beneath the coping.
Anxiety and low mood
Treating what the substance has been masking.
Sustainable change
Growing into recovery rather than forcing it.
Substance Use Counselling in Chichester
Why people in Chichester come for substance use counselling
In an affluent cathedral city where a great deal is kept behind a composed surface, substance use can stay well hidden, quietly folded into an independent life that appears entirely settled. In a place that prizes self-reliance, admitting it can feel especially hard. Here you can talk about it plainly, without judgement. Sessions are held securely online with a male counsellor based in Hove, along the coast, so there is nothing to travel to across the county and no local room to be recognised in. You lead, we move at your pace, and everything stays confidential.
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 Chichester
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Chichester, free local drug and alcohol support is available through West Sussex County 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:
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.
Chichester questions
Online Substance Use Counselling in Chichester: common questions
Can I get online substance use counselling if I live in Chichester?
Yes. I work with people right across Chichester, from the cathedral quarter and the city centre 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 get support while I'm still using?
Yes. This is non-judgemental, one-to-one work that meets you where you are, and it can run alongside any medical or detox support you have.
How is this different from a group or 12-step programme?
It is individual and shaped entirely around you. Some people use it instead of groups, others alongside them.
Will you tell my GP or employer?
No. What you share is confidential within the BACP framework; nothing goes to anyone else without your consent.
I value my independence and don't like asking for help. Will counselling feel like handing over control?
No. You stay in charge throughout; nothing is decided for you. We explore what the substance does for you and what, if anything, you want to change, at your own pace. For many independent-minded people in Chichester, that sense of control is what makes it workable.
Can I get online substance use counselling quickly in Chichester?
Generally yes. A free 15-minute consultation comes first, then a regular time, often within a week. There is no journey across the county to a clinic and no referral queue, so you can join securely from home in the city centre, Fishbourne or out towards Bognor.
Is substance use counselling free on the NHS in Chichester?
There are free routes: your GP can refer you, West Sussex's drug and alcohol service takes self-referrals, and FRANK offers confidential national advice online or by phone. This counselling is private, at £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90 and £120 for 120, with a free consultation.
I am self-employed near Chichester. Can sessions flex around my own hours?
Yes. Being online, sessions fit around a self-employed diary and the times that suit you, with no travel across the county to arrange. That flexibility helps in a calm, comfortable place where difficulty is hard to voice. In-person meetings are possible in Hove, further along the coast, if you prefer.
I'm self-employed and used to just getting on with things. Is it worth talking to someone?
Yes. Many self-employed and retired people in Chichester are used to coping alone, which can mean struggles go unspoken for a long time. Online sessions are private and flexible around your own diary, giving you a confidential space to be honest without anyone in the city knowing.
Online Substance Use Counselling in Chichester, 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: Portsmouth, Crawley, Horsham. See all of London & South East.
All counselling & therapy in Chichester: Addiction · Drinking Problems · Anxiety · Depression · Relationship · Trauma · Counselling & Therapy · Psychotherapy.
Closer to the Sussex coast? The same substance use counselling is available in person in Brighton & Hove, or see all in-person areas.