Drugs and substances
Confidential support for any kind of substance use.
Online Substance Use Counselling · Gloucester
Online Substance Use Counselling in Gloucester
Online substance use counselling for Gloucester, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Gloucester, from the historic docks and the city centre to the streets around the cathedral, 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 Gloucester
Substance Use Counselling for Gloucester, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of Gloucester: from the historic docks and the city centre to Barton, Tredworth and Quedgeley
- Known for
- The cathedral, the historic docks and the quays
- Region
- South West (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 Gloucester
Why people in Gloucester reach out
Gloucester is a working cathedral city on the Severn with a proud but pressured industrial past, and parts of the city carry real deprivation. Insecure work, money worries and the everyday grind can build into stress and low mood that often go unspoken.
Gloucester works for its living. The restored docks on the Severn, once the most inland port in England, now mix warehouse-conversion flats and the outlet shops of the Quays with streets like Barton and Tredworth where money is tighter. The cathedral still draws visitors and film crews, and on match days Kingsholm fills with rugby crowds, but for many the week is shaped by shift work, the hospital, or a job that offers no guarantees. It is an unshowy city, proud and getting on with things, sitting in the shadow of smarter Cheltenham next door. That make-do spirit is a strength, yet it can also keep worries private for too long, when talking them through would ease the load.
Where work follows shifts and the rhythm of the docks, online sessions bend around unsociable hours rather than asking you to fit your life around them.
Gloucester's acute hospital is Gloucestershire Royal Hospital (Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust); the city is known for Gloucester Cathedral and the historic Gloucester Docks.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Gloucester
BartonTredworthQuedgeleyKingsholmLonglevensHucclecotePodsmeadMatsonAbbeymeadTuffley
Wherever you are in Gloucester, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Gloucester
These figures are local context from official sources, not a description of you, but they show the scale of what people in and around Gloucester are living with, and why local support matters.
the rate of deaths from drug misuse was 5.1 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).
3.8 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.
Gloucester sits on the M5 with rail links towards Cheltenham, Bristol and Birmingham, and the two towns almost run together, though local buses can be slow going. Secure online sessions remove any need to travel, so we can meet from somewhere private at home. The room itself is in Hove, meaning Gloucester is served online; in-person appointments are only practical for those able to reach the Sussex coast.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
How online substance use counselling in Gloucester 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 Gloucester
Why people in Gloucester come for substance use counselling
In a working city like Gloucester, where the week is often shaped by shift patterns and jobs that offer no guarantees, substances can become the thing that helps you switch off or push through. What begins as a way to cope with an uncertain, grinding routine can slowly become harder to step back from. Counselling gives you a calm, non-judgemental space to understand the pattern and what feeds it. We meet by secure video, around whatever hours you keep. The room is in Hove, so Gloucester is served online, with in-person sessions only for those able to reach the Sussex coast.
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 Gloucester
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Gloucester, free local drug and alcohol support is available through Gloucestershire County Council's drug and alcohol recovery 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.
Gloucester questions
Online Substance Use Counselling in Gloucester: common questions
Can I get online substance use counselling if I live in Gloucester?
Yes. I work with people right across Gloucester, from the historic docks and the city centre outwards, and anywhere else in South West, 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 keep my worries to myself in Gloucester. Is substance counselling really private?
Yes. Sessions are held by secure video with no local premises and no waiting room, so nobody need know you are attending. You take them from somewhere private at home. The counselling room is in Hove, so Gloucester is served online.
Can I begin substance use counselling online in Gloucester this week?
Often yes. After a short message we set up a free 15-minute call, then arrange your first session, frequently within the same week. Because we meet online, you can talk from home anywhere in Gloucester, whether that is Quedgeley, Kingsholm or Longlevens, with no waiting list to join.
How much does private substance use counselling cost compared with NHS options in Gloucester?
I charge £80 for 60 minutes, £100 for 90 minutes and £120 for two hours, and the initial 15-minute consultation is free. NHS drug services and GP referrals in Gloucester are free of charge but often have waits, while private sessions can start quickly and stay flexible around you.
Do you offer evening online sessions for substance use counselling in Gloucester?
I hold some appointments later in the day, which helps if you work shifts or long hours around Gloucester. Sessions are online, so you join from wherever feels private, from Hucclecote to Podsmead. In-person work is only at my Hove room, for those who can reach the Sussex coast.
Does it matter that I work shifts or have an uncertain job in Gloucester?
No. Because sessions are online, they can be arranged around changing rotas and busy weeks, with no travel to add to the day. We meet by secure video. The counselling room is in Hove, so Gloucester is served online rather than in person.
Gloucester and Cheltenham almost run together. Can I choose either for online sessions?
Yes. Sessions are held by secure video, so it makes no difference which side of the two towns you live on. The room itself is in Hove, on the Sussex coast, and we would simply meet online wherever you are.
Online Substance Use Counselling in Gloucester, 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 South West: Cheltenham, Worcester, Swindon. See all of South West.
All counselling & therapy in Gloucester: 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.