Drugs and substances
Confidential support for any kind of substance use.
Online Substance Use Counselling · Manchester
Online Substance Use Counselling in Manchester
Online substance use counselling for Manchester, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Manchester, from the city centre and the Northern Quarter to the streets around the canals, 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 Manchester
Substance Use Counselling for Manchester, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of Manchester: from the city centre and the Northern Quarter to Didsbury, Rusholme, Chorlton and Wythenshawe
- Known for
- The canals, the music venues and the two universities
- Region
- North 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 Manchester
Why people in Manchester reach out
Manchester moves at speed, a young, creative, fast-growing city of music, sport and tech, and that energy can be as exhausting as it is exciting. Soaring rents, long hours and the loneliness that can hide inside a busy city all take a toll, and finding time and privacy for yourself is hard.
Manchester wears its history and its reinvention side by side. Grand Victorian warehouses in Ancoats now sit above coffee roasters and studios, while the Metrolink trams thread out from the centre to Didsbury, Chorlton and beyond. This is a city of music and football, of the Bridgewater Hall and Old Trafford, of the Curry Mile in Rusholme and the students who fill Oxford Road each autumn. The pace is real, and so is the warmth beneath it. People here are quick with a welcome and slow to make a fuss, and for all the buzz of Spinningfields and the Northern Quarter, there are plenty of ordinary streets where someone might be quietly finding things hard behind the front door.
With the academic year setting a relentless pace, online sessions flex around terms, deadlines and shift work rather than fighting them.
Manchester is home to the University of Manchester, one of the UK's largest single-site universities, and to Manchester Royal Infirmary.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Manchester
the Northern QuarterAncoatsDidsburyChorltonRusholmeFallowfieldLevenshulmeWithingtonHulmeWythenshawePrestwich
Wherever you are in Manchester, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Manchester
These figures are local context from official sources, not a description of you, but they show the scale of what people in and around Manchester are living with, and why local support matters.
the rate of deaths from drug misuse was 10.4 per 100,000 in 2022 - 24, above the England average of 5.8 per 100,000. Source: OHID Fingertips – Deaths from drug misuse (2022 - 24).
7.2 adults per 1,000 were in treatment at specialist drug-misuse services in 2020/21, above 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.
I'm based in Hove and work with people across Manchester online, by secure video or phone. That means the session comes to you, whether you're in a flat in Ancoats, a house in Chorlton or somewhere out towards Wythenshawe, with no tram ride or city-centre parking to sort out first. Many people find it easier to speak openly from their own front room. We'd agree a regular time that fits around work and family, and you'd never need to travel.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
How online substance use counselling in Manchester 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 Manchester
Why people in Manchester come for substance use counselling
Around the universities and the bars of Oxford Road and the Northern Quarter, substances can become woven into how a week works before you notice. What began as unwinding or keeping up with the pace can start to feel like something you no longer choose. I'm Bradley Riddell, a Hove-based counsellor working with people across Manchester online. We talk through what the substance is doing for you and what it is costing, without judgement and without a diagnosis being forced on you. Sessions are by secure video or phone from wherever you feel safe, whether that's student halls in Fallowfield or your own place in Levenshulme.
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 Manchester
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Manchester, free local drug and alcohol support is available through Manchester City Council's alcohol, drugs and substance use 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.
Manchester questions
Online Substance Use Counselling in Manchester: common questions
Can I get online substance use counselling if I live in Manchester?
Yes. I work with people right across Manchester, from the city centre and the Northern Quarter outwards, and anywhere else in North 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.
Is online substance-use counselling private enough to be honest?
Yes. You choose a private spot, put in headphones if you like, and we speak on a secure connection. Many people find it easier to be honest about drug use from their own room in Manchester than sitting face to face in an unfamiliar building.
How quickly can I begin substance use counselling in Manchester online?
Quickly. After a free 15-minute consultation to check we are a good fit, we would usually hold your first session within a week. Everything runs by secure video or phone from my Hove base, so whether you are in Hulme, Levenshulme or Didsbury, there is nothing to travel to.
Is substance use counselling cheaper on the NHS in Manchester?
NHS routes such as Manchester's drug and alcohol services and Talking Therapies are free, though waits vary. My private fees are fixed and clear: a free 15-minute consultation, then GBP 80 for 60 minutes, GBP 100 for 90 and GBP 120 for 120 minutes.
Can we do evening online sessions rather than meeting in Manchester?
Yes. I only work online, so there is no Manchester office to visit; my room is in Hove. That makes it straightforward to hold sessions in the evening or during a lunch break, which many people around Oxford Road or MediaCityUK find fits their working day far better.
Do you offer counselling in person in Manchester?
No. I'm based in Hove on the south coast, so all my work with people in Manchester is online, by video or phone. If you'd prefer to sit with someone in the room, the city has many local counsellors and NHS Talking Therapies; otherwise online lets us meet wherever you are.
Can we meet around shift or student hours?
Yes. Working online makes evenings and quieter daytime slots easier to arrange, which helps if you're a student on Oxford Road or working shifts across the city. We'd settle on a regular time that suits you and keep it consistent from week to week.
Online Substance Use Counselling in Manchester, 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 North West: Bolton, Stockport, Oldham. See all of North West.
All counselling & therapy in Manchester: 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.