Drugs and substances
Confidential support for any kind of substance use.
Online Substance Use Counselling · Plymouth
Online Substance Use Counselling in Plymouth
Online substance use counselling for Plymouth, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Plymouth, from the Barbican and the Hoe to the streets around the Sound, 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 Plymouth
Substance Use Counselling for Plymouth, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of Plymouth: from the Barbican and the Hoe to Devonport, Stonehouse and Mutley
- Known for
- Plymouth Hoe, the Barbican and the Sound
- Region
- South West (England)
- Local NHS / support route
- Plymouth City Council's substance misuse support
- Format
- Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.
Life in Plymouth
Why do people in Plymouth reach out?
Plymouth has more people in drug treatment than most places its size: 6.9 adults per 1,000 were at specialist drug-misuse services in 2020/21, well above the England average of 4.5, and deaths from drug misuse ran at 5.9 per 100,000 across 2022 to 2024. Those numbers do not describe one kind of person. They cover students near the University of Plymouth, dockyard workers on rotating shifts, people in Stonehouse and Devonport whose use goes back years, and people in Mannamead who would never call themselves users at all. Remoteness compounds it, because reaching help can mean a journey nobody wants to explain.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Plymouth
DevonportStonehouseMutleythe BarbicanPeverellMannameadPlymptonPlymstockSt BudeauxEffordStoke
Wherever you are in Plymouth, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Plymouth
Official figures for Plymouth, for context rather than as a description of you.
6.9 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).
the rate of deaths from drug misuse was 5.9 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).
Reviewed June 2026.
What does substance use counselling involve?
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 method travels; only the geography changes. substance use counselling in detail explains it properly, how I work answers the practical questions, and professional standards and registration shows how the practice is held to account.
What do I need for an online session?
Sessions run over a secure, encrypted video link, held to the same BACP confidentiality as meeting in person. After a free fifteen-minute call, you join from any private space on a phone, tablet or laptop.
Everything is online by secure video, since Bradley works from Hove. That takes the geography out of it, which this far west is no small gain. There is no drive across the city, no clinic entrance, and no name on a sign-in sheet. Sessions happen from a bedroom, a car or a parked van between shifts. If you leave Plymouth for work, the appointment leaves with you.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
What can substance use counselling in Plymouth help with?
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 Plymouth
Why people in Plymouth come for substance use counselling
You can come to this while you are still using, and most people do. There is no requirement to stop, no expectation that you will, and no reaction waiting for you if you do not. This is drug-specific work, which means talking practically about cocaine, cannabis, ketamine, stimulants, opioids or prescribed medication without any of it being treated as a character flaw. What we examine is what the use is for and what has changed since it began. Some people arrive because the amount has crept up without any decision being taken. Others come because a comedown has started lasting three days instead of one. For anything clinical, Plymouth City Council's substance misuse support is the free route and Harbour delivers the service, including structured treatment and prescribing. Devon Mind covers the anxiety and low mood that often travel with heavy use. Counselling runs alongside all of that and reports to none of it.
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 Plymouth
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Plymouth, free local drug and alcohol support is available through Plymouth City Council's substance misuse 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.
If you drink heavily or use drugs daily, do not stop suddenly on your own. Withdrawal can cause seizures and can be dangerous. Speak to your GP or a local drug and alcohol service first, and they can arrange a safe, medically supported withdrawal. Counselling works alongside that, not instead of it.
Plymouth questions
Online Substance Use Counselling in Plymouth: common questions
Will I be judged if I am still using when we speak?
No. Judgement is the reason most people never say any of this out loud, and it has never yet helped anybody change. What you get is a straight conversation about what is happening, what it does for you, and what you would like to be different.
How much is it, and how does payment work?
Sessions are £80 for an hour, £100 for 90 minutes and £120 for two hours, paid one session at a time. The introductory 15-minute call costs nothing. Nothing is booked in blocks, so a change of shifts or income never leaves you owing anything.
What does Harbour provide?
Harbour is the drug and alcohol service for the city, reached through Plymouth City Council's substance misuse support. It provides free structured treatment, harm-reduction advice and prescribing, none of which counselling offers. Many people use Harbour for the clinical side and this for the talking.
Is any of this shared with my GP or my employer?
None of it. There is no NHS record, no letter and no notification of any kind. Notes stay private and are kept under the BACP Ethical Framework. The single exception is a serious and immediate risk to life, which applies to counselling everywhere.
My use started during a period away and never stopped. Where does that go?
That is worth unpicking properly. Use that begins in one set of circumstances often outlives them, and by then it has attached itself to sleep, mood and routine. We look at what it took over, and what would need to exist for it not to be needed.
Plymouth feels a long way from support. Does that make substance counselling harder?
Not at all. Because we meet by secure video, the distance down the line makes no difference and there is no journey to make. The counselling room is in Hove, so Plymouth is served online rather than in person.
Can I begin substance use counselling online in Plymouth 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 Plymouth, whether that is Mutley, the Barbican or Peverell, with no waiting list to join.
How much does private substance use counselling cost compared with NHS options in Plymouth?
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 Plymouth 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 Plymouth?
I hold some appointments later in the day, which helps if you work shifts or long hours around Plymouth. Sessions are online, so you join from wherever feels private, from Mannamead to Plympton. In-person work is only at my Hove room, for those who can reach the Sussex coast.
Online Substance Use Counselling in Plymouth, 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: Exeter, Torquay. See all of South West.
If substance use counselling is not quite what you are looking for, addiction counselling, counselling for drinking problems and anxiety counselling may fit better in Plymouth.
You may also find it useful to read about three ways to handle a craving and calming a craving as it rises.
Closer to the Sussex coast? The same substance use counselling is available in person, in Hove, where the room is, or see every area I cover.