Drugs and substances
Confidential support for any kind of substance use.
Online Substance Use Counselling · Pontypridd
Online Substance Use Counselling in Pontypridd
Online substance use counselling for Pontypridd, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Pontypridd, from the town centre and the old bridge to the streets around the Rhondda confluence, 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 Pontypridd
Substance Use Counselling for Pontypridd, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of Pontypridd: from the town centre and the old bridge to Graig, Treforest and Rhydyfelin
- Known for
- The old bridge, the Rhondda confluence and the university campus
- Region
- Wales (Wales)
- 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 Pontypridd
Why people in Pontypridd reach out
Pontypridd stands where the Rhondda meets the Taff, a valleys town shaped by coal and its passing. Insecure work, money pressure and the isolation of the tight valley communities all shape what people here carry.
Pontypridd stands where the Rhondda joins the Taff, a valleys town whose graceful single-span Old Bridge, built by William Edwards in 1756, was once the longest of its kind in Europe. The town grew as the gateway to the Rhondda coalfield and remains its natural market and meeting place. It holds a special place in Welsh culture as the birthplace of the national anthem, Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau, written here by Evan and James James and remembered by a memorial in Ynysangharad Park. The singer Tom Jones was born in the town, and its rugby club plays at Sardis Road. The University of South Wales has a large campus at Treforest, and districts such as Graig, Cilfynydd and Rhydyfelin line the valley.
In tightly-held valley communities a long way from specialist help, a secure video link closes the distance and keeps the work private.
Pontypridd, in Rhondda Cynon Taf where the Rhondda meets the Taff, hosts the University of South Wales Treforest campus; healthcare for the area is provided by Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around Pontypridd
GraigTreforestRhydyfelinHawthornCilfynyddGlyncochTrallwnYnysybwlMaesycoed
Wherever you are in Pontypridd, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in Pontypridd
These figures are local context from official sources, not a description of you, but they show the scale of what people in and around Pontypridd are living with, and why local support matters.
In Rhondda Cynon Taf (the council area covering Pontypridd) the age-standardised drug-misuse death rate was 11.6 per 100,000 in 2022 to 2024, above the Wales average of 8.5 per 100,000. Source: Office for National Statistics (ONS), Deaths related to drug poisoning by local authority, England and Wales (drug misuse, Table 6) (2022 to 2024).
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.
Pontypridd sits within reach of Cardiff, but for people up the Rhondda or the Cynon valleys the nearest specialist help can still mean a real journey. My practice is based in Hove, on the south coast of England, so I do not work in the town in person. I do offer confidential counselling by secure video, which reaches Pontypridd and anywhere else in Wales, and the UK too, bringing the sessions to you rather than the other way around.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
How online substance use counselling in Pontypridd 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 Pontypridd
Why people in Pontypridd come for substance use counselling
With its university campus at Treforest and its tight valley communities, Pontypridd holds different worlds, but substances can offer a way of coping in any of them, through student pressure, insecure work or the isolation of the valleys. I meet that without judgement. My work looks at what the substance has been doing for you and how to find steadier footing that does not depend on it. As a Hove-based counsellor I work with people across Pontypridd by secure video rather than in person, so support reaches you at home, wherever in the valleys you are.
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 Pontypridd
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In Pontypridd, your GP can refer you to local NHS-funded drug and alcohol services, and you can find your nearest one via the NHS “find a service” directory.
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 press 2 for urgent mental health support. The CALL Helpline for Wales is free on 0800 132 737, and the Samaritans are on 116 123.
Pontypridd questions
Online Substance Use Counselling in Pontypridd: common questions
Can I get online substance use counselling if I live in Pontypridd?
Yes. I work with people right across Pontypridd, from the town centre and the old bridge outwards, and anywhere else in Wales, 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.
Do you work with University of South Wales students?
Yes, by secure video. Students at the Treforest campus and elsewhere are welcome to get in touch. Sessions take place online wherever you are, so term time and time back home need not interrupt the work.
How quickly can I begin substance use counselling around Pontypridd?
Often the same week. After a free 15-minute consultation to check we fit, we arrange your first session. Because everything is by secure video, being up the Rhondda rather than down in Pontypridd makes no difference to how soon we can start.
Is substance use counselling cheaper on the NHS in Pontypridd?
NHS drug services through Cwm Taf Morgannwg health board are free, and Dan 24/7 gives free all-Wales advice, though demand is high. Privately I charge £80 an hour, £100 for 90 minutes and £120 for two hours, after a free 15-minute consultation.
What is online substance use counselling like for someone in Pontypridd?
You join by secure video from a private space at home, whether in Hawthorn, Glyncoch or Ynysybwl, needing only a steady connection. I keep some evening appointments, so the journey down to Pontypridd or into Cardiff for specialist help is no longer needed. Students at Treforest are welcome too.
I live up the Rhondda, can we still work together?
Yes. Because everything is done by secure video, where you are in the valleys makes no difference to the appointment. The session reaches you at home, which spares the journey down to Pontypridd or into Cardiff.
Do you work with University of South Wales students?
Yes, by video. Students at the Treforest campus and elsewhere are welcome to get in touch. Sessions take place online wherever you are, so term time and time back home need not interrupt things.
Online Substance Use Counselling in Pontypridd, 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 Wales: Merthyr Tydfil, Cardiff, Cwmbran. See all of Wales.
All counselling & therapy in Pontypridd: 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.