Drugs and substances
Confidential support for any kind of substance use.
Online Substance Use Counselling · York
Online Substance Use Counselling in York
Online substance use counselling for York, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across York, from within the walls and the centre to the streets around the Minster, 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 York
Substance Use Counselling for York, at a glance
- Areas covered online
- All of York: from within the walls and the centre to Clifton, Acomb and Heworth
- Known for
- The Minster, the city walls and the Shambles
- Region
- Yorkshire & North 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 York
Why people in York reach out
York's walls, Minster and tourist crowds give it a postcard calm, but behind it sit a high cost of living, a large student population and the pressure of a city always on show. Struggle can feel out of place here, and that can make it harder to reach out.
York is enclosed by its medieval walls, the great Minster rising over a knot of narrow streets that includes the timber-framed Shambles. The rivers Ouse and Foss thread through the centre, and flood it when they rise, past Clifford's Tower and the Jorvik quarter that recalls the city's Viking past. This was a great railway city, celebrated now at the National Railway Museum, and a great chocolate one too, home to Rowntree's and Terry's. Two universities, the larger at Heslington on the eastern edge, bring a big student population, while the racecourse on the Knavesmire and the year-round crowds of visitors keep the city busy. Beyond the walls, Clifton, Acomb and Heworth settle into quieter, everyday neighbourhoods.
Beneath a calm, historic surface, struggle can be hard to voice; a confidential online hour asks nothing of appearances.
York is home to the University of York and York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (York Hospital); the city has a long confectionery history through Rowntree's, now part of Nestlé, which still operates a factory there.
Areas covered
Neighbourhoods in and around York
CliftonAcombHeworthBishopthorpeFulfordFishergateHolgateDringhousesHuntingtonHeslington
Wherever you are in York, the work is the same, a calm, confidential space shaped around you.
The local picture
The local picture in York
These figures are local context from official sources, not a description of you, but they show the scale of what people in and around York are living with, and why local support matters.
the rate of deaths from drug misuse was 8.2 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).
3.6 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.
I'm based in Hove and work with people in York online, by secure video, rather than in person. In a city where the centre is always thronged with visitors, meeting from home has its own appeal, no walk through the crowds, no parking within the walls. You join from wherever's quiet and we keep a regular weekly time around your week.
Book a free 15-minute callWhat I help with
How online substance use counselling in York 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 York
Why people in York come for substance use counselling
With two universities and a big student population around Heslington, substance use in York can look like ordinary student life until it starts to cost more than it gives. Away from campus, it can be the thing that fills the quiet. I'm Bradley, working online from Hove with people across York by secure video. There's no clinic to attend and nothing anyone locally need know. We look honestly at what you're using and why, and at what you'd like to be different - moving at a pace that feels right rather than forcing a change before you're ready.
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 York
My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. In York, free local drug and alcohol support is available through City of York Council's alcohol and drugs 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.
York questions
Online Substance Use Counselling in York: common questions
Can I get online substance use counselling if I live in York?
Yes. I work with people right across York, from within the walls and the centre outwards, and anywhere else in Yorkshire & North 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'm a student in York - can this fit around my course?
Yes. Working online means term times, placements and trips home don't interrupt things - we carry on by video wherever you are. I'm a private counsellor, separate from the university's own wellbeing service, which you're also welcome to use alongside this.
How soon could I begin substance use counselling from York?
Usually fairly soon. Working online means I am not tied to York clinic hours, so we can find a slot that fits around the university and heritage sector. It starts with a free 15-minute consultation about your substance use, then a regular weekly session once we agree things suit you.
Is private substance use counselling in York worth it over the NHS route?
Privately I charge 80 pounds an hour, 100 pounds for 90 minutes and 120 pounds for two hours, with a free 15-minute call first. York also has NHS routes, through your GP or York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals, at no cost; those can involve a wait, so private sessions suit anyone wanting to begin substance use work now.
Can substance use counselling fit around work in York, and is it online?
Sessions with me are online only for York, as I am based in Hove. People working near the university and heritage sector often prefer this, fitting substance use counselling around the day without travel across the city. I offer daytime and some early-evening appointments, and we would keep the same weekly slot wherever possible.
Do you have a room in York?
No. I work from Hove on the south coast and see York clients by secure video call. For a compact, busy tourist city, that saves navigating the centre and parking, sessions come to you at home in Acomb, Clifton or wherever feels private.
I'm a student at one of the universities, can you help?
Yes. Online sessions continue through term, placements and holidays wherever you are, so a move between York and home doesn't break things off. I work privately, separate from the universities' own counselling services, which you can also use.
Online Substance Use Counselling in York, 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 Yorkshire & North East: Leeds, Hull, Harrogate. See all of Yorkshire & North East.
All counselling & therapy in York: 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.