We support people who have been affected by sexual violence, by providing short-term therapy and counselling. This service is currently available to people who live in the Plymouth area.
We support people who have been affected by sexual violence, by providing short-term therapy and counselling. This service is currently available to people who live in the Plymouth area.
Our referral criteria is set by our commissioners and we offer short term therapy within this.
Our main criteria for assessment in Plymouth is that you must be aged 18+ and have experienced sexual violence in your life, including incidents in childhood, however this is for assessment only. There are other criteria which we may need to take into consideration when you are being assessed to ensure the service we offer is suitable for you. These criteria may include any secondary mental health conditions you are suffering from and if you are able to attend regularly, amongst others.
You’ll also be able to access therapy if you’ve already used the Independent Sexual Violence Advisory (ISVA) Independent Sexual Violence Advisory (ISVA) Service. The ISVA service is only available to people who have reported to the police, or are looking for advice on how to report to the police, or provide anonymous intelligence.
Initially, you’ll be offered an assessment, which will help us decide if counselling is the right service for you. At this assessment you’ll be asked to sign an agreement which will include details of our cancellation and confidentiality policies.
After your assessment, we’ll write to you to confirm whether or not you’ve been accepted for counselling and you’ll be placed on a waiting list until a counsellor becomes available.
We will contact you to arrange a suitable appointment time. Unfortunately, we’re unable to be exact about how long you may have to wait as it depends on a number of factors. We’ll explain more about this during your assessment.
You’ll be offered nine sessions. Each session will last no longer than an hour. During this time, you and the counsellor will discuss how best to use the time you spend in counselling.
This is a free service for clients who meet our criteria and would benefit from it, however we do welcome donations.
We will generally assess anyone who lives in the Plymouth City area . If you’re outside of this geographical area you can find a list of accredited therapists on the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy website at https://www.bacp.co.uk/search/Therapists
If you live in Devon and are working with one of our ISVA’s we’ll also be able to offer you some therapeutic support.
The best thing to do is to give it a try. We offer therapy provided by highly qualified, trained and experienced specialist counsellors who work in an integrative way, and will respond to your individual needs and circumstances.
You can bring someone with you, however we ask you to attend the counselling session on your own. Your companion can wait in the reception area for you.
The information you give is important to us and will remain confidential. Exceptions to this may occur if you tell us at any time that you know of a vulnerable adult or a child that is at risk of significant harm, or if you are a risk to yourself or others. We have a written confidentiality policy which we’ll explained to you in detail at your first appointment.
