Who is the counselling service for?

We offer both individual counselling and group therapy from our base in Holborn, London WC1. The individual counselling is for adult men (18 and over) who have experienced sexual violation at any time in their lives and we also offer individual counselling to partners (male and female).  The current group model is a 12 week therapy group open only to male clients who have experienced sexual violation.  Please look in Sharing Experiences for more information.

Although we are a London based service, our clients come from across Greater London, Surrey, Essex and sometimes further afield.  As long as you’re able to get to us we can support you.

I’m not sure if I’ve been sexually assaulted or raped, can you still help me?

Many men who contact our service feel confused about what has happened to them and they don’t always have the language to describe their experience.  This confusion is not uncommon and we’re here to help you try to understand this.  If you think something has happened and you want help with this, calling the helpline can be a useful starting point.  Alternatively get in contact with us to organise an initial consultation.

How can I make contact to refer?

We only take self referrals for counselling or group therapy.  You can make a self referral by calling our helpline, our office line 02074046234 during office hours, or in “contact us” at the bottom of the website.

If you are a professional contacting us regarding a potential client we’re happy to support you in this, but your client would still need to make their own contact to self refer.

 
What happens initially?

Once we have your referral and contact details we will contact you within 2 weeks to organise an initial consultation.  The purpose of this meeting is to have the opportunity to think about whether individual counselling or group therapy at SurvivorsUK is the most helpful support for you at the time you refer.

If we’re not the right service for you, this is something we’ll discuss with you and support you in finding a suitable alternative service that can help. 

How soon can I see a counsellor?

Once you’ve had your initial consultation and we’ve agreed we’re the right service for you, the Clinical Services Manager will be in touch with you to confirm that you’re on our waiting list, to let you know about suitable vacancies and to organise allocating you to a counsellor in our team. 

We aim to allocate individual clients within six weeks of their initial consultation, but waiting times for group therapy can be slightly longer as the current 12 week group runs several times per year. 

Who will I see for counselling?

We have a team of both male and female counsellors who work from our base in Holborn.  Our counsellors come from a variety of different training backgrounds, are fully qualified and adhere to BACP guidelines.   All of our counsellors are experienced in supporting men who have experienced sexual violation and they have ongoing continuing professional development training whilst they work with us. 

When the Clinical Services Manager allocates you to a counsellor, they will have considered a number of issues that will have been spoken about in the initial consultation including practical details (such as time availability) and if you have a gender preference for the counsellor you see. 

What happens in individual counselling?

Counselling is an opportunity to talk and be listened to by an experienced professional in a safe environment.  When you’re feeling in distress and want some help with your problems it can help to talk to someone face to face.  Your counsellor will not tell you what to do, give advice or direct you in what you talk about; they will help you explore and reflect on your life and relationships, to make your own choices and share things at your own pace.  You won’t be judged; your counsellor will simply listen to you and help you try to understand your thoughts and feelings.

We understand that for many it can take time to feel comfortable to talk in detail about your experience of sexual violation.  We’re interested in helping you understand how your experiences have impacted in all areas of your life such as your day to day living, your relationships and your work.  We know that many men have a wide range of difficulties associated with their experience of sexual violation which may include: depression, anxiety, difficulties in relationships and low self esteem.

When and where does the counselling take place?

All of our counselling takes place at our base in Holborn.  The initial consultation will take place during office hours, but following this we offer both daytime and evening appointments for individual counselling (Monday – Friday), with the current group taking place on a Monday evening.  All counselling sessions take place at the same time on a weekly basis, with each session lasting 50 minutes.

Can I arrive early for my appointment?

We do have a small waiting area, but we ask that clients don’t arrive more than 10 minutes before their appointment.

How long does the counselling last?

We offer all new clients 12 sessions of counselling and for some this is a sufficient period for you to focus on a current difficulty.  Clients have the opportunity to extend the counselling to a maximum of two years in consultation with your counsellor.  In longer term counselling (up to 2 years) it is possible to take more time to think about a variety of issues such as recurring patterns of behaviour and relationships or exploring past and present feelings and the meaning of past and present relationships.

As a charity offering low cost counselling we’re currently only able to offer a maximum of one year’s individual counselling as we heavily subsidise client fees with funding.

Do you offer a variety of approaches?

Our counsellors do come from a variety of training backgrounds (Psychodynamic, Integrative, TA, Existential), but essentially the therapeutic approach here is an exploratory one, in which the counsellor supports you in gaining understanding about your experiences and how they are impacting on you.  We don't currently offer more directive approaches such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT).

How much does it cost?

We have a sliding scale of fees and charge clients according to their income, starting from the initial consultation onwards.  Our current fees range from £3 - £40 (individual) and £5 - £25 per group.  We review these each year and will let you know in advance if this is going to change.

Once clients have started counselling we do charge for missed counselling sessions with less than 24 hours notice. When ongoing counselling is agreed, it is expected that you will make a commitment to regular ongoing weekly sessions.  We are not able to keep a regular counselling space open if you do not attend three sessions in a row (aside from illness or planned holiday).  Only in exceptional circumstances will we keep a counselling space open for clients who are not able to attend regularly.

Is the counselling confidential?

We keep all information confidential within our organisation and adhere to BACP guidelines.  No details will be given to a third party (such as a doctor or anybody else) without your permission except in exceptional circumstances such as a disclosure about a serious crime or a child protection concern.  If it were necessary to breach your confidentiality we would discuss this with you and support you through the process.

Do you keep notes?

We keep notes secure at all times.  These notes remain confidential and we comply with the Data Protection Act. Should you want to have access to your notes, you can do this by contacting our Clinical Services Manager in writing.

We also keep statistical information and ask that clients take part in CORE (Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation).  This is an evaluation tool that we use to support our work and is vital to the ongoing improvement of the service we provide.

Do you support partners and carers?

We recognise that the experience of either childhood sexual abuse or adult sexual assault/rape doesn’t only impact on the one person; that this has an impact on your relationships with the people around you, and sometimes your friends, family and partners need help in understanding too.   For some calling our helpline can be a first step in talking to someone else about this (add link).

We now provide one day workshops for carers (partners, friends, family members) and are now holding a waiting list for these.  This is a new venture as an organisation with the aim in the short term to provide a one day workshop and in the longer term to initiate and provide a network of support for carers predominantely using technology.

Do you work with men who’ve sexually violated others?

We do not work with men who have sexually violated others.  If this is something that is disclosed in the initial consultation we will support you in finding an alternative service that can best support you both with this issue and your own experience of sexual violation.  If this is something that is disclosed during counselling/group therapy we will support you in working towards an ending and finding an appropriate alternative service.

I don’t live in London, are there any other counsellors or services you can recommend?

If you’re able to travel to central London, regardless of where you live we can support you in our service, based in Holborn. We also have an online list of therapists around the UK who work privately.  These therapists have all undergone a training with us and have an understanding of the issues for men who have experienced sexual assault at some point in their lives.

At the point of being accepted onto our list, they have agreed to adhere to a list of terms and conditions including; providing us with proof of their qualifications, liability insurance and agree to adhere to a code of ethics (BACP/UKCP or equivalent).   You can access this list by clicking on the article to the top left.

Therrapists on this list work independently of Survivors UK and do not come under our usual contract of employment. However should you have any complaint about any of the professionals listed please contact us and we shall be happy to assist you as best we can.
 
You could also look on NAPAC or The Survivors Trust which will give you details about other specialist counselling services in your local area.