Facing the challenges of growing up
More information on children & young people
Helping 5 to 17 year olds face the challenges of growing up
What happens when I bring my son or daughter for counselling?
Please talk to your child about the appointment before you bring them. They may like to look at our website.
The counsellor will meet your son/daughter in our reception area and accompany him/her to the counselling room. Some children are happy to go along unaccompanied, others prefer you to go with them: either is absolutely fine. The counsellor will be happy to use gentle encouragement should your child feel unsure about the counselling, but will not try to force or persuade them. If this happens don’t worry, make another appointment and bring your child another time when he/she is feeling better about coming.
The appointment will last for no more than 50 minutes each week. If your child is under 14 years' old, then you will need to stay on the premises whilst they have their counselling.
What if my child says private things about me and my family?
The Counsellor will not judge you or anyone else in your family. Our function is to help your child manage problems and to resolve them in a positive way. The impact of distressing or difficult situations can be felt more acutely by children than by adults. Counselling can ease the stress and help your child to feel happier at home and reach their potential in school.
Can I ask my child about the session?
Some children will wish to talk about the sessions and others will want to keep the content to themselves. It is important that you are guided by your child and are able to respect these individual differences. We do acknowledge that this isn’t an easy task and it’s quite natural to feel anxious about what may be said in sessions.
Can I ask my child’s counsellor how the sessions are going?
It is natural that you will want to know how your child is going on, but the counsellor will have agreed to a confidential relationship with your child and has a duty to stick to this. We acknowledge this can be hard for you but ensuring confidentiality is crucial for establishing trust so that your child can feel confident and able to share openly what is concerning them.
Occasionally and with your child’s consent and knowledge of what will be discussed, it can be useful to accompany your child to see their counsellor to review progress. If you think this would prove beneficial to your child's welfare, please mention it to the counsellor before or at the end of a session so that the counsellor can talk it through with your child the following week before inviting you in later. The only, and very rare, exception to this is would be if the counsellor feels your child is at any risk to themselves or others. However, our counsellors never accept incoming calls from their clients, parents or carers. Should you have any serious concerns or queries please contact us and speak to the centre manager Jo Allen or the clinical lead supervisor Rukhsana Hemani.
How can I help?
If you can be supportive and positive about the counselling whilst keeping things at home as calm and consistent as possible that will go a long way to help your child. Listen if your child wishes to talk, but resist asking questions.
Will the counsellor think I’ve failed?
Absolutely not! We all experience occasions when it feels hard to speak to those closest to us about what is on our mind. Often children don’t want to worry those they love the best. Our counsellors will not be judging you or your child, and will be trying to find a way of helping them with whatever is troubling them.
How can I be assured of the counsellor's professionalism?
All our children and young people's counsellors are fully qualified and have had additional specialist training. They receive professional structured clinical support from our team of accredited and/or highly experienced and qualified clinical supervisors. We are Accredited Organisational members of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy and are bound by its ethical framework for good practice.
How long will my child need to see a Counsellor?
Counsellors work in cycles of 8 weeks of appointments following the initial assessment session, but sometimes children find a couple of sessions enough whilst others may want to stay for more than 8 sessions. Both counsellor and child will regularly review their progress against the looked for outcomes. Where financial considerations could limit the number of sessions your child is able to attend, please let the counsellor know at the beginning and the work will be tailored to what is achievable in the time.
What if I have to cancel?
Your child’s counsellor will discuss the appointment with you at the first meeting. It can be very helpful to have your diary to hand to pre-arrange any breaks to the counselling for holidays etc. If you can’t keep an appointment for any reason, please let us know. If you are paying, a charge will be made if less than 24 hours’ notice is given. If you are accessing our subsidised sessions all missed appointments will count as one of your free sessions. If you miss 2 appointments in a row and we can’t contact you, we will assume that you do not want to continue with counselling right now.
Can I make my own appointment?
If you are 14 years or over, you can make your appointment - simply email, phone or call in.
Will my parents find out?
If you are 14 years or over you can make your own appointment and come by yourself. If you are below 14 years your parent or carer will need to accompany you to the appointment - but not into the counselling room.
What you say is between you and your counsellor. Nobody else is given information without discussing it with you first and receiving your written permission. We will not tell your parents or anyone else you are attending counselling unless we have a serious concern for your safety and then we would discuss with you what we may need to share.
If my parents/carers don’t know I'm coming how would I pay?
If you are 14 -17 years and coming to us without the knowledge of your parents or carers you would not pay for your counselling - the assessment and up to 8 sessions are free.
Where do we offer appointments?
We offer our services at a number of locations around South Manchester.