No support? No money? No confidence? Isolated? Living with LD, ASD or another health condition?
The Cheltenham Support Service is a truly holistic service that is there to support the whole person. I combine humanistic counselling, life coaching and support work to assist individuals in need, on a confidential and independent basis.
I am a trained, practicing and insured counsellor, a trained coach and an experienced advice and guidance worker who combines all three areas when clients need more than just emotional support.
Why clients choose The Cheltenham Support Service
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I don't advertise and so clients will have had the service recommended to them.
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Clients will have complex needs and the skill-set I can offer them is quite broad.
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I work from the humanistic standpoint of unconditional positive regard.
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Flexibility: I work with what clients are bringing to a session. This might mean helping with their utility bills, giving emotional support or helping them type up a CV.
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I renegotiate the basis for our working together regularly to ensure that our arrangement remains productive, that both parties are 'doing their bit' for the client's progress and that the client's personal goals are being reached. It also ensures that the support in place is appropriate, realistic, welcome and meaningful.
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It is my policy to work with the sorts of communication and engagement issues that normally mean a client is discharged from a service. This might mean changing to text or email support; working with anger and frustration, working through a lack of motivation, memory problems and anxiety; money management issues; working through any barriers to using the services offered by the NHS, the police, the DWP or the local council, by supporting clients in following complaints procedures and form filling; exploring communication issues; liaising with other support workers, health professionals, the Work Programme, probation, lawyers, etc., and acting as a mouthpiece when a client finds contacting professionals stressful; making use of specialist charities and grant making trusts. Assessing for underlying Hidden Disabilities that might be making every day tasks difficult and coaching clients around this issue. Help with time management...
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Depending on a client's circumstances, the service is either free or very low cost (I do not charge for time spent outside of sessions doing paperwork, making calls, etc for the client, unless the time allocated is significant). I attend tribunals and medicals for no cost.
I charge £0-£15 for face to face sessions lasting 1 hour, in Cheltenham.
I charge an extra £12 when we mutually decide to work in a private counselling room; this is
the amount that I pay the centre.
Please note that I only take on clients with no income, such as clients claiming ESA and JSA, limited income or who are heavily in debt. Clients must either finance their own sessions or see me pro bono. I do not accept clients for whom someone else is paying for therapy.
Before training as a Counsellor etc., I graduated with a BA (Hons) in Politics in 2001 and I am passionate about welfare issues. I trained intensively in counselling in France and the UK (Psychosynthesis and Person-Centred) for three years and then I built on this with:
*accredited domestic violence training and support work with a national specialist charity * LGBTQPN DV training * work with homeless clients in London * IAG work in unemployment (long-term sickness and disability specialist and safeguarding officer); life coaching and 7Words communication training * work with refugees and asylum seekers * the Hidden Disabilities Assessor qualification* The Train the Trainer qualification*
Becoming a Counsellor is a very long process. I always worked parallel to my training, mainly in hospitality and recruitment. Now I have worked in private practice for over five years.
I am fully insured for counselling, coaching and support work and I am a member of the AHPP (http://ahpp.org.uk/). Please also see saraackrill.yolasite.com.
I have Aspergers (ASD) and for that reason I work face to face and by Skype but not over the telephone.
My specialist areas are: Aspergers/ ASD, Learning Disabilities, Bipolar, Borderline' Personality Disorder, Depression, Anxiety & OCD, self esteem.
SARA ACKRILL, updated February 2017.
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