North East Counselling Services provides employee counselling, in the workplace or offsite. For almost two decades, we have worked with businesses, the public sector and not-for profit organisations. Typically, in a year, we will counsel hundreds of employees, from dozens of organisations. We also deliver other types of workplace support, often to groups of employees whose roles involve stressful situations or environments, or who have encountered a recent trauma or crisis.
Employee Counselling and Workplace Support
Our Employee Counselling Services
North East Counselling Services works with employers across Newcastle and Gateshead, Durham, South Tyneside, North Tyneside, Sunderland and the Tees Valley. On occasion, we also work with employers outside of this area. Our services include:
Individual Employee Counselling
Counselling and Support for Employee Groups
Supporting Employees in Emotionally Intensive Roles
Crisis Support
Individual Employee Counselling
Performing at a high level can be difficult when an employee’s personal problems, relationships or mental health issues produce feelings of stress, overwhelm, anger, despair or helplessness.
When people access therapy and are given the space to express and explore their feelings, their distress tends to reduce. Through that process, individuals also learn new ways to manage their feelings – so that, if the same issue arises again, they are better prepared and more able to help themselves.
Our experienced counsellors support employees with a wide variety of issues, including:
- Feelings of anxiety and depression
- Communication issues
- Self-esteem or confidence
- Lack of self-care or struggles with boundaries
- Burnout
- Challenges in family dynamics
- Bereavement
- Dealing with organisational change
- Health worries
- Work-related pressure
- Employee stress
- Work-based relationship issues, including bullying and harassment
- Family and other relationship issues that affect performance in the workplace
An employee may ask for help when an issue escalates, but attentive management can pre-empt future and perhaps greater problems by intervening and offering therapy earlier. In working with employers, we are committed to supporting and enabling early intervention, which can avoid problems turning into more complex and long-term conditions. This helps to limit staff illness and absences, and reduce the for more significant mental health interventions.
Group Work
Group counselling provides a safe and impartial space for employees to offload current, work-related stressors in a supportive environment. We offer both short-term and long-term support for groups of staff who may, for example, be going through a stressful period, encounter distressing situations as part of their job role, or have experienced a recent traumatic event at, or connected to, their place of employment.
Services are tailored to workplace needs and to the groups of staff involved. Each person is given time and space to share their concerns, stresses or difficulties – enabling opportunities for reflection, to share best practice and to learn from one other, whilst receiving support from an experienced counsellor. Our input can involve one session, a short series of sessions or ongoing, regular group meetings.
The counsellors who deliver this work have extensive experience in workplaces including large local authorities, schools, industry and commerce. They therefore bring to their group work a strong understanding of workplace dynamics, alongside their counselling qualifications and experience.
In our work with groups, we also draw upon the ‘Restorative Supervision’ model that has become widely used in NHS and other environments.
Counselling and Support for Employee Groups
Group counselling and support provides a safe and impartial space for employees to offload current, work-related stressors in a supportive environment. Each person is given time and space to share their concerns, stresses or difficulties – enabling opportunities for reflection, to share best practice and to learn from one another, whilst receiving support from an experienced counsellor.
The counsellor facilitates the group: ensuring that everyone is heard, offering guidance and helping participants – where possible – to arrive at their own solutions. Where appropriate, the counsellor may also offer suggestions or encourage the group to consider alternative perspectives.
This can be helpful, for example, at times of restructuring, significant staffing changes, or other change management.
North East Counselling Services delivers group-based counselling and support to managers and other staff, in groups of 4 to 8 people. Sessions take place at the employer’s site or at our Blaydon offices.
Supporting Employees in Emotionally Intensive Roles
We provide group-based sessions, within the workplace or offsite, to help employers to support staff whose work can be emotionally challenging. These sessions open up a space for individuals – in employed or voluntary roles – to:
- Think about and reflect on the workplace demands and issues that they find challenging or stressful
- Process their experiences
- Gain alternative perspectives from others in the group.
This process of reflecting upon and processing experiences can help reduce employee burnout and stress, especially among those who often encounter situations that have a strong emotional load.
North East Counselling Services has helped teachers, health professionals, carers, management teams and others to reduce stress and emotional exhaustion and build more effective and supportive relationships, within their teams and across their organisations.
To find out more and/or discuss ways in which we might help your own organisation, please call us on 0191 4661314, or fill in our contact form.
Workplace Crisis Support
Short-Term Crisis Support
North East Counselling Services often puts in place rapid-response counselling and related services, to support a group of employees or a larger workforce, after a crisis has happened.
Through these interventions we can help individuals and teams to find their way again, when they feel lost, hurt or in crisis.
We have provided rapid-response, crisis support to companies, schools and the public and third sector. For example:
- After an unexpected death of an employee
- When an employee death has been anticipated but has upset the workforce
- After workplace accidents, where colleagues have been affected
- When staff have encountered a distressing situation in the course of their work
- Following other traumatic incidents
We seek always to provide a same day or next day initial discussion, to assess needs. We will then work with you to agree and co-ordinate rapid access to services.
Clarifying Needs in the Workplace
Sometimes, it is clear that some external support is required, but not what that might look like or involve.
Our managers and workplace counsellors are experienced in facilitating confidential, one-to-one or small group discussions with senior leaders and staff – to identify underlying issues then build solutions to address these.
Often, this involves:
- Meeting with a business owner, director, or Head of HR – to discuss the situation, background and workplace context
- Facilitating group and perhaps individual sessions, with a small number of staff. This helps to clarify the circumstances and understand how staff see the situation from their own perspective.
- Collating and anonymising information about the needs and issues that have emerged
- Feeding these back to management, with recommendations for the type(s) of support likely to have most impact.
Where appropriate, this can lead into one-to-one counselling or to tailored group work of the types outlined above.
FAQs about our Employee Counselling Services
Still got a question? Find out everything you need to know about our Employee Counselling services below. Alternatively, please contact us if you would like more information.
Appointment Information
How long is each counselling session?
Each counselling appointment will last approximately 50 minutes.
Where do the sessions take place?
We can counsel your employees at the workplace, or at our offices in Blaydon and Pelaw. Both sites are close to public transport connections and offer free car parking. Counselling sessions are available:
- Monday to Friday – 9am to 8pm
- Saturday – 9am to 4pm
We also offer remote appointments, by telephone or video – provided that the issues for which your employee requires counselling lend themselves to remote therapy.
How many sessions will be needed and how often?
The number of sessions will vary depending upon your employee’s needs – so there is no requirement to commit to a particular ‘course’ of counselling. The employee can discuss with their counsellor the number and focus of the sessions at any time and can choose to pause or end the counselling whenever they wish.
The counsellor will aim to meet your employee on the same day and time each week, unless the employee’s shift patterns or other commitments require more flexible timings. (Meeting weekly is not essential, but it is often helpful to do this at first – then potentially to space out sessions as the counselling progresses.)
How many employees can be involved in group sessions?
Our work with employee groups is face-to-face, in person – either at the workplace or at our Blaydon offices. At Blaydon, we can accommodate groups of up to 10 people.
Confidentiality
In addition to the service contract that we agree with your organisation, we will also put in place confidentiality agreements with the individual(s) and group(s) of employees with whom we work.
Confidentiality when counselling individuals
Confidentiality is one of the foundations of the counselling relationship. When our counsellors work one-on-one with employees, what that employee says to their counsellor will remain confidential. This allows employees the freedom to express themselves and really get to the root of the problem, without fear of any judgement or repercussions from those around them.
Confidentiality in group work
When working with groups, it’s important to create a safe space for people to talk freely. In order to do that, the counsellor facilitating the group will make an oral contract with the participants, limiting what can be shared outside of the sessions.
Exceptions to confidentiality
There are some exceptions, where we may need to breach confidentiality. In all instances, this will be discussed in advance with the employee we are counselling. Exceptions are:
- To protect your employee or someone else from serious harm – including safeguarding commitments
- Where there is a statutory obligation to disclose information
- To prevent a crime
- Child protection
- If the employee has given their consent for confidentiality to be breached in order to share information with other parties
Are the counsellors fully qualified for employee counselling?
North East Counselling Services is an organisational member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP), and is committed to work within BACP’s Ethical framework for the Counselling Professions.
Our employee counsellors are academically qualified and are Registered or Accredited members of a professional body, such as BACP or the United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP).
Their expertise spans a wide range of therapies – including person-centred counselling, cognitive behavioural therapy, psychodynamic counselling and Gestalt. Most of our counsellors use an integrative style, drawing upon techniques from a range of modalities and developed through years of experience.
They counsel people from roles including company directors, owner-managers, teachers and headteachers, middle and junior managers, IT professionals, retail and hospitality staff, community workers, carers and blue light workers.
How do I request workplace support?
If you are interested in counselling for one or more employees, please fill in our short enquiry form. We will then get in touch to find out more about your requirements – either over the phone, or via a visit to the workplace, in appropriate.
Alternatively, if you would like to discuss a wider package of support, or have a need for urgent counselling (e.g. after a major incident such as an employee death in service, or suicide) please telephone us on 0191 4661314 and ask to speak to Marj Hunter (CEO) or Jolene McCourt (Operations Manager).
