We provide talking therapies such as counselling and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT).

Therapy provides a safe and confidential space for you to discuss your problems with an accredited and highly trained professional.

What we can help with

Whether you're feeling anxious or depressed or are struggling with some other aspect of your mental health, we can help.

In talking therapy, you can express and explore your thoughts and feelings, develop a better understanding of yourself and start making changes to improve the quality of your life.

What you talk about will vary depend on what you want help with. It could include:

• your relationships
• past and present life events
• your emotions and thoughts
• your behaviour
• situations you find difficult.

How to access talking therapies

To access the right support for you, you can come and talk to one of the Student Support Advice Team at the 4 West Roper Centre. Or you can complete our online form to identify the best information and support for you.

Making the most of your appointments

As a student, we know that you will have different commitments on your time – academic work, paid work, time with your friends, time to relax and enjoy yourself. However, if you’ve decided to take the step to seek support for any difficulties you’re having, it’s really important that you give yourself time to attend your appointments (and if you can, a little reflective space after each appointment can be really useful) and make a commitment to attending each one.

We’ll do our very best to fit our offered appointments to your needs and availability, and can offer in-person, Teams or phone appointments to give you the widest choice possible. Our services are in high demand so we need to make sure we can meet the needs of the University community as best we can.

If you have to cancel an appointment because of illness or a conflicting appointment that you cannot move, we ask that you give us 48 hours notice so that we can reschedule your appointment, and offer the available space to another student who is waiting for support. If you miss an appointment with less than 48 hours notice, we won’t be able to reschedule that appointment and it will count as a “missed” appointment in your allocated sessions (we do make exceptions for illness).

If you cancel or miss two appointments, we will need to close your case, but you can self-refer when you feel the time is right to commit to regular appointments.

If you’re not ready to come to regular appointments, or things are so difficult that you are struggling with this, then please come to the Roper Centre to talk with one of our Student Support Advisors – they can offer same-day support and advice, 9am - 5pm, seven days a week and can be contacted at studentsupportadvisors@bath.ac.uk.

You can also access our courses and workshops, social prescribing programmes, Be Well app or our Be Well-Talk Now 24/7 helpline.

What else you need to know about talking therapies

Your therapist will listen and try to understand in a non-judgmental way. Sometimes the therapist may gently challenge you, but will always respect your values, choices and lifestyle.

Your therapist will not tell you what to do or prescribe medication. Instead, therapy can help you find your own way forward – whether that’s making effective changes in your life or finding better ways of coping with your problems.

We offer talking therapy appointments on campus or at the Virgil Building as well as online using Microsoft Teams. We will try to accommodate your preference.

We provide short-term therapy – in most cases, up to six sessions. This is usually enough to help you start moving forward with your life.

You might work with one of our in-house therapists or a therapist from one of our partner organisations. Sometimes, we suggest you work with a trainee clinical psychologist from the University's Doctorate in Clinical Psychology.

Occasionally, we might ask to make an audio recording of a session. This is an important way therapists seek to improve their work. It's fine to say no to this request. If we do ask to record a session, we'll give you lots more information so you can make up your mind.

Confidentiality and safeguarding

We are committed to the highest standards of professional practice and we respect the importance of confidentiality in all our dealings with you. See how Student Support deals with your confidential information.

We also take seriously our duty of care for you. If at any time there are serious concerns for your wellbeing or safety, there are robust safeguarding measures to support you and keep you safe.

24/7 support

If you are struggling and need advice, support, or just somebody to talk to, professional help is also available 24/7 from our free, confidential support line Be Well- Talk Now. Students can contact a trained adviser by phone from anywhere in the world.

Emergency support

If you need to talk to somebody urgently about your wellbeing, or that of a friend or other student, call one of the helplines listed in the urgent or emergency wellbeing support guide.

In cases of overdose and serious injury through self-harm, seek immediate medical help by calling 999, even if you or the person you are with do not/does not feel unwell. The effects of an overdose can be delayed by hours (even days) and can be fatal.

External support

There are several charities and organisations that can also provide support:

• The Samaritans who can be contacted on 116 123
  
• SHOUT offer a 24/7 text-based volunteer crisis support line - text 85258
  
• Papyrus Hopeline UK is a volunteer crisis line to support young people at risk of suicide, or who are concerned about someone else’s wellbeing