13 To 17s
13 To 17s
Every time I have counselling I feel like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders
We are here to help you
Are you struggling with the way you are feeling?
Are there things in your life that you are worried about?
Are you feeling alone and finding it hard to talk to family and friends?
Is the way you are feeling affecting the way you feel about youself, your home life or school?
However you are feeling, or whatever you are worried about, it is good to talk about it. We are here to listen and help you. Platform For Life is a Chester based charity, and the support service we provide is free and confidential.
You may wish to talk to someone in a private space about problems or difficulties you are facing in life. The young people we help come to sessions to talk about many different things that are affecting them, like family or relationship issues, difficult home situations, loneliness or anxiety, bullying, abuse, self-harm, addiction, low self-esteem, gender identity, loss or bereavement, depression, or difficulty making decisions. You may have been diagnosed with ADHD / ASD and want to explore what that means to you. You may be finding it hard to go to school or you may not be attending at all.
It might be that you just want to find a safe space to talk openly, where someone will listen, and you can make sense of the world around you.
We offer 1-1 sessions with one of our counsellors or art therapists where you can explore whatever is on your mind in a safe, non-judgemental space. They will explain more in your first meeting which can be arranged in a variety of places close to where you live, or in school or college, if that’s easier for you.
This is how you can get help from us
To get help from us, you need to live, go to school, or you see a doctor in Blacon, Lache or Kingsway.
To get in touch with us for help, there are two ways you can do this:
Ask a trusted adult to fill in our online referral form. This could be an adult at home, a relative, a teacher or someone you speak to in school, or another trusted adult professional. Just show them this information, and they will be able to fill out our online referral form by clicking here.
Fill out our online referral form yourself by clicking here (If you are under 18, we will need to have consent from your parent/carer/guardian before/when we meet you)
Once they have done this, we will arrange to come and meet you in a suitable place, that we use when we support young people.
If you need help completing the online referral, or for more information just call us on 07552 219806 and one of our team will be happy to help.
Other young people who have been supported by us have said
I could talk about things from my past and work out how to move on from them.
I have been able to overcome something I never thought I could of.
When I first started counselling, I wasn't sleeping but now I sleep through the whole night and realise I feel so much better.
I used to skip lessons and turn up late but when I spoke about it I realised that wasn't helping and I haven't missed a lesson yet this year. I feel so much calmer.
I enjoy coming to see you every week, I know I can talk about anything, if I'm having a good or a bad week. I don't feel as angry or as anxious as I was.
He is not comfortable with many people, but he trusted you from the first session. His anxiety was so high and confidence so low that he found it difficult to go anywhere without me. He now attends sessions on his own, meeting friends, gets on public transport and I no longer have to pick him up from school. He absolutely loved the sessions.
You can read more stories from the people who have had support from Platform For Life on our Stories Page.