URGENT FUNDING APPEAL

Connect Counselling Service is urgently seeking additional funding for 2024 in order to continue to provide its essential service to an ever-growing list of people in need of accessible, professional and compassionate counselling.

What is the need?

One in six people report experiencing a mental health problem (like anxiety and depression) in any given week in England, according to Mind. The most recent NHS data for August 2023 indicated that 1.76 million people were in contact with secondary mental health services. We live in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic which revealed vulnerabilities of health systems. We have as many people on our waiting list to start counselling as the number we are currently helping, for the first time in our history.

How does Connect meet the need?

For the last 29 years, Connect Counselling Service meets this exponential need by being an accessible, no-fee charging Counselling provision in Camberley and the surrounding areas. We strive to be the best that we can and are accredited by the British Association for Counsellors and Psychotherapists. We are unusual in our large size – a team of 32 counsellors – and in the number of sessions we are willing to provide to an individual, weekly sessions for up to two years. At present we are helping more than 80 individuals with accessible and professional counselling. We aim to help every adult over 18, for whom we feel counselling is a suitable way forward.

What are we asking of you?

We urgently seek funding as we go into 2024. We face profound challenges to continue to provide our essential service. Our clients are donating significantly less than pre-pandemic times and our costs have risen year on year. As you may know well, some of our longstanding supporters have faced their own financial pressures and have been able to donate less to us. We are at a critical point as we enter our 30^th year.

Please would you consider immediately, financially supporting Connect to continue our work? This can be done with a one-off donation or a regular monthly contribution which will enable us to provide counselling for individuals in the community who would otherwise be left alone and unsupported with the challenges in their lives.

The team at Connect appreciates any help you can give us in this challenging situation and would be delighted to hear from you and to receive your support.

Contact details

Alison DeWInter (acting Joint Chair of Trustees)                  trusteechair@connectremote.org

Rev’d Andreas Sistig (acting Joint Chair of Trustees)          andreas.sistig@saintannebagshot.org.uk

Dr Emma Laporte (CEO)                tel. 01276 24 210             ceo@connectcounselling.org.uk

Account details

Lloyds Bank – Connect Christian Counselling Service

Account number 00821854

Sort Code 30-91-53

Thank you.