Psychotherapy and Counselling for Asylum Seekers and Refugees

Our grant-funded service which operates in Bristol and Bath, was set up to support asylum seekers and refugees whilst they deal with difficult, and often traumatic, experiences and emotions. We hope to help these individuals find a new strength and the ability to move forward with their lives. The service provides asylum seekers and refugees with specially trained counsellors and psychotherapists, free of charge, whilst interpreters are also provided if required.

If you are interested in finding out more about this service, please contact the Referral Service on 0845 223 5267, or email referralservice@bcpc.org.uk

How can counselling and psychotherapy help Asylum Seekers and Refugees?

Counsellors and psychotherapists are provided to support asylum seekers and refugees with the experiences and emotions they wish to address. Some asylum seekers and refugees are troubled by nightmares or unwanted thoughts and feelings. Some might become depressed or anxious. Others have physical effects such as severe headaches. Some experience a tendency to get angry with family, friends or others. The shock of a new culture, coping with a foreign language, separation from loved ones – all these things make one feel isolated. Even for those who have their friends or family near them, they may feel unable to speak about their experiences for fear of burdening others, or seeming weak.

Counselling and psychotherapy can help asylum seekers and refugees better understand their feelings and learn to cope with the stress and trauma experienced not only in the country of origin, but also here in Britain as they adjust to a new culture.

In order to understand the special experiences, problems and issues that refugees and asylum seekers face, our counsellors and psychotherapists receive regular specialised training and supervision, which includes how to work with interpreters in a therapeutic setting.

Interpreters

We have access to interpreters for many different languages, and we make every effort to provide a suitable interpreter for everyone wishing to use this service.
Our interpreters are given special training to enable them to work in a counselling setting.

'Speak Your Mind' Project

We were part of a wider, 2 year project called 'Speak Your Mind' that supported interpreters working with therapists. This project has now finished. If you would like to find out more you can download the Evaluation Report, and Speak Your Mind Guide to Best Practice.