Sarah Bainbridge

Appointments are available at my cosy counselling room, just outside of Oswestry, throughout the week and at weekends.

I also work Thursday and Friday evenings until 8pm, for those who are busy during the day.

I offer a flexible approach to appointments and you can book weekly, fortnightly, monthly or as and when you feel you need someone to talk to.  

The counselling room is situated on the ground floor and there is free parking close to the entrance to the building.

I believe in my clients' potential to change and the science of neuroplasticity (the ability of the brain to heal by forming new connections and pathways).  My experience of the positive, life changing effects of counselling - increasing your ability to think, feel and perform at your best - gives me confidence in the process.  Understanding that counselling may bring about real change and improvement to your mental health and wellbeing can bring hope where there are feelings of hopelessness.

You don't have to deal with your emotions alone.  I understand that the idea of speaking to a stranger about your life and the difficulties you are facing, can be daunting at first but it can feel very freeing to talk to someone who listens without judgement and criticism.  In fact, you might even find it easier to talk about problems and worries to someone who is impartial rather than friends or family.  I work in a very gentle and caring way and I will listen to whatever you bring with respect and compassion.

A counselling session with me is professional yet informal.  You have complete control over what you want to talk about.  I offer a flexible approach to appointments and you can book weekly, fortnightly, monthly or as and when you feel you need someone to talk to.  Face to face, online and telephone counselling sessions are available along with the option of outdoor/walk and talk therapy. 

Standard sessions last up to fifty minutes and are priced at £40 (concessions are available). Shorter sessions are available for children and young people, if required. Longer sessions - up to 90 minutes long are available for adults at the higher rate of £60. These longer sessions may be suitable if you feel standard sessions are too short, if you would like more time for working creatively or if you find you need time to settle into sessions and transition ready to leave.

Contact me for more information on how we can work together to help you manage life’s challenges with increased confidence, strength and resilience. If you have any questions or would like to book an initial session, please ring and leave a voicemail, send me a text message or email with your details and I will get back to you as soon as I can (usually within 24 hours). If you would like to speak to me before booking a session, I can phone you for a short chat, free of charge, to help you decide whether what I offer matches your needs.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Before your first session, we can discuss - by email, text or short phone call - when you would like your sessions to be, how long they will last and any particular requirements you may have.  After that, I will send you a working agreement for you to read through and agree to before we meet.

At the beginning of the initial session, we can talk about our agreement again, you can tell me what you are expecting from counselling and what you would like to achieve from your sessions.  I will ask you some questions to find out a bit more about you and why you have decided to come for counselling.  You can experience my way of working and we can both decide, without obligation on either side, whether what I am offering matches your needs and if we would like to continue working together.

This listing is for my outdoors counselling practice.  When I am not working from my office in Oswestry, I have some availability for sessions at Lyth Hill on weekdays, during daylight hours.  If talking outside appeals to you, please read on...

I believe in my clients' potential to change and the science of neuroplasticity (the ability of the brain to heal by forming new connections and pathways).  My experience of the positive, life changing effects of counselling - increasing your ability to think, feel and perform at your best - gives me confidence in the process.  Understanding that counselling may bring about real change and improvement to your mental health and wellbeing can bring hope where there are feelings of hopelessness.

You don't have to deal with your emotions alone.  I understand that the idea of speaking to a stranger about your life and the difficulties you are facing, can be daunting at first but it can feel very freeing to talk to someone who listens without judgement and criticism.  In fact, you might even find it easier to talk about problems and worries to someone who is impartial rather than friends or family.  I work in a very gentle and caring way and I will listen to whatever you bring with respect and compassion.

A counselling session with me is professional yet informal.  You have complete control over what you want to talk about.  I offer a flexible approach to appointments and you can book weekly, fortnightly, monthly or as and when you feel you need someone to talk to.  Please contact me if you have any questions or would like to book a session.

Standard sessions last up to fifty minutes and are priced at £40 (concessions are available for students, trainee counsellors, people who are unemployed or on a low income - please let me know if you are eligible for sessions at the lower rate).  Longer sessions - up to 90 minutes long are available at the higher rate of £60.  These longer sessions may be suitable if you feel standard sessions are too short or if you find you need time to settle into sessions and transition ready to leave.

Contact me for more info on how we can work together to help you manage life’s challenges with increased confidence, strength and resilience.  If you have any questions or would like to book an initial session, please ring and leave a voicemail, send me a text message or email with your details and I will get back to you as soon as I can (usually within 24 hours).  If you would like to speak to me before booking a session, I can phone you for a short chat, free of charge, to help you decide whether what I offer matches your needs.  

I look forward to hearing from you.

Outdoor Counselling

There are lots of reasons why people choose outdoor counselling.  Some people prefer to talk side by side, rather than face to face.  Some enjoy the benefits of walking in open spaces.  Some feel safer being out in the fresh air.  Sometimes it's just good to have a change of scenery.  If you would like to spend more time sitting than walking, we can choose to sit on a bench or on the ground using sit-mats, if this is comfortable for you.  Let me know your requirements and we'll decide on the best location/route for your counselling sessions, together.  

We can be prepared for most conditions and temperatures and dress accordingly but if severe weather is forecast, there is the option of switching to online or telephone counselling or to rearrange for when the weather is less extreme.

Before the first session, we can discuss via email, text or short phone call, when you would like your sessions to be and what you would like to achieve from our work together.  Being outside on a potentially windy hillside does not make filling out paperwork very easy!  For this reason, I will send you a copy of the working agreement and some questions for you to answer and send back to me, before we meet.  Your answers will help to give me an idea of whether I could be the right counsellor for you.  The initial session is an opportunity for you to tell me more about why you decided to start counselling and your expectations of the process.  You can experience how I work and we can both decide whether what I offer matches your needs and if we would like to continue working together.