Online Substance Use Counselling · Liverpool

Online Substance Use Counselling in Liverpool

Online substance use counselling for Liverpool, by secure video. From a base in Hove I work with people across Liverpool — from the waterfront and the centre to the streets around the two cathedrals — with the same BACP-registered, confidential support as an in-person session, and no journey.

Online across the UKSecure videoFree 15-min consultation
BACP registered member25+ years of experienceLived experience
Bradley Riddell, counsellor in Brighton & Hove, introducing his approach to therapy
ConfidentialA safe, private space
Person-centredThe therapy fits you

In and around Liverpool

Substance Use Counselling for Liverpool, at a glance

Areas covered online
All of Liverpool: from the waterfront and the centre to Toxteth, Anfield, Allerton and Walton
Known for
The waterfront, the two cathedrals and the music heritage
Region
North West (England)
Local NHS / support route
Local council drug & alcohol service (see below)
Format
Secure video, UK-wide. In-person also available on the Sussex coast.

Life in Liverpool

Why people in Liverpool reach out

Liverpool's warmth, humour and strong sense of community are famous, but the city has also weathered real hardship and disinvestment over the years. Insecure work and money pressure remain part of life for many, and the expectation to stay strong for everyone else can make it hard to admit you are struggling.

Where work follows shifts and the rhythm of the docks, online sessions bend around unsociable hours rather than asking you to fit your life around them.

Liverpool hosts the University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moores University, the Royal Liverpool University Hospital and the Port of Liverpool. Community drug and alcohol services have been provided by Change Grow Live (River) since April 2025.

The local picture

The local picture in Liverpool

These figures are local context from official sources — not a description of you — but they show the scale of what people in and around Liverpool are living with, and why local support matters.

Local data last reviewed June 2026. Each figure shows the year and links to the official source it was read on.

The substance use counselling itself

Substance use counselling here is non-judgemental and one-to-one, working with the pain, fear or loneliness the substance has been managing, at a pace that protects your sense of safety.

The approach is the same wherever you live, so rather than repeat it on every page you can read it in full — the methods, what each session covers and fees — on the main substance use counselling page and on how I work.

How online sessions work

Sessions run over a secure, encrypted video link held to the same strict BACP confidentiality as meeting in person. After a free fifteen-minute call to check we are a good fit, you join each session from any private space using a phone, tablet or laptop — no software to install, no waiting room and no journey at either end.

Book a free 15-minute call

What I help with

How online substance use counselling in Liverpool can help

Drugs and substances

Confidential support for any kind of substance use.

The false self

Letting go of the protective self that no longer serves you.

Specialised attention

One-to-one sessions shaped entirely around you.

Self-discovery

Rediscovering the authentic self beneath the coping.

Anxiety and low mood

Treating what the substance has been masking.

Sustainable change

Growing into recovery rather than forcing it.

Drug, alcohol & addiction support in Liverpool

My online counselling sits alongside the help available locally. You can find your nearest free NHS-funded drug and alcohol service via the NHS “find a service” directory (search “Liverpool”).

For confidential information and advice, FRANK (on 0300 123 6600) and Drinkline on 0300 123 1110 are free, and Alcoholics Anonymous and SMART Recovery run peer-support meetings you can find online.

Other local and national support verified for this area includes:

If you need urgent help now

This is not a crisis service. If anyone is in immediate danger call 999. For urgent mental health support, call NHS 111 and choose the mental health option. The Samaritans are free, day or night, on 116 123, or text SHOUT to 85258.

Liverpool questions

Online Substance Use Counselling in Liverpool: common questions

Can I get online substance use counselling if I live in Liverpool?

Yes. I work with people right across Liverpool, from the waterfront and the centre outwards, and anywhere else in North West, by secure video — no need to travel to Hove, and just as confidential as meeting in the room.

Can I get support while I'm still using?

Yes. This is non-judgemental, one-to-one work that meets you where you are, and it can run alongside any medical or detox support you have.

How is this different from a group or 12-step programme?

It is individual and shaped entirely around you. Some people use it instead of groups, others alongside them.

Will you tell my GP or employer?

No. What you share is confidential within the BACP framework; nothing goes to anyone else without your consent.

Online Substance Use Counselling in Liverpool, whenever you are ready

A free fifteen-minute call is the simplest place to start — no obligation, just a chance to see if we are the right fit.

Also available online across North West: Warrington, Preston, Chester. See all of North West.

Other online support from Liverpool: Addiction, Drinking, Anxiety, Depression, Relationship, Trauma.