The new Counselling Service which is available to Clergy and their families, and Licensed Lay Leaders has been up and running since October 2020. This is one avenue of support offered by the Diocese. If you would like to discuss your issues with someone and would like to explore if counselling could offer you the support you need, please contact our Diocesan Counselling Coordinator Anissa Chung on anissa.chung@leccofe.org or 0739 819 9392 to book an initial meeting.
In just a few months, the Service has been able to offer help and support to more than twenty clients. During the pandemic, both the initial meeting with the Counselling Coordinator and the subsequent sessions with a counsellor took place via an online platform. This way of meeting has meant that the clients did not have to factor in any travelling time (which has made it much more manageable for those whose diaries are rather busy) and there were no travelling issues that could have prevented them from attending the sessions. Hence, the Service has achieved a record of 100% attendance, which is excellent.
It has been interesting to receive feedback from those who have finished their counselling. Each of the clients was contacted by the Counselling Coordinator to complete the ‘Client Feedback Form’. The purpose is for the Coordinator to monitor the quality and effectiveness of the counselling provided. The Form is divided into three short sections:
Access to the Counselling Service
From the feedback we have gained an understanding that:
- the clients heard about the Service mostly through Diomail or colleagues
- the clients were pleased to receive a response either on the same day or within a few days (given that the Coordinator only works one day a week with the Diocese)
- the majority of the clients found the time between the initial assessment and attending the first session was just right, i.e. waiting time was minimal.
The Counselling Experience
In this section, the clients were asked to indicate how much they agreed with the statements below, with ‘1’ being totally disagree and ‘5’ being totally agree.
- My counsellor fostered a safe and trusting therapeutic space.
- My counsellor listened with respect and was non-judgmental.
- My counsellor showed a good understanding of my difficulties.
- My counsellor was supportive but challenged me when appropriate.
- I was helped to address and manage my difficulties.
- I had confidence in my counsellor’s skills and expertise.
- Based on my experience, I would recommend counselling to others.
From the completed feedback forms, the average score is 4.7, which is most encouraging.
Additional Comments
To protect anonymity, the following comments have been carefully extracted from the feedback forms:
- ‘I found working with my counsellor very helpful’
- ‘wondered how counselling would go on Zoom but any fears I had proved to be unfounded’
- ‘a safe space to talk, reflect, learn and grow’
- ‘the time with my counsellor has built my feelings of significance’.