Information for Parents - Relate Derby and Southern Derbyshire
What is Safe Speak?
Safe Speak is a confidential counselling service run by Relate for children and young people. We give children a place to talk to an experienced counsellor about anything that’s worrying them.
IAPT - Free Counselling for Anxiety and Depression
Relate Derby is funded by the Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust through Talking Mental Health Derbyshire to provide free counselling to anyone experiencing anxiety or depression. This service is called IAPT (Improving Access to Psychological Therapies.) Across England in the past year over a million people have used IAPT services for help to overcome their depression or anxiety and better manage their mental health.
Couples and individuals 16+ are eligible, as long as you are registered with a Derbyshire GP in one of the designated areas in Derby and Derbyshire. Contact us to find out more and book your first session 01332 349 117 or info@relatederby.org.uk
When children are anxious, this can have an impact on their school work and friendships. Problems which seem unimportant to an adult can seem overwhelming to a child. Being able to talk to someone outside of their situation can help children to feel less burdened and more able to enjoy their time in school. Counsellors are trained to listen without judging and to help people sort out troubling thoughts and feelings.
We see children and young people about many different issues, including:
• being worried or upset about something
• experiencing difficulties in their relationships with friends or with family members
Your child will be offered an initial meeting with the counsellor to see whether Safe Speak is the right service for them. If not, we will do our best to help them access the support they need. Parents of younger children will often be offered an appointment to meet the counsellor first.
How often will my child see the counsellor?
Normally children have a weekly appointment lasting 35-45 minutes. The counsellor and child will review the counselling on a regular basis and decide together when the work will end. We normally offer up to 6-8 sessions.
Because of the importance of developing trust between child and counsellor, it is important that the content of sessions remains private. You can be assured that whatever your child discusses the counsellor will not be judging you or them, but looking to help them find their way through what is troubling them.
Safe Speak has its own child protection policies. If a child appeared to be at risk of harm, we may need to seek help from a parent, the school or other agencies to help keep them safe. Also if another agency has referred your child for counselling we will often need to let them know when your child has started and finished counselling.
Usually the child will talk about things that are important to them. They may also choose to use other creative materials like paint or a sand tray to communicate. The counsellor will not make them talk about things, but works to provide an environment that feels safe to bring what may be troubling them.