Working Together

Before we start, it helps for both of us to know what to expect. This agreement sets out how sessions work, what we ask of you and what you can expect from us. It is written to be read, not signed. If anything here doesn’t sit right with you, or you’d like to talk any of it through, just say. Your counsellor will happily go through it with you.

Your counsellor

Everyone who works with clients at Lighthouse is a qualified counsellor who:

• is a member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP), or an equivalent professional body, and works to its ethical framework
• has regular clinical supervision, which is a normal part of safe, good practice
• holds professional insurance and a current enhanced DBS check

Whichever counsellor you see, you are a Lighthouse client, and the same standards and the same fees apply.

Sessions

Sessions last 50 minutes and usually happen weekly, at a time you agree with your counsellor. Some people come less often as things settle; that is something you can decide together.

Your first meeting is an initial consultation, face to face at 2 Emmerson Terrace in Washington. It is free, and it is a chance for you to see whether this feels right before committing to anything. After that, sessions can be face to face or online by video, whichever you and your counsellor agree suits you.

If you arrive late, your session will still finish at its usual time so the next person isn’t kept waiting. If your counsellor is running late, you will still get your full 50 minutes.

Online sessions

• Please find somewhere private where you won’t be overheard or interrupted, and where you feel comfortable.
• At the start of each online session your counsellor will check where you are, so that help can reach you if it were ever needed.
• If the connection drops, your counsellor will try to reconnect, then phone you if that doesn’t work.
• Neither you nor your counsellor will record sessions, by audio or video.

If you come as a couple

Couples sessions work in the same way. You will each be asked to accept this agreement. Your counsellor will talk with you both at the start about how they handle anything one of you shares with them alone.

Fees and payment

Our current fees are shown on our website at lighthousetherapygroup.co.uk/fees. The initial consultation is free. You pay by card when you book each session, through our secure payment provider, Stripe. We never see or keep your full card details.

We review our fees once a year. If they change, we will let you know at least one month before the new fee applies to you.

Cancelling or changing a session

Life happens, and we understand that. If you need to cancel or move a session, please let us know at least 48 hours beforehand and there is no charge. We will help you find another time.

If you cancel with less than 48 hours’ notice, or don’t attend, the full fee is charged. That time was set aside for you and usually can’t be offered to someone else at short notice. If something genuinely unexpected has happened, talk to us.

If your counsellor has to cancel, you are never charged. We will give you as much notice as we can and offer another time, or a refund if you would prefer.

Confidentiality

What you share in your sessions stays between you and your counsellor. That is the foundation of everything we do. There are a few limits, and we want you to know them from the start:

• Supervision. Your counsellor talks about their work with a qualified supervisor. They won’t use your name or anything that would identify you wherever possible.
• Serious risk. If your counsellor believes you or someone else is at serious risk of harm, they may need to share information to keep people safe, for example with your GP, emergency services or safeguarding services. Wherever it is safe to do so, they will talk to you first.
• The law. In rare cases, such as a court order, we may be legally required to share information.

We will only contact your GP or anyone else involved in your care if you agree, unless one of the limits above applies. Your counsellor keeps brief notes after each session, which are stored securely on paper at our premises. Our Privacy Notice explains in full what we hold about you and how we look after it.

Between sessions

If you need to change an appointment or ask a practical question, contact us on 0191 545 0885 or at admin@lighthousetherapygroup.co.uk. We will reply as soon as we reasonably can, usually within one working day.

Email and messages aren’t the place for the things you bring to therapy. If something comes up between sessions, it is usually best kept for when you are with your counsellor.

We are not a crisis service. If you feel at risk or in crisis, please contact:

• 999, or go to A&E, if you or someone else is in immediate danger
• NHS 111, option 2, for urgent mental health support, day or night
• Samaritans on 116 123, free, any time
• Your GP for an urgent appointment

Looking after the work we do together

• Alcohol and drugs. Please don’t come to a session under the influence. If you do, your counsellor may need to end the session early, and it will be charged as usual. They will talk with you about it, not judge you for it.
• Seeing each other outside. If you see your counsellor out and about, they won’t approach you, to protect your privacy. If you say hello, they will say hello back.
• Social media. Your counsellor won’t connect with you on social media. Please don’t take it personally; it protects the work you do together.
• Respect. Abusive or threatening behaviour towards anyone at Lighthouse isn’t acceptable and may mean we have to end our work together.

Endings

You can stop counselling whenever you choose. If you can, we’d encourage you to have a final session, so there is room to look back on what has changed and close things properly. It is your choice, and there is no pressure to continue.

Your counsellor will check in with you from time to time about how things are going. If they feel another kind of support would serve you better, they will talk this through with you openly and help you find it.

If your sessions are funded by a charity or other organisation

If a charity or other organisation is paying for your counselling, there is nothing for you to pay. Everything else in this agreement applies to you in the same way, with two differences:

• Session record sheet. At the end of each session we will ask you to sign a short sheet confirming you attended. We send it to the organisation so they can pay for your sessions. It shows your name, the date and that you attended, and nothing about what you talked about.
• Cancelling. Please still give us 48 hours’ notice if you can’t make a session, so the time can be offered to someone else. There is no charge to you.

If you’re unhappy with anything

Please tell us. Most concerns can be sorted out with a conversation, either with your counsellor or with Mark Walsh, our Clinical Lead, at mark@lighthousetherapygroup.co.uk. If that doesn’t resolve it, our Complaints Procedure explains what happens next. You can ask us for a copy at any time. You can also contact the BACP directly at bacp.co.uk.

Agreeing to this

There’s nothing to sign. If you book your sessions yourself, you will confirm you have read this agreement and our Privacy Notice when booking your first paid session. If a charity or other organisation funds your sessions, coming to your first session means you are happy to go ahead on this basis. Your counsellor will check you have seen it and answer any questions at your first session.

Lighthouse Therapy Group Ltd, 2 Emmerson Terrace, Washington, Tyne and Wear, NE38 7LN | 0191 545 0885 | admin@lighthousetherapygroup.co.uk

Version 1.0, October 2026. Next review: April 2027.