B.A.C.P.

The British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy (BACP) – is an organisation over seeing professional counsellors aiming to enable access to ethical and effective psychological therapy by setting and monitoring of standards.

The Association sets, promotes and maintains standards for the profession. The Ethical Framework for Good Practice in Counselling and Psychotherapy with its Professional Conduct Procedure ensures that members of BACP abide by an accepted and approved code of conduct and accountability.

If you wish to find out more information to help you find a suitable counsellor please contact the BACP helpline for guidance.

BACP Client Information Helpdesk:
Telephone: 01455 883316

This is a service which will enable potential clients to find a suitable counsellor with whom they feel comfortable, in their particular area.

• We seek to remove the anxiety that may be associated with choosing a counsellor.
• We are happy to discuss any queries or concerns which may arise whilst choosing a counsellor or during the counselling process.

Contact details for BACP, if you wish to contact them

BACP Office

The Registered Office is open Monday-Friday, from 8.45am until 5pm

• Telephone:
  General Enquiries: 01455 883300
  Text: 01455 550243
• Mailing address:
  British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy
  BACP House
  15 St John’s Business Park
  Lutterworth
  Leicestershire
  LE17 4HB
• Email: bacp@bacp.co.uk
  Website: www.bpca.co.uk

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Company limited by guarantee 2175320 registered in England & Wales

The BACP definition of counselling

Counselling takes place when a counsellor sees a client in a private and confidential setting to explore a difficulty the client is having, distress they may be experiencing or perhaps their dissatisfaction with life, or loss of a sense of direction and purpose. It is always at the request of the client as no one can properly be 'sent' for counselling.

By listening attentively and patiently the counsellor can begin to perceive the difficulties from the client's point of view and can help them to see things more clearly, possibly from a different perspective. Counselling is a way of enabling choice or change or of reducing confusion.  It does not involve giving advice or directing a client to take a particular course of action. Counsellors do not judge or exploit their clients in any way.

In the counselling sessions the client can explore various aspects of their life and feelings, talking about them freely and openly in a way that is rarely possible with friends or family. Bottled up feelings such as anger, anxiety, grief and embarrassment can become very intense and counselling offers an opportunity to explore them, with the possibility of making them easier to understand. The counsellor will encourage the expression of feelings and as a result of their training will be able to accept and reflect the client's problems without becoming burdened by them.

Acceptance and respect for the client are essentials for a counsellor and, as the relationship develops, so too does trust between the counsellor and client, enabling the client to look at many aspects of their life, their relationships and themselves which they may not have considered or been able to face before. The counsellor may help the client to examine in detail the behaviour or situations which are proving troublesome and to find an area where it would be possible to initiate some change as a start. The counsellor may help the client to look at the options open to them and help them to decide the best for them.