Counselling and mental health service
Starting out at university can be both exciting and daunting. Your time here at Coventry University will undoubtedly present challenges to you. Managing your health and wellbeing in a positive way will help you to deal with life’s difficulties. This can involve choosing positive lifestyle options and seeking out support when life becomes overwhelming.
The counselling and mental health services here at Coventry University have been long established to support all students during their time on campus. Sometimes, we can experience new problems in life or perhaps our situation has been going on for a long time. Often, we just feel like something is not quite right.
Whatever is going on for you might be related to your course or it might be something different. If you decide to make an appointment with one of our team, you will be able to talk through how things are for you and think about some ways to feel more in control or see things in a new way.
How to book an appointment
You will be required to complete a short registration form to book an appointment. You can book an appointment on our online booking system, this means that you can easily fit your appointments around lectures, seminars and your free time.
If you are a current student, you can access this via the Student Portal.
Or contact us via email on welfare.ss@coventry.ac.uk.
You can also contact us on:
Find out more on...
Counselling
Managing life can sometimes be a bit tricky! We can find ourselves trying to make new friends and relationships or managing a heavy workload. Sometimes, things have been troubling us for a longer time. There are lots of reasons why people choose to come to counselling. It really can be a relief to talk to someone outside of your friends or family, especially when that person can listen and try to understand.
Our practitioners are BACP registered and accredited. They have experience of supporting people from diverse backgrounds and cultures with a wide variety of problems and issues. Using the booking system, you will be able to make an appointment with a counsellor of your choice.
The counselling and mental health services are all completely confidential. We do not give our information about who is accessing our service without consent from the individual. The correspondence you have either in person or via telephone or email will be kept private and this high level of privacy will be maintained during your discussions with counsellors.
Mental Health
Being at university can be a huge transition, offering opportunities and challenges which can sometimes be difficult to manage. There will often be academic and social pressures, as well as financial burdens.
If you have a longer-term mental health condition or you have noticed your mental health deteriorating, then you will be able to talk to a Mental Health Advisor about your concerns. Our advisors are professionally qualified and highly experienced and will be able to offer support whilst also signpost you to other agencies if necessary.
You may already have support in place or would like to establish supportive links in a new location. The Mental Health service within Health and Wellbeing, has well established links with external agencies such as the NHS and local GP surgeries. Your advisor will be able to support you through the process of accessing these services and attend meetings where necessary.
Sometimes, friends, family, accommodation providers or tutors can become concerned for the wellbeing of individual students. They may contact Health and Wellbeing to gain support and to share their concerns. Occasionally, an advisor may visit a student to ensure that they are fit and well and able to access their course. At such times, confidentiality will always be maintained, and support offered if the student requires.
The Mental Health Advisors have experience of supporting people from diverse backgrounds and cultures with a wide variety of problems and issues. Using the booking system, you will be able to make an appointment with a counsellor of your choice.
The counselling and mental health services are all completely confidential. We do not give our information about who is accessing our service without consent from the individual. The correspondence you have either in person or via telephone or email will be kept private and this high level of privacy will be maintained during your discussions with mental health advisors.
Supportive Resources
- Join the online mental health community, Togetherall
- Coventry University self help leaflets
- Coventry and Warwickshire Mental Health Access Hubs
- Find your local IAPT service (NHS Mental Health support service) - IAPT
- Coventry and Warwickshire Mental Health Access Hubs
- Spectrum.Life 24/7 mental health support
Emergency Contacts
We would like to advise you that our service does not offer an emergency or crisis service.
If you are feeling suicidal or experiencing a severe personal crisis that requires immediate attention please contact the emergency services or your doctors. (if you are in the UK the emergency services number is 999)
Alternatively, you can contact the out of hours hospital service or The Samaritans 24 hour helpline and their number is 116 123.
If you are calling out of hours and you require urgent on campus support you can contact our Protection services on 024 7765 5555.
Advice for university staff
Staff may hear of students who are in difficulty either directly or from other sources. Some students may talk more openly about how they are feeling, others may deny they are struggling or have issues with their attendance. Students may change in their demeanour or there may be issues with their academic progress.
If you would like to let us know about your concerns for a student, then please do not hesitate to contact us. Click here for our contact details. You could also refer students to your Mental Health First Aider who will also be able to contact our service.
If you believe that a student is at risk of harming themselves or others then please call the Protection Service on 02477 655 555 The Protection Officers will be able to contact emergency services if necessary and make the team at Health and Wellbeing aware of any crisis situations.
Due to data protection, we will not usually be able to discuss individuals with you. However, we always follow up staff concerns directly with the student.
Worried about a friend
You may have noticed certain behaviours in a friend or colleague that are leading you to be concerned about their wellbeing. You might know this person well, or it might be someone with whom you share accommodation or attend lectures. If you think a person is struggling or is at risk, you may well be helping them to find the right support by letting us know you are worried.
Letting someone know that you are worried can feel like you’re taking a big step. We will take your concerns seriously and will always follow them up directly so that we can offer support if needed.
If you would like to let us know about your concerns for a student, then please do not hesitate to contact us. Click here for our contact details. You could also refer students to your Mental Health First Aider who will also be able to contact our service.
If you believe that a student is at risk of harming themselves or others then please call the Protection Service on 02477 655 555 The Protection Officers will be able to contact emergency services if necessary and make the team at Health and Wellbeing aware of any crisis situations.
