PEOPLE in Bridgwater and the surrounding areas needing affordable counselling will be given a helping hand thanks to a new branch opening in the town.

Bridgwater Mayor Cllr Leigh Redman opened the New Dawn Counselling Service premises in Cornhill, Bridgwater last Monday.

The charity offers free and low-cost counselling, and is hoping to replicate the success it has had in Weston, in Bridgwater.

Richard Palmer from the management team said: “The service was founded in 1992 and was originally named Acorns Counselling, by John Warwick, who is our chairman.

“It originally started in Bridgwater with the aim of providing counselling that was affordable to all.

“New Dawn was designed to fill the void, providing counselling to people who cannot afford private counselling and our mission now is the same as when we were founded, to provide counselling that everyone can afford.”

Plans were set in motion five months ago to reopen a branch in Bridgwater after it was forced to close two years ago and the team has been hard at work to get an office set up quickly.

Richard added: “Our rates start quite low so that clients on a low income can afford the service.

“Unfortunately we have to charge for our services because we receive no statutory funding and, like all organisations, we have overheads to pay. For our paying clients we do not have a cap on the amount of counselling that they can receive.

“They are free to continue work until they feel that they are able to live a happy and satisfying life.

“We have worked with over 200 clients in the last couple of years in Weston and have a team of 25 voluntary counsellors.

“We have built up very close relations with the Initial Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) provider in Weston as well as the main substance misuse service which allows clients to come to us for counselling when the other organisations are unable to provide what they need.

“We are looking at options for building relationships with the IAPT, community mental health team and substance misuse service in Bridgwater with the aim of providing all residents access to a comprehensive service to match their needs.”