You cannot book a session with our mental health advisers. You must be referred.

Reasons for referral may include:

• deliberately harming yourself and causing injuries that need medical attention
• losing a sense of reality
• having very unusual beliefs
• rapid weight loss
• having plans for suicide, or previous suicide attempts
• confused or disturbed thoughts that may not make sense to you or others
• major changes in mood
• feeling out of control
• impulsive behaviour that causes you harm
• seeing or hearing things that other people cannot.

On this page

• Request to be referred
• What happens if you are referred
• Prepare for your session
  • Face-to-face session
  • Online session
  • Phone session
• On the day
• After your session

Request to be referred

If you think you need to be referred contact one of the following:

• your doctor in the Students' Health Service. If they decide to refer you, they must send us your details.
• our wellbeing team using the Request Wellbeing Support form. They will review your request and refer you if they decide this is the right support.

What happens if you are referred

You will have a session with one of our mental health advisers. During the session, they will explore your mental health difficulties and create a care plan with you.

Your care plan will focus on your strengths and help you find the right support at University and in the wider community.

Your care plan might include support from other services, such as the NHS and other University services and resources.

Confidentiality

We will not share your information with anyone without your permission. However, we encourage you to share your care plan with everyone supporting you. Our support will be limited if you do not give us permission to work with other services that are supporting you.

Prepare for your session

It is useful to have the following information ready so it is available for your session:

• any care plans that have helped you in the past
• contact details of people and services that support you, such as NHS services at home or your personal tutor

Face-to-face session

Refer to your appointment email, which will confirm where your session will take place.

Please arrive only a few minutes before your appointment time.

You can ask for the session to be online instead. Refer to your appointment email for details.

Online session

Download Microsoft Teams to your device before your first session. Check for software updates for your video and audio software.

You can help your session to run safely and smoothly by making sure:

• you are set up technically
• you have thought carefully about where you should sit to be comfortable and maintain privacy. 

Phone session

Your counsellor or mental health adviser will call you from a withheld number. They will call the phone number you have registered with the University. If you want them to call you on a different number, reply to your appointment email to tell us. Check the telephone number you have registered with the University.

On the day

Privacy and security

You must take personal responsibility for your own online privacy and device security. Tell your counsellor or adviser immediately if you think your session's confidentiality has been compromised.

Find somewhere to speak where you know you have privacy. Stay close to your device's microphone, or use a headset, so you can talk without raising your voice and hear your counsellor without being overheard.

Online sessions

Find somewhere you can set up your device and charge it if necessary, and where you can sit comfortably for the whole session.

Log into Teams using your university account. Close open browsers and programmes on your device as these can slow down your connection or cause the screen to freeze.

Your counsellor or mental health adviser will call you on Microsoft Teams at the agreed time. If you have technical issues during the call, the counsellor will try to call again. If you have continual technical problems, they will phone you or offer you another appointment.

Phone sessions

Find a place where you will be comfortable for the duration of the call and where you have a good signal.

After your session

One session is usually enough to develop a care plan and direct you towards the other support services that can help you. We can arrange another session if you need it.