Home / Fees and donations
What it costs
The short version: your first session is free, and after that you pay a donation you can genuinely afford.
There is no price list
We do not charge a fee. After your free first session, you and your counsellor agree a regular donation together, in accordance with your ability to pay.
That conversation is a normal part of the work and there is nothing awkward about it. Your counsellor will ask what is realistic for you, and the figure you land on takes your actual circumstances into account — your income, your outgoings, whatever else you are carrying at the time.
Nobody is turned away because they are on a low income. That has been true since 1987 and it is not a formality.
If your situation changes while you are seeing someone — you lose work, your hours are cut, something unexpected lands — say so. The amount can be revisited. It is far better to change what you give than to stop coming.
At a glance
| First session | Free, with no obligation to continue |
|---|---|
| After that | A regular donation, agreed with you |
| Based on | What you can genuinely afford |
| Length | Up to an hour, weekly |
| Total | Up to 24 sessions |
If money is the reason you have not called
Please call anyway. The first session costs nothing, and the point of a service like ours is precisely the people who cannot afford private therapy.
Why it works this way
Everyone here is a volunteer
Fleet is a registered charity, not a practice. Counsellors, supervisors and trustees all work unpaid, so what you give does not become anyone’s income. It covers running costs — rooms, insurance, telephone, administration, and counsellors’ travel expenses.
That is why we can offer up to twenty-four weekly sessions, which is more than most low-cost services manage, and why the amount is a conversation rather than a rate.