What is Counselling?
Counselling can be described as a disciplined process of using specific skills, concepts, theories and models to help clients. This process takes place within predefined boundaries, and it can take the format of a one to one meeting between the counsellor and the client, or within a group meeting.
It helps people to reach a clearer understanding of themselves. It does this by helping them to find and use their strengths so that they can cope more effectively with their life by making appropriate decisions, or by taking relevant action.
“Essentially then, counselling is a purposeful relationship in which one person helps others to help themselves” (Francesca Inskip & Hazel Johns).
“Counselling can also be defined as providing help and support for the client, creating a climate of acceptance and assisting the client to explore, understand and act” (Gerard Egan).
An agreed meeting between a counsellor and a client is a client-centred process, which takes place within a safe and confidential space that has been agreed between the counsellor and the client to take place at a specific time and place.
Counselling is built on a relationship, which can be described as an equal partnership, this partnership involves the following:
- the counsellor’s relationship with the client
- the client’s relationship with the counsellor
- the client’s interpersonal relationships at work or home that are causing problems are explored so that root causes my surface during counselling.
Some of the vocabulary in Counselling and Clinical and Pastoral Counselling is as follows:
- Empathy: The ability to perceive the client’s experiences and to feel the client’s feelings, as if they were the counsellor’s own, thus providing a base of emotional understanding.
- Unconditional Acceptance: Acceptance of clients as worthwhile persons.
- Positive Regard: Personal warmth and caring.
- Genuineness: The act of being real, sincere and honest about themselves and their clients.
- Congruence: The personal ability of the counsellor to be consistent between verbal and non-verbal communication.
- Concreteness: The ability to be accurate, clear and specific in response to the client.
- Confrontation: The ability to bring to the attention of the client, in a concrete manner, reality as the counsellor perceives it. This must be done in a constructive and positive style.
- Contract: A commitment by the client to desired goals mutually arranged between counsellor and client.
- Session: The time scale in which the counsellor agrees to give a client attention and respect on a regular basis, within the core relationship.
- Confidentiality: The commitment not to refer to or disclose personal details of a client to a third party. Exceptions to absolute confidentiality are covered in the BACP Code of Ethics and Practice for Counsellors.
- Accountability: Working within codes of ethics and practice, the maintenance and recording of professional practice to standards upheld by the counsellor’s agency or association.
- Frame of Reference: The client’s way of viewing his thoughts and feelings or a situation. The counsellor may be able to help the client to reach new frames of reference by which to view the situation.
The Counselling Process can be described as follows:
Person-Centred Counselling:
The Person-Centred Counselling process is unique in that it assists the client in self-reflection and self-actualisation. It involves assisting clients to work through their conflicts utilising their own structure.
All responsibility and accountability are left on the client’s shoulders; they are not removed by the counsellor.
Whatever the client chooses to share becomes the material of counselling. The process of Counselling, as described by Carl Rogers, is Person-Centred, in its approach.
The emotional world of the client is at the core of the counselling process. It is the counsellor’s task to seek to understand the client’s world. This can be extremely difficult – partly because the symbolism of the client and counsellor’s vocabulary may differ, at times. Both client and counsellor may be using the same words but meaning something different.
To enter the world of the client, the counsellor must, in a sense, leave his own world behind. All previous assumptions must be ‘put on hold’ and a clean sheet opened for the client to write on. This does not mean that the counsellor abandons his personal values and beliefs. Instead, it means that these are not allowed to colour what the counsellor perceives to be the client’s world (values, beliefs, attitudes and viewpoints).
A Counselling session will often involve a beginning stage, middle stage, and an ending stage, these stages involve the following:
- Helping the client to tell his/her story.
- Helping the client to challenge him/herself.
- Helping the client to choose the right issues to work on.
What distinguishes Counselling from other approaches?
Within the person-centred Rogerian context, counselling is non-directive, whereas therapy tends to be more directive in its approach. Therapy may also have a medical backing. However, as new counselling and therapy models emerge, it seems to be becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish between counselling and therapy.
Counselling - Doing and Being:
Many people attending a skills course for the first time feel that they must learn how to do counselling.
- Part of counselling includes what you do (Doing) and
- Part of counselling includes who you are (Being).
You can learn to apply theories, critical reflection and skills in a role play scenario with another. However, developing the necessary personal qualities will likely occur over time.
In counselling, doing and being are two sides of the same coin. Doing is concerned with counsellor skills and being is concerned with counsellor qualities.
Why is Counselling Theory Important?
Some of the reasons Counselling theory is important are as follows:
- Good theory, based on sound research, can help to explain and predict behaviour. Accurate explanation and prediction can lay a solid foundation for good models of practice.
- Knowing how others may view our clients, and from which theoretical insight they are looking, can help our own interventions.
- We sometimes get ‘stuck’ with a client. Knowledge of theory can help us see where we can get help.
What Kind of Qualifications do you Need to Become a Counsellor?
Although there is no compulsory training required to become a counsellor, many organisations will expect you to have completed some counselling education and training and to abide by a code of ethics and practice from one of the professional membership associations.
Many organisations and institutions state that a student would need the minimum academic qualification of a Diploma in Counselling at Ofqual Level 4 or 5/equivalent to SCQF Level 7, 8 or 9.
Some of the professional membership associations within the UK Counselling profession are as follows, as the Accredited Counsellors, Coaches, Psychotherapists and Hypnotherapists (ACCPH), National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society (NCPS) or the British Association for Counsellors and Psychotherapy (BACP).
Completion of a qualification accredited by a professional membership association will enable you to join the professional membership association at a certain membership level/grade. Some of these professional membership associations, such as the ACCPH, enable you to advertise and list your qualification and practice to prospective clients.
Are There Different Types of Counselling Qualifications?
There are different levels of counselling qualifications and certificates. These are as follows:
Introduction to Counselling Skills – This level of course would typically provide a foundational, basic understanding of counselling approaches, techniques and the role of a counsellor. This course would cover the definition of counselling, active listening skills and interpersonal communication skills. This course may also provide a brief introduction to the counselling process.
Certificate in Counselling Skills and Studies – This level of course would go into further depth into counselling theories, skills knowledge and would give the student a wider appreciation and understanding the body of knowledge that constitutes counselling theory, skills and approaches.
This level of course would typically involve obtaining, organising, and use factual, theoretical and/or hypothetical information in problem solving, this level of course may also involve making generalisations and predictions.
Diploma in Counselling and Advanced Certificates – This level of course assists in working towards becoming a professional counsellor, this course would typically involve conveying complex ideas in a well structured and coherent form.
This course would typically present and evaluate arguments, information and ideas within the discipline of counselling. This level of course could also involve applying knowledge, skills and understanding within practical contexts and applying routine professional skills.
Counselling Courses at Level 5 and Degree and Postgraduate level courses in Counselling
These levels of courses would typically involve critical analysis, evaluation and synthesis of concepts, models and information. These levels may also typically involve analysing routine professional problems and issues and to make judgements using different sources.
These levels of courses may also focus within specific areas of counselling, such as, for example, couple and family counselling, youth counselling, addiction counselling, crisis and trauma-informed counselling and grief and bereavement counselling.
How Much do Counselling Jobs Pay?
The starting salaries for counsellors are in the region of £20,000 - £25,000.
For more experienced Counsellors the salaries can range from £28,000 to £42,000. More advanced counselling related roles can reach £50,000 or more depending on experience and certifications.
In regards to private practice many practitioners can charge between £30 - £90 for a session with a client lasting 1 hour. What practitioners can charge can be impacted by the practitioner’s experience and the level of their qualifications.
Is it Easy to Become a Counsellor?
If you are willing to study up to Level 4/5 or equivalent, or higher, and gain practice experience within roles that involve using counselling skills, then you can become a counsellor within the UK.
How Do I Find Clients?
Some of the ways that a Counsellor can find clients is through online directories and registers, or through advertising their profile and qualifications through a professional membership association such as the ACCPH. Another method for finding clients as a counsellor is through developing a, search engine optimised, website that lists your practice and services and optimising this for search engines such as Google, Bing and Yahoo.
Another method for finding clients is through advertising in online magazines and on social media sites, such as Facebook, Linkedin, YouTube and Instagram. Local events and workshops can also be a place to improve visibility and reach clients. Word-of-mouth is also an important way to find clients and grow your client base.
Is there an Official Body of Counselling?
Some of the professional membership associations based within the UK, are as follows:
- Accredited Counsellors, Coaches, Psychotherapists and Hypnotherapists (ACCPH).
- National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society (NCPS).
- British Association for Counsellors and Psychotherapy (BACP).
It is worth mentioning that the Counselling profession within the UK is unregulated and the title of ‘Counsellor’ is not a protected title.
How Do I Become Certified as a Counsellor?
To become a certified counsellor you would typically need to complete a Diploma in Counselling course, which is at Level 4 or 5.
It is recommended that you gain up to at least 100 supervised practice hours.
It is also recommended to join a professional membership association such as the Accredited Counsellors, Coaches, Psychotherapists and Hypnotherapists (ACCPH). National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society (NCPS) and the British Association for Counsellors and Psychotherapy (BACP).