Supporting Children and Teens

Our children and teens services can help young people to build confidence, resilience and self-esteem.

Bullying: Services for Victims & Bullies

How does it work?

Bullying can range from name-calling, and hitting or kicking, to cyber bullying – threats or name-calling via Internet messaging/SMS or social media. Bullies upset their victim by picking on their sensitive points. There is no set age at which bullying starts or stops, everyone can experience bullying at any stage in life.

Who is it for?

The person being bullied can feel a whole range of emotions, from feeling upset or shut out, to feeling suicidal and self harming. Often, the person feels alone, helpless, powerless and afraid that if they tell anyone, the bullying will get worse. This can affect their health, their confidence, their self esteem and their work. Some people even feel ashamed and think they have brought it on themselves.

There is no excuse for bullying – bullying is abuse, whether it is violent or not.

Remember: No one has the right to bully you.

A national helpline exists to help you find out more about available support services.

National Bullying Helpline

How we can help too

Do you think you might be being bullied? Talk to one of our counsellors and let us help you. If you think you are the Bully, and you want to change, we can help you too: Behaviour Change.

Teens Relationship Issues

Adults are sometimes dismissive of the relationship problems experienced by younger people.

They say things like,‘Someone else will come along’, or, ‘you’re only young, you’ll meet someone else’.

But young people experience the same range and intensity of difficulties with relationships as older people, including sexting, controlling behaviour, two-timing, or breaking up with someone they love. All these problems and others, are important. How you deal with them can make the difference between feeling worthless and unloved, and feeling confident and self-assured.

Your relationship problems might be with family members or friends – not just a partner – but they can cause just as much stress. The Change Project’s youth counselling service can help. We don’t judge anyone, and what you say is confidential.

Young People’s Counselling.

Youth Services: Changing Abusive Behaviour

Change offers confidential support for young people ages 11-18 (up to 25 for young people with additional needs) who want to change their behaviour, and develop improved awareness of healthy communication in relationships. We help young people to look at their abusive behaviour and find safe, non-abusive alternatives.

How do you behave with your family, your girlfriend or boyfriend?

Have you…

Smashed things up and scared those around you?
Tried to control your partner’s behaviour with her friends and family?
Checked your partners phone and text?
Hit out or hit someone close?
Screamed and shouted? Punched something or someone?
Used weapons to hurt people?

It doesn’t have to be like this. If you are worried about hurting someone you care about call us.

Young People's Counselling

Our young people’s counselling service can help young people to build confidence, resilience and self-esteem. Young people benefit from an improved awareness of their own resources and it supports them to address problems and pursue meaningful goals.

Counsellors offer confidential support for young people aged 11-18 (up to 25 for young people with additional needs) who want to develop improved awareness of healthy communication and relationships.

Young people access counselling for many reasons, they may want to deal with relationship issues in their lives, difficulties at home and/or at school, or change their own abusive behaviour and find safe, non-abusive alternatives.

Our counselling service in schools is valued by young people as it offers them a safe, confidential, accessible and free counselling service during their school day.

What is The Change Project counselling for Young People?

If is for young people aged between 11 – 25 and provides a confidential opportunity to talk things through. If you are:

concerned that the adults at home argue all the time
unhappy about your parents break up and all the changes this will bring
unhappy with the idea of a step family, or fitting into a new family
suffering from the loss of someone close to you
suffering from friendship problems, maybe at school, that worry you
identity issues
teen relationship issues

…or anything that is on your mind, then counselling may help you deal with these problems. You can spend time with a counsellor on a one to one basis to help you express and understand your own feelings better.

Counselling is available in many schools across Essex for free, and at our venues where we have to make a charge of £40 per session.

Child Focussed Counselling

Change Child Focused Counselling aims to help children between the ages of 4-11 years make sense of their feelings, thoughts and behaviours. Sessions may be up to an hour with ten sessions being the average. The vast majority of children are signposted into counselling through schools.

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Children often present with a change of behaviour which causes concern to parents and/or teaching staff. This may often include one or more of the following:

appearing sad or distressed
being described as being disruptive or rebellious
being withdrawn
having difficulties in expressing and managing anger
having difficulties with eating or sleeping

The children may present with difficulties relating to:

relationships with friends
schoolwork
social development, including settling into school
bullying
low self-worth / self-esteem
bereavement
changes in the family including new siblings, separation and divorce, stepfamily issues.

The service aims to support children to be better equipped to deal with any difficulties or disruptions they are experiencing in their home and/or school environment. They will feel supported in managing any difficulties and develop a greater sense of self-esteem and self-worth.

You can access Child Focussed Counselling at any of our locations above at a cost of £40 per session. Our Child Focussed Counselling is available in schools across Essex which children can access free of charge through their school. To check if your child’s school benefits from this service please contact us or ask the school.

Play Therapy

Play is now widely recognised as being beneficial in the emotional development of children. It has a therapeutic value. With the growth of play therapy, play work and the use of therapeutic play skills there is widespread confusion about the roles of each.

Here at the Change Project, we deliver Play Therapy in schools which uses a variety of play and creative arts techniques to alleviate chronic, mild and moderate psychological and emotional conditions in children that are causing behavioural problems and/or are preventing children from realising their potential.

1 in 5 children in the UK have an emotional, behavioural or mental health problem and they could benefit from Play Therapy.

Who is Play Therapy for?

It can help to support children who:

are not realising their full potential – academically, or socially
Having nightmares or disturbed sleep
Is at risk of being/is excluded from school
Has suffered trauma
Has suffered emotional, physical or sexual abuse
Is adopted or fostered or in the process of being
Suffers because of separated/divorced parents
Suffers from anxiety, stress or phobias
Has suffered a loss or bereavement
Is withdrawn or continually unhappy
Is ill, disabled, or autistic
Finds it difficult to make friends
Quarrels frequently with peers or siblings
Bullies others or is bullied themselves
Displays inappropriate behaviour
Doesn’t play