Free counselling for marginalised communities

Off Beat Therapy

My name is Josiah. I'm a counsellor and the founder of Off Beat Therapy. I offer counselling on a sliding scale and aim to raise money so I can offer blocks of free sessions to those who can't afford the full fee. These sessions will be funded through a mixture of my own voluntary time, crowdfunded money, donations from artwork sold for this purpose, and 'pay it forward' initiatives, as outlined on my website .

One person is currently receiving free sessions thanks to money raised by this fundraiser, so I'm currently raising funds to offer to the next person on the list.

Who will benefit

I primarily work with the trans and neurodivergent clients, many of whom face barriers to employment and therefore often cannot afford therapy. Recent research shows that only 22% of autistic adults are in any kind of employment (Office for National Statistics 2021). 25% of trans people have experienced homelessness in their lives (Stonewall 2018 ) and the trans community faces many barriers to employment (Government Equalities Office 2018 , LGBT Health 2021 ). Private therapy is therefore out of reach for many people who need it.

How the money will be used

£305* will provide 12 sessions for one individual. This money will cover my time (at a reduced rate for 8 sessions, with the additional sessions as voluntary time) and a proportion of supervision costs and other related costs.

I operate a waiting list for free/low cost sessions. Once the money is raised, one person will come off the waiting list and go into counselling. I will then reset the goal for the next set of sessions. *This total cost may fluctuate with each set of sessions being fundraised, in response to the changing cost of expenses.