Counselling jobs in United Kingdom

Our Counselling East team are looking for dedicated volunteer counsellors with specialisms in either adult or children’s counselling (qualified or in training) to join our Children & Young People’s Sunflower Garden and Back on Track teams.

We are now recruiting for counsellors/therapists to work with children and/or their parents from August 2025.

Sunflower Garden supports families affected by drug and alcohol use in Edinburgh. We offer flexible and tailored support for children aged 5-18, including Counselling, Art Therapy, and Groupwork support. Parents can access their own counselling with us as well.

Back on Track staff and volunteers work with young people (12-24) based in the Gracemount and Liberton areas. We also offer counselling to parents and carers where this would be helpful for the family. We’re able to meet clients in school or from our counselling rooms at GoodTrees Neighbourhood Centre.

Our clients benefit from having a safe and confidential space where they can start to tell their stories, process their experiences and find new ways of coping.

• Are you looking for a volunteer opportunity starting August 2025?
• Are you a qualified Counsellor, Art or Play Therapist? Or currently studying towards qualification?
• Do you want to be part of an expert therapeutic team, working in a supportive environment and proactively responding to the mental wellbeing challenges faced by children in Edinburgh?
• Do you want access to free in-house CPD opportunities?
• Would you like to access free monthly in-house clinical group supervision?
• Do you want the opportunity to be one of the first to hear about CrossReach Counselling career opportunities?

If you are not yet qualified and are wishing to seek a placement with us you need to be on a Counselling diploma, Play or Art Therapy course and have already started your first placement with the aim of having a minimum of 50 placement hours by August 2025. While we cannot guarantee the specific age of clients that you will work with, we will do our best to accommodate where possible. An understanding of trauma and its impact is highly desirable for this role.

Please note that to work with children and young people in the service you must be able to demonstrate that you meet the COSCA Competencies for working with Children and Young People; this usually requires having undertaken specialised training in working with CYP.

• To deliver counselling/therapy and keep client notes up-to-date.
• No. of clients will be discussed at interview, but we hope that volunteers would be willing to see approx. 3 clients a week.
• We hope that volunteers will stay with us for one year or longer, post training and induction.
• Undertake induction training - 6th & 13th August 2025, and play an active part in your support meetings.
• Attend external individual supervision, as per the requirements of your regulatory body.
• Be a member of a recognised professional body (e.g. BACP; COSCA, HCPC).
• We seek an openness and respect towards CrossReach’s Christian Ethos.
• Take part in our monthly creative group supervision sessions (Thurs 5-7pm).

• An induction to CrossReach, our Counselling services and working with our clients.
• Reasonable out of pocket travel expenses paid upon receipt.
• Invitation to regular in-house CPD opportunities.
• Support from a member of the clinical team who will provide regular check-ins.
• To be part of an expert therapeutic team, working in a supportive environment.
• Be one of the first to hear about CrossReach Counselling career opportunities.
• Monthly group supervision sessions run by qualified supervisors.

CrossReach has been at the forefront of high quality social care for over 150 years, providing loving care to people of all ages and supporting them to live life to the full whatever their circumstances. During that time, we have worked hard to understand the needs of the people who turn to us for help and with them have been at the forefront of pioneering services which have literally changed thousands of lives for the better.

Today we are one of the largest social care providers in Scotland, with experience across a broad range of services. We are still growing, learning, and improving, thanks to the incredible people we have the privilege to support, and all those who support us. We are part of the Church of Scotland and aim to provide social care services and specialist resources in Christ’s name to further the caring work of the Church to people in challenging circumstances.

As we do our work in Christ’s name you must be respectful of our Christian Ethos and be able to work within it.

This post requires you to be a member of the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme and undertake the necessary vetting checks. You will also be required to be registered with SSSC and it is your professional responsibility to ensure that you meet the standards and criteria for registration.

We are committed to ensuring that we attract, retain, and develop the very best people to build a diverse and talented team and we recognise that every individual’s unique background, experience and ability contributes to our success. We aim to create an inclusive and inspiring environment where individuals feel valued and respected and where people can belong, thrive and be their very best, whoever they are.

If you have any queries regarding this role or our recruitment process, please contact the Recruitment team on recruitment.team@crossreach.org.uk

Please note: We reserve the right to close this advert prior to the closing date. Therefore, please make sure you complete and submit your application at an early stage.

• Application Process: Please apply for this post by completing the application process on Jobtrain. You can find out more about our recruitment process CrossReach Recruitment Process.
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