Free therapy hub’s survival to Christmas ‘feels like a gift’ – but more help needed

The Simeon Centre, which operated out of Victoria Hall on Knowsley Street in the town centre, warned earlier in November that without help it would not have the resources to keep going.

Having appealed through The Bolton News, generous people have now come forward with donations, but more will be needed to secure its future for the long term.

Trustee and volunteer counsellor Robert Hurst said: “Thanks to the generosity of quite a few different people, that now means we can keep going to Christmas.

“So, what that means is that every single one of our clients will get all the sessions they were promised, which is a full programme of therapy.”

CEO Kevin Illingworth, left, and trustee and volunteer counsellor Robert Hurst at the Simeon Centre (Image: Newsquest)

He added: “That’s three extra weeks that have been gifted, because it really does feel like a gift.”

The Simeon Centre Counselling Service gives therapy to around 100 people from all walks of life every month out of its town centre base.

It usually sees people within four weeks of making contact, which Robert says is much quicker than NHS services can usually manage.

There are currently 53 qualified therapists working as volunteers at the centre, which has often proven to be a good launching pad for new therapists looking to build their careers.

Simeon Centre CEO Kevin Illingworth and trustee and volunteer counsellor Robert Hurst (Image: Newsquest)

The centre has been running since 1999 and became an independent charity in 2008.

Since then, it has helped huge numbers of people from all over Bolton.

Last month, Robert warned that the centre would only be able to continue running for about a month before its resources ran out.

Donations through a public crowd funder, as well as the Victoria Hall letting them use the space for free during December, have been a huge help.

ALSO READ: Free therapy centre ‘in SOS territory’ and needs public help to make it to Christmas

ALSO READ: ‘Everyone should have the right to access this kind of therapy’

ALSO READ: Authors draw on Bolton’s creativity to ‘challenge’ how we think about mental health

But Robert says the group will still need the public’s support to see them through to finding out if a bid for lottery funding has been successful.

He said: “While the support we’ve had has been amazing, we’re still looking to the public for crowdfunding contributions or even a few incredibly generous individuals, which will see us through to when we see if we get lottery funding.”

The crowd funder now has a new target of £30,000 and can be found by searching Save Our Simeon Centre – High-quality counselling in Bolton on gofundme.com.

Anyone interested in finding out more can also call the Simeon Centre Counselling Service on 01204 387363 or email contact@simeoncentrecounsellingservice.org.uk.

Source – INDIA TV