Organised by Waterloo Community CounsellingFor 30 years WCC has been a lifeline for the community and as we celebrate this milestone, we're committed to ensuring no one in our community faces mental health challenges alone. But we can't do this without your support. Please give what you can.
Closes 11/07/2025
For 30 years, you’ve helped us create something extraordinary in the heart of London: a place where healing begins in your own language, in your own culture, and with people who understand your story.
At Waterloo Community Counselling, we’ve supported thousands of people—including refugees, asylum seekers, and lifelong Londoners —through their darkest moments. Because of people like you, those fleeing trauma, abuse, and persecution don’t have to face their pain alone. They find safety, dignity, and the strength to rebuild their lives. We’re calling on your care and compassion to rebuild even more lives.
In a city where one in four people struggle with their mental health, your support makes it possible for someone to sit with a counsellor who truly understands them—not just their words, but their world.
And WCC is more than a counselling service. It’s a community hub: where women find joy and connection through craft clubs, where isolated individuals rebuild confidence in group activities, and where people in crisis find urgent, practical help—from food banks to housing support.
Today, as more people than ever face mental health crises, your role is more vital than ever. The people we support are your neighbours, your colleagues, the parent at the school gate. And with your help, they can find the hope and strength to thrive.
Talking to my counsellor weekly saved my life (WCC Client)
With your compassion, we’ve been a lifeline for three decades. And together, we can ensure that no one in our community has to face mental health challenges alone.
The past few years have been incredibly tough. We’ve seen how the cost-of-living crisis has pushed families to the edge, stretched communities thin, and placed unimaginable strain on services like ours. But through it all, we’ve bene fortunate enough to have those in our community who have extended their care to make vital counselling services like ours open to those who need it the most.
You believe that everyone—no matter where they’re from or what they’ve been through—deserves to be heard, supported, and cared for.
Right now, mental health services across the UK are overwhelmed. More and more people are slipping through the cracks of a struggling system. At WCC, we’re seeing record numbers of individuals—many dealing with anxiety, depression, trauma, or suicidal thoughts—turning to us because they have nowhere else to go.
For refugees and asylum seekers, the need is even greater. They arrive with deep wounds from unimaginable hardship—and then face an unforgiving system that makes recovery harder. But when they find us, and when you make it possible for us to be here, healing begins.
When Omar* arrived in the UK as an asylum seeker, he carried more than just his bag — he carried trauma, fear, and isolation. Struggling with depression, he was referred to WCC for counselling.
It changed everything.
“The environment was good, it was relaxing,” Omar said. “You could say what you wanted to say to my counsellor, easily.” For the first time in years, he felt heard—really heard. Through the support he received at WCC, Omar found light in the darkness and a way out of a "dark cave".
I love WCC. They helped me. I've got good memories from there. (Omar*)
But there are many others like Omar who are still waiting in the dark.
Your support can bring them light. With your donation, we can offer life-changing counselling to people facing trauma, isolation, and mental health challenges—people like Omar.
Will you help someone find their way out of the dark?
Your donation is not just a gift—it’s a lifeline.
With your support, we can continue to offer life-changing counselling in over 23 languages, safe spaces to rebuild confidence and community, and vital help for people who need it most.
You have the power to ensure that no one in our community feels invisible, unheard, or alone. Because when you give, you’re not just supporting a service. You’re standing up for dignity, hope, and humanity.
I wouldn’t overestimate if I said that counselling saved my life. The counsellor held a safe space for me to heal, she made me feel heard and understood, probably for the first time in my life. (WCC Client)
A generous one-off donations or a monthly gift can help the community in the following ways:
A small but mighty contribution that brings joy and creativity to our Craft Club for women from diverse migrant backgrounds, covering refreshments and craft materials that bring connection and empowerment.
Your generosity could provide the travel cost for a refugee, asylum-seeker, or client on very low income to attend their life-changing counselling session in person, removing barriers to essential support.
Light the way for those navigating complex challenges. This gift could fund a WCC caseworker to offer tailored support, guiding clients to the services and organisations they urgently need, for example housing or immigration and support.
Be the first step in someone’s healing journey. Your contribution could fund an 90-minute initial consultation with a senior counsellor, helping clients explore their needs and plan their road to recovery.
Bridge the gap for a marginalised refugee or asylum-seeker by funding a session of multilingual counselling and holistic support, ensuring the most vulnerable communities are supported.
Foster community and joy. This could fund a group outing for refugees, including travel, lunch, and tickets to enriching activities like cooking classes, pottery workshops, or even beekeeping. These groups reduce isolation and promote social integration among much marginalised communities.
Every contribution, large or small, helps us keep our doors open to all who need us. Donate today and be part of our 30-year legacy of hope and healing in the heart of Waterloo.
I pray that our community grows, that all of us develop, becoming stronger and happier with each day, and that just as you, the community, help us, we could also help other people and our community. (WCC Client)
Jane is an asylum-seeker from Kenya who has lived in the UK for many years. She fled her home to escape domestic abuse and violence, leaving behind her children and everything she once knew.
For over a decade, Jane endured profound hardship—homelessness, destitution, isolation, and ongoing physical health difficulties. Yet despite all this, she kept going.
In September 2022, Jane was referred to Waterloo Community Counselling by The British Red Cross. Because of compassionate funders and donors like you, she received 18 weeks of culturally sensitive counselling—support that played a pivotal role in her journey toward emotional healing.
In that counselling room, Jane found something she hadn’t experienced in years: safety, understanding, and the simple act of being listened to.
I felt much less isolated on the days that I had my sessions, as I do not socialise with people very often. She was the only person that I shared my worries and fears with... I felt that she heard me and understood me.
At first, Jane had misconceptions about counselling. She thought it would be prescriptive. But what she discovered was something far more powerful:
They do not tell you what to do... They listen and show curiosity... It is all about self-discovery, which I like. I do not get people listening to me—people ignore me—but here, I felt that I had been listened to... I could just be myself in the room.
Thanks to your support, Jane didn’t just survive—she began to thrive. Since completing therapy, she’s become a vibrant and valued part of our Refugee Social ‘Meetups’ group. Since January 2023, she has joined over 35 community outings, from pottery workshops and museum visits to beekeeping and walking trips.
Thank you for organising those walking trips for us. They really bring back our lost confidence.
Wow, what a lovely day it was today, thank you for Waterloo community counselling for making my dream to enter the Tower of London come true.”
Despite continuing to face systemic obstacles —Jane shows up to each activity with warmth and strength, welcoming new members with the same care she once received. She has become a beacon of resilience and hope for others.
Her journey is a powerful testament to what your support makes possible. Jane’s story shows us just how transformative counselling and connection can be—and how urgently these services must remain available to everyone who needs them.
For over 30 years, Waterloo Community Counselling has provided life-changing therapy to people across London facing anxiety, depression, trauma, isolation, and loss. Each year, we support more than 650 individuals through counselling and holistic care, and we are one of the few charities in London committed to affordable, culturally sensitive mental health support. But we can’t continue without you.
Thank you for your generosity.
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