Eight of our lovely and energetic staff and volunteers (Alex, Arabel, Diane, Emma, Felicitas, Sandra, Tobias, and William) are valiantly riding the 54 miles from London to Brighton on Sunday 16th September to raise money for CPU.  Please give them your support by sponsoring them!

CPU was established in 1969, with the aim of supporting those in the community who suffer from psychological and emotional problems which seriously affect the quality of their lives. Our aim has always been to help those on benefits or the lowest incomes, a group whose emotional, social and economic background puts them amongst some of the most deprived in our community. It is well established that this group suffers disproportionately from mental health issues. Our substantial experience as a charity in this field shows us that it is precisely these people who find it most difficult to access and accept help from governmental health institutions. This links to one of the main features that make CPU unique, which is that people can self-refer to us simply by telephoning or writing to us, without having to go through their doctor (which is a requirement in the NHS). Another essential feature of our service is the offer of long term psychoanalytic psychotherapy. This type of psychological treatment has all but disappeared from the NHS services in the UK and the charities which continue to provide it to some degree are struggling to survive in the face of austerity policies and other financial pressures. CPU today represents one of the very few services where men and women who have long term, complex psychological problems can receive the kind of help that only longer term psychotherapy can offer.  Since 2010 we have been a service which receives no public funding and does all its own fundraising.  

Anything you can offer to contribute to our ongoing work will be hugely appreciated.  Thank you!