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URGENT HELP: If you are worried about an immediate risk of serious harm to yourself or anyone else, call the emergency services on 999 (UK) or visit your nearest A&E department. If you need urgent advice, support or to get in touch with a crisis (CRHT) team but there is no immediate risk of serious harm, contact your local NHS urgent mental health helpline. Alternatively, you can contact your GP.

Free online and telephone services

Trying to find the right help for you (that is also affordable) is often tricky and frustrating. A decline in the availability of NHS services in recent times has contributed to this difficulty. I hope that the following list of UK-based mental health support organisations’ phone numbers and websites is useful in finding the help you need. Click on the titles to expand each section.

24 hour national mental health support and listening services
  • The Samaritans
    • 24 hours. Provides confidential, non-judgmental emotional support for people experiencing feelings of distress or despair, including those that could lead to suicide. They also offer email and webchat support.
    • Telephone: 116 123
    • Website: https://www.samaritans.org/
  • Childline
    • 24 hour. For anyone under 19. You can talk to Childline about anything at all and our counsellors will listen without judging you. It’s important that you feel able to share whatever you want – it can be big, small, good or bad. They also offer email and webchat support.
    • Telephone: 0800 1111
    • Website: https://www.callhelpline.org.uk
  • C.A.L.L. Wales
    • 24 hour. Mental health helpline for anyone who lives in Wales. Community Advice & Listening Line, offering a confidential listening and support service.
    • Telephone: 0800 132 737 (or text help to 81066)
    • Website: https://www.callhelpline.org.uk
  • Combat Stress
    • 24 hour. Charity supporting veterans’ mental health problems such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and depression. They provide specialist treatment and support for veterans from every service and conflict, focusing on those with complex mental health issues.
    • Telephone: 0800 138 1619
    • Website: https://combatstress.org.uk/

Other national mental health support and listening services
  • Papyrus
    • Support and advice service for children and young people under the age of 35 who are experiencing any thoughts or feelings of suicide. 9am-midnight every day. They also offer email and text support.
    • Telephone: 0800 068 4141 (or text on 077862 09697)
    • Website: https://www.papyrus-uk.org
  • Cruse
    • Bereavement support helpline is run by trained bereavement volunteers, who offer emotional support to anyone affected by grief wanting to talk about their feelings or how they’ve been coping. 9.30am–5pm Mon&Fri, 9.30am-8pm Tue-Thu, 10am-2pm weekends.
  • Kooth
    • Online wellbeing service for young people and children offering a range of support services such as one-to-one counselling sessions, discussing issues with your peers through online discussion boards, reading and contributing to self-help content and recording your feelings via journals and goal trackers.
    • Telephone: n/a
    • Website: https://www.kooth.com/
  • Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM)
  • The Mix
    • Service aimed at under 25s offering supportive chats about mental health, relationships, work life, school life, depression and any other issues. 4pm-11pm every day. They also offer 24 hour email, text message and online chat services.
    • Telephone: 0808 808 4994
    • Website: https://www.themix.org.uk/get-support
  • Switchboard
    • Advice and understanding for anyone who identifies as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender. Phone operators all identify as LGBT+. 10am–10pm every day. They also offer email and webchat support.
    • Telephone: 0300 330 0630
    • Website: https://switchboard.lgbt
  • Breathing Space (Scotland)
    • A free, confidential, phone and webchat service for anyone in Scotland over the age of 16 experiencing low mood, depression or anxiety. 6pm–2am, Mon-Fri, 24hr weekends.
    • Telephone: 0800 83 85 87
    • Website: https://breathingspace.scot/
  • The Spark (Scotland) Counselling Helpline
    • A free, confidential service funded by the Scottish Government for anyone in Scotland struggling with relationship problems, mental health issues or who need emotional support. They provide immediate crisis support and a pathway into paid, subsidised and free counselling. 9am–9pm, Mon-Thu, 9am-4pm Fri.
    • Telephone: 0808 802 2088
    • Website: https://thespark.org.uk/
  • OCD Action Helpline
    • Charity providing information and support for people with OCD and the people in their lives. The service can offer you a safe and understanding space where you can find out more about the conditions, what can help, and how to access the right support for you or your loved one. 9.30am-8pm Mon-Fri.
    • Telephone: 0300 636 5478
    • Website: https://ocdaction.org.uk/i-need-support

Text message services
  • SHOUT
    • 24 hour. Free service. Just text the word SHOUT to 85258 and a counselling volunteer will message you back.
    • Telephone: 85258
    • Website: https://giveusashout.org/

Directories – Find more mental health services
  • The Helplines Partnership
  • The Hub of Hope
    • Mental health support signposting tool run by Chasing the Stigma charity. This tool brings local, national, peer, community, charity, private and NHS mental health support and services together in one place
    • Website: https://hubofhope.co.uk/
  • Befrienders Worldwide
    • A charity helping people who are considering suicide or experiencing general emotional distress. They have 349 emotional support centres in 32 countries.
    • Website: https://www.befrienders.org/directory
  • Nightline

*Please note that 0300 numbers are not free to call but cost the same as calling a landline and are covered by free minutes of mobile bundles*