05/06/2025
A copy of the letter I have sent to my MP (hopefully along with many other Professional Counsellors);
Mr David Chadwick MP
House of Commons
London
SW1A 0AA
Dear Mr Chadwick,
I am writing to you as a professional practitioner accredited by the National Counselling & Psychotherapy Society (NCPS), in response to recent comments made by Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Wes Streeting MP, and Minister of State for Care, Stephen Kinnock MP. Their statements about an alleged 'overdiagnosis' of mental health conditions, and particularly Minister Kinnock's inaccurate remarks regarding an 'unregulated private sector', have raised significant concerns within our profession.
Firstly, I would like to emphasise that counsellors & psychotherapists, such as myself, do not diagnose mental health conditions. Diagnosis is not part of our training or professional practice. Instead, we provide relational, therapeutic support to people, many of whom are experiencing emotional distress caused by life events such as bereavement, trauma, financial difficulties, or relationship breakdowns, but also to people who are accessing therapy to develop resilience, deal with change, or simply know themselves better.
As a member of the NCPS, I adhere to a strict Code of Ethics and professional standards, which are overseen by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA). Our high-quality training, regular supervision, and continuous professional development ensure we provide safe, ethical, and effective support.
At a time when NHS mental health services are severely overstretched, with long waiting lists and recovery rates hovering around only 50%, private counsellors & psychotherapists are providing essential support for people unable to access adequate public sector help. Many clients seeking my services have already experienced NHS Talking Therapies and have chosen to come to me for therapy, because they have found the NHS service to be ‘unfit for purpose’.
Minister Kinnock's comments unfairly tarnish qualified, ethical practitioners and create further stigma, discouraging vulnerable people from seeking the help that they need. Government efforts should instead focus on genuinely unregulated areas, such as misinformation spread online by people who are completely unqualified. The Online Safety Act, for example, offers a legislative framework through which large technology companies could be held accountable for the spread of harmful mental health misinformation. Additionally, funding loopholes in adult education, particularly around asynchronous, distance-learning counselling courses that claim to allow people to ‘train as a counsellor in a weekend’, present further areas for scrutiny should the Government wish to improve public safety.
I kindly urge you, as my MP, to raise these issues directly with Ministers Wes Streeting and Stephen Kinnock, ensuring they clearly differentiate between qualified counsellors & psychotherapists, and genuinely unregulated, harmful practices. Furthermore, I would ask for your support in promoting the valuable role accredited counsellors & psychotherapists play within the wider mental health sector.
Thank you very much for your time and consideration. I would appreciate your support and look forward to hearing from you.
Yours sincerely,
Sian Llewellyn
LL.B(Hons), FDSC, MNCPS(Accred), MBACP, MACTO, ICO
Tel: 07843412894
