NHS Talking Therapies for anxiety and depression is a free and confidential service offering effective treatment for common mental health problems such as low mood, stress, or worry.
Most of our treatments are based on the principles of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), which helps people to improve their mental health and wellbeing by changing unhelpful patterns in how they think and behave.
Help is available in-person, at a Berkshire Healthcare clinic location, by ‘phone, video, or through an online course.
NHS Berkshire Talking Therapies is for you if you:
We aim to see you within 28 days wherever possible if you are:
NHS Talking Therapies can help with common mental health symptoms of low mood and worry, including:
We can also help if you have low mood or worry related to the challenges of living with a physical health condition, such as diabetes, cancer, heart disease or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
Once you have completed a wellbeing assessment, you may be offered treatment in one of the following ways.
One to one sessions with a therapist by online messaging, by video call or by phone, supported by an app.
Learn moreOnline group course, to teach you ways to worry less and improve your wellbeing.
Learn moreIn person group course to help you improve your low mood and motivation.
Learn moreYou may also be offered one of the following therapies for further support with your symptoms of depression or difficulty coping after a distressing event.
One to one sessions with a therapist to help you better understand yourself and others and find ways to cope.
Learn moreTherapy to help you understand how depression affects you both in the relationship and regain a feeling of closeness.
Learn moreOne to one sessions with a therapist to help you understand how patterns formed in childhood influence your current relationships.
Learn moreOne to one sessions with a therapist to help you understand how improving your current relationships difficulties can help you better manage your depression.
Learn moreOne to one sessions to help you process distressing memories.
Learn moreOur trained employment advisors can support you to deal with work-related problems that are affecting your wellbeing and recovery from low mood and worry.
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Share your feedback: Have your sayYou can have an appointment at an NHS location in Berkshire, by phone, by video call or online.
Our locations:
You can find out more about where we work by visiting our location page.
Please note that not all treatments are available at every site. After your wellbeing assessment, we’ll confirm which treatment is most suitable for you and where it will take place.
Our therapy agreement outlines key information and your rights when accessing any of our treatments, and things you can do to get the best out of your treatment with us.
Most patients refer themselves to us by completing our online self-referral form.
We can also accept referrals from GPs or from other health or care professionals.
Friends and family members are not able to make a referral as the patient must give us their permission to use their data. We need to know that people are ready and willing to engage in treatment.
There may be a wait between your first session and ongoing sessions. This will be explained to you at your first appointment.
While you're waiting to start treatment, you can access our Self-Management Toolkit. This is an introductory programme available on the SilverCloud therapy app, which you can use to help you manage your mood and set goals for your treatment sessions before you start working with your therapist.
If you need to cancel your appointment, please let us know with as much notice as possible, ideally at least two working days, so that we can try to offer your slot to someone else.
You can email your therapist directly to tell them or email our admin team, and they will pass a message to your therapist to let them know. If it is short notice, please call our admin team to make sure we get your message in time.
Due to the high demand for our services, if you repeatedly miss or cancel your appointments, or if we can’t contact you, we may close your referral and transfer your back to the care of your GP so that we can be available for someone else on the waiting list.
We will contact you by email, letter or SMS text to let you know if this is happening.
You can always start a new referral with us by completing our online referral form.
You have to either live in Berkshire or be registered with a Berkshire GP to access our service.
You must also be located in the UK when you attend your appointment, including phone or video calls. This is for safety reasons, so that you can access NHS treatment and support if we believe you need emergency or urgent help.
The treatments we offer have been developed to meet NHS standards for treating symptoms of common mental health problems such as depression, worry, low mood, or phobias and are based on approaches recommended by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE).
We find that treatment is most effective when patients attend their scheduled appointments and complete the tasks set in between sessions.
It can take several sessions before you start to see progress, but you should gradually start to feel better with the help and support of your therapist.
If you have questions or concerns about your treatment, speak to your therapist in the first instance. They can explore your concerns and discuss your options with you to help make sure we’re supporting you in the best way possible.
Our therapists are trained to offer impartial support regardless of your background, or theirs.
We understand that you may talk about sensitive topics however and there may be reasons why you have a preference for the therapist supporting you, such as your choice of:
If at any time you would like to change your therapist, please speak to us as soon as possible and we will do our best to meet your request.
We understand that some people may benefit from attending their sessions with a friend or relative.
For some therapies, such as Couples Therapy, this is essential. But it is not always appropriate so this must be agreed on a case-by-case basis with your therapist.
To get a formal mental health diagnosis or medication review, ask your GP to refer you to a psychiatrist.
A psychiatrist is a specialist doctor who is qualified to diagnose mental health conditions and to prescribe medications that aren’t available via your GP.
If you’re a family member/carer or you look after someone, there’s practical, financial, and emotional support available to you from a range of local communities and national organisations.
We can provide language translation and interpretation support whenever you visit or contact us.
Tell our staff which language you prefer to use, and we will make sure the right communication support is in place for your assessment and treatment. Please let us know as early as possible so we can ensure the appropriate translation or interpreting support is available.
We offer a range of professional services to ensure everyone can understand and be understood:
Anyone with a disability, impairment, or sensory loss has the right to receive information in a format that meets their needs. Under the Accessible Information Standard (AIS)—a legal requirement for all health and adult social care providers—we must ensure that people who use our services, including carers and families, can understand the information we provide and communicate effectively with us.
We can offer information in a range of accessible formats, including:
If you need information in any of these formats, please tell a member of our team and we will make sure your communication needs are met.
Yes. You are welcome to bring your registered service animal, such as a guide dog, hearing dog, medical alert dog, or other trained assistance dog to your appointment.
These animals are recognised as essential support and are permitted in most areas of our services.
To help us prepare, please let the team know before your appointment if you will be attending with a service animal. This allows us to make sure the environment is safe and comfortable for you, your animal, and other patients.
Please note that service animals may not be able to enter certain restricted clinical areas for safety or infection‑control reasons, but we will always work with you to find an appropriate alternative.
Respect is important.
We will be polite and kind and we expect that you treat our staff in the same way.
Abuse, hate and discrimination against our staff is unacceptable.
We will take strong action against anyone who is verbally, racially, physically, or sexually abusive to them.
This includes contacting the police to prosecute, and stopping future access to our healthcare services.
Your e-Health Passport lets us know what's important to you - from your preferred name and pronouns to how you'd like us to support you and communicate with you.
Learn moreWe are open: Mondays, 8am-6pm, Tuesday to Thursday, 8am-8pm and Fridays, 8am-5pm. We are closed on weekends and bank holidays.
Contact number: 0300 365 2000 Press option 2
Email: talkingtherapies@berkshire.nhs.uk Email us for non-urgent enquiries.
