Mental health: Energy costs forces Blackpool therapy centre to close as donations to Counselling In The Community also dry up

The Counselling In The Community hub on Derby Road closed on Wednesday, after five years.

The other centres, on Waterloo Road, and in Fleetwood Hospital, will remain open.

Chris Webb, Chair of Trustees said: “With energy costs tripling for charities like ours and a sharp decline in donations during this cost of living crisis, it became unsustainable for us to operate all of our hubs. We therefore had no choice but to close our Derby Road hub and focus on the refurbishment at Waterloo Road and our hub in Fleetwood Hospital.”

The financial struggles even led to the founder and CEO, Stuart Brown, selling his belongings to pay for everyday running costs.

But now the charity will focus on improving and renovating their South Shore hub by creating four new counselling rooms, including a fully accessible sensory room to support local children.

Chris added: “We remain fully open to support local people and once our Waterloo Road hub is refurbished, we will have the capacity to help 180 people a week and provide 10,000 counselling hours a year for local residents on the Fylde Coast.”

Earlier this year the head of the charity was named on a list of the Top 50 most inspirational people by The Independent online, for “making talking therapy more accessible to adults, children and young people [in Blackpool].”