Student Services

At Futureworks, we understand that you may encounter difficulties within your personal life whilst you are studying with us. Whilst university can be an exciting and fun time, it can also bring its challenges.  

Transitioning through University can be a big change and we know that students may need a little bit of support, advice, guidance and information to help you with problems or issues that you may encounter.  

We provide 1-1 pastoral advice and guidance to students who may be experiencing anything affecting their time at university, for example: mental health, financial support, disability support, feeling homesick or just an ear to listen to if you need a confidential space to talk about your worries or concerns.

Student Services can offer advice with regards to health, bullying, discrimination and harassment, we can also direct you to the best place to go for additional support and can talk through your options with you whatever you are facing. 

Our Welfare Officer (Hazel Sewell) offers 1-1 confidential support meetings to talk through any issues you may be having. Students can book a support meeting online

You can find more information, guidance and advice here:

• Mental Health / Wellbeing Support (VLE)   
• Financial Support 
• Disability support 

Futureworks offers a free in-house counselling service for all students. Most people go through difficult and challenging times at some point and life is not always easy or straight forward. Counselling can be a very effective in helping sort through life’s challenging moments.

About our Counselling Service
Futureworks provides talking therapy. You may hear various terms used to describe talking therapy including, counselling, therapy, talking therapy or psychological therapy. These are all used to describe generally the same style of treatment. 

Talking therapy or counselling, provides a regular time and space for you to talk about your thoughts and experiences and explore difficult feelings with a trained professional. This could help you to: 

• deal with a specific problem 
• cope with upsetting memories or experiences
• improve your relationships
• develop more helpful ways of living day-to-day 

Counselling sessions take place in Futureworks building at Riverside, and no external referrals are made. There can be a slight waiting list, but the wait is nothing like the NHS. Therefore, if you are currently on any waiting lists or are thinking about counselling, please come and speak to us and we can offer some guidance. 

If you are struggling with your mental health and would like to discuss counselling or if you have any questions about the service, please contact Leanne (Welfare Officer) via email [email protected] or book a 1-1 support meeting via the following calendar 

Needing help is a normal part of being a human and asking for support shows courage and strength. Sometimes, speaking to friends or family members is useful but sometimes it’s easier to talk to a stranger than to relatives or friends. Counselling is an opportunity for you to speak with a trained therapist to help you find your own answers to problems, without judging you. The therapist will give you time to talk, cry or just think. 

Evidence suggests that people between the ages of 18-22 are at an increased risk of developing mental health difficulties. Combined with factors such as, moving away from home, financial difficulties and other contributing factors, students can be at further risk. While many students find the move from college to university or transitioning through the years of your course exciting and stimulating, others may find it confusing, lonely and overwhelming.  

In many ways, mental health is just like physical health: everybody has it and we need to take care of it. Good mental health means being generally able to think, feel and react in the ways that you need and want to live your life. But if you go through a period of poor mental health, you might find the ways you’re frequently thinking, feeling or reacting become difficult, or even impossible, to cope with. This can feel just as bad as a physical illness, or even worse. 

Mental health problems affect around one in four people in any given year. They range from common problems, such as depression and anxiety, to rarer problems such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. There are many different mental health problems. Some of them have similar symptoms, some people may experience the symptoms of more than one mental health problem or be given several diagnoses at once. Others might not have any diagnosis, but still be finding things very difficult. Everyone’s experience is different and can change at different times.
 

Mental health influences how we think and feel about ourselves and others and how we interpret events. It affects our capacity to learn, to communication and to form, sustain and end relationships It also influences our ability to cope with change, transition and life events.  

What might cause mental health difficulties? 

• Missing friends or family 
• Family situation 
• Chronic illness 
• Unemployment 
• Stress 
• Trauma 
• Grief / Bereavement 
• Age 
• Making the next steps in your life / transitions 
• Juggling work commitments with academia 
• Meeting deadlines 
• Financial pressures 
• Living somewhere new 
• Parental pressures 
• Change in personal situation 
• NOTHING! – Sometimes there isn’t a specific reason why we struggle with our mental health

Its ok to ask for help. None of us are superhuman, and we all get tired and overwhelmed by how we feel sometimes. If things are getting too much for you and you can’t cope – ask for help!

Talking about your feelings can help you stay in good mental health. Talking about your mental health isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s about taking charge of your wellbeing! 

Mental Health Helplines

VLE Crisis contact page

Once students are fully enrolled on their course and are a full-time student at Futureworks, we will not be able to speak to anyone outside Futureworks about the student, their studies or their circumstances unless we have their consent to do so.  

This means that for example if a friend, parent, or guardian was to contact us directly and ask about a specific students’ studies, attendance, grades, wellbeing or medical declarations, we would not disclose any information to them, including whether they are a student with us, unless they have told us it is ok. 

All Futureworks students are given the opportunity to complete a data protection waiver form and is an entirely optional process. If there is a person that students would like us to be able to speak to, they can fill out a Data Protection Waiver Form. This allows us to speak with a nominated person on their behalf.  

Filling out a Data Protection Waiver is entirely optional, but it can be useful especially if they have any support needs which a family member or friend helps them with.  

Students should contact Student Services directly to request an electronic version or visit the Student Advice Centre on Floor 3 Riverside to fill out a paper copy. 

If you have concerns about a student and their wellbeing, please email [email protected] and Futureworks will take any necessary steps to ensure we contacted the student directly and offered them support and provided relevant information.