Vine Counselling

What Vine Counselling does

Vine Counselling is a registered charity (charity number 1117796) based in North Somerset, England, that has delivered face-to-face mental health support to adults aged 18 and over since 2007. The charity provides one-to-one counselling on a donation basis, with a suggested contribution of £30 per session against an estimated true delivery cost of £55–£60. Capacity is up to 75 sessions per week, executed primarily through a volunteer counsellor model supplemented by a small employed team of approximately 10 people, under the leadership of Director Liz Linnitt and Operations Director Tracy Robertson.

The service is accessed predominantly through self-referrals and referrals from North Somerset GP practices, embedding the charity in local primary care pathways. Vine Counselling is an organisational member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP), providing professional governance and quality alignment. In February 2025, the charity extended its offering with the launch of The Embodied Woman Workshop, marking a first move into group-format programming beyond core 1:1 counselling.

Revenue is generated through client donations, community grants (notably the Co-op UK Local Community Fund partnership announced in February 2025), and a "Friends of Vine" fundraising programme. The technology stack is limited to commodity operational tools — Google Analytics, Cloudflare, Spoton.net, Mapbox, Akismet, and JustGiving — with no proprietary digital platform, mobile application, or software product. The business model is fundamentally a community-funded, volunteer-delivered local service rather than a scalable technology-enabled business.

Name

Vine Counselling

Legal name

Vine Counselling Services

Website

https://vinecounselling.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Vine Counselling is a North Somerset-based registered charity providing donation-based, face-to-face 1:1 counselling to adults aged 18+. Founded in 2007, it delivers up to 75 sessions weekly through volunteer counsellors aligned with BACP standards.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Mental Health Counselling

NAICS

Offices of Mental Health Practitioners (except Physicians) (621330), Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Individual and Family Services (6241)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGACAD

Mental Health & Crisis Support Services

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Health & Medical Nonprofits

SECONDARYBPAGAEAM

Legal Aid & Client Advocacy Services

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Social Services & Community Support (Food, Housing, Family)

SECONDARYEDALAFAO

Recreation Therapy, Stress Management & Mindfulness Programs

Education/Student Services & Campus Operations/Student Health, Counseling & Wellness Services

Keywords

• Community counselling services
• Mental health support
• Face-to-face counselling
• Donation-based therapy
• Charity counselling

Headquarters

HQ city

Congresbury

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Client Session Donations: Clients are asked to make a donation of £30 per session, which represents approximately half of the actual cost (£55-60) to provide a session. Lower amounts can be negotiated on a case-by-case basis.
2. Friends of Vine Recurring Donations: Monthly standing order donations from 'Friends of Vine' community supporters, with suggested amounts of £10 or £20 per month. Friends also receive invitations to events and annual newsletters.
3. Grants and Fundraising: Client donations cover approximately half of operating costs. The charity supplements this through fundraising events, applications for grants from local Councils, Trusts, and businesses. Currently part of the Co-op Local Community Fund.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Vine Counselling Services is a registered charity (no. 1117796) founded in 2007 that provides donation-based face-to-face 1:1 counselling to adults aged 18+ in North Somerset. Sessions of 50 minutes are delivered weekly from the Congresbury premises, with up to 75 sessions offered per week for issues including anxiety, stress, bereavement, depression, bullying, trauma, loneliness, abuse, and family problems. The service addresses long NHS waiting lists and the high cost of private counselling through a volunteer counsellor model operating under BACP ethical guidelines.

Product overview

Vine Counselling Services is a registered charity offering donation-based face-to-face 1:1 counselling to adults in North Somerset. The core product is face-to-face counselling sessions (50 minutes each) from their Congresbury premises, supporting up to 75 adults per week. The service operates on a short and long-term basis, with clients seeing the same counsellor on the same day and time weekly. Additional offerings include specialist workshops like 'The Embodied Woman' for women experiencing menopause-related challenges, and participation in the Co-op Community Fund for fundraising. Client donations cover approximately half the £55-60 cost per session, with the charity relying on fundraising events, grants, and the 'Friends of Vine' monthly giving programme to cover the remaining costs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Face-to-Face 1:1 Counselling Services
• Intake Assessment Appointment
• The Embodied Woman Workshop

Quantifiable outcome

• 75 counselling sessions per week provided to adults in the community
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Co-op UK Local Community FundminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 February 2025Vine Counselling Services participates in the Co-op Local Community Fund, allowing Co-op members to nominate the charity to receive donations from Co-op. This provides fundraising visibility and potential donations from the Co-op community.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Regional players

• Place2Be: UK charity providing in-school counselling and mental health support to children and families. Comparable as a UK counselling charity using qualified counsellors and BACP framework, but focused on schools and children (a segment Vine excludes).
• Weston Area Health NHS Trust Charitable Fund: Local NHS-linked charitable initiatives in North Somerset supporting community health, including mental health signposting. Comparable as a North Somerset-area community health funding channel that complements or competes for the same local donor pool.

Broad incumbents

• Mind (National Association for Mental Health): The UK's largest mental health charity, providing information, support, and local services across many regions. Directly comparable as a community-based mental health charity operating through local branches and referral networks, though significantly broader in scope than Vine.
• Samaritans: UK-wide charity providing 24/7 emotional support via phone, email, and in-person visits, volunteer-led and donation-funded. Comparable in volunteer-based, donation-funded adult mental health delivery, but operating at vastly greater scale and via crisis lines rather than scheduled counselling.
• NHS Talking Therapies (Improving Access to Psychological Therapies - IAPT): NHS self-referral service providing free evidence-based talking therapies for adults in England. Directly comparable as a free, self- or GP-referred adult counselling pathway serving North Somerset, and a structural competitor that anchors client expectations on cost.

Direct peers

• Anxiety UK: UK charity providing anxiety-focused support, counselling, and resources to adults on membership and donation funding. Comparable in donation-driven adult mental health support and community-led service model, though specialised to anxiety.
• Relate: UK charity providing relationship counselling including couples and family therapy on a donation/sliding-scale basis. Comparable in donation-based affordable counselling model and BACP-aligned practice, though focused on relationships (a segment Vine excludes).
• Cruse Bereavement Care: UK bereavement-focused charity offering face-to-face and remote support, volunteer-led, donation-funded, and BACP-aligned. Closely comparable in volunteer model, donation funding, and adult counselling focus, though specialised in bereavement.
• No Panic: UK charity offering support for people with panic, anxiety, OCD, and phobias through helplines, online resources, and local groups. Comparable as a UK adult-focused mental health charity operating on donations, though delivers via helpline/digital rather than face-to-face.

Emerging players

• Togetherall: Digital mental health platform offering peer support and therapist-moderated services, often commissioned by the NHS and universities. Comparable as a competitor addressing adult mental health demand in North Somerset via a digital model Vine does not offer.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/vinecounselling
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/vine-counselling

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Vine Counselling