Qwell Commissioned to Provide Mental Health Support to Adults in South East London

  • South East London CCG & Integrated Care System has commissioned Qwell, the UK’s leading provider of digital mental health support
  • Qwell, delivered by Kooth, is accessible for anyone over 26 in the area, with no referrals, waiting lists or thresholds to meet 
  • Kooth has seen an increased demand for mental health support from adults across the UK due to Covid-19

January 14th, 2020 South East London CCG & Integrated Care System has  commissioned Qwell, a free anonymous online counselling and emotional wellbeing service for adults from digital mental health pioneers  Kooth.  

Kooth is accredited by the  British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and offers early preventative care and support without any prior thresholds to meet.

Adults aged over 26 years of age will be able to receive free counselling sessions from qualified counsellors via an online chat-based platform. Chats can either be accessed through a drop-in service or pre-booked sessions from any connected device. The site is open 24 hours a day; one-to-one counselling sessions with a qualified counsellor are available from 12-noon until 10pm on weekdays, and from 6pm until 10pm on weekends. 

Those using Qwell will also be able to take advantage of a range of self-help tools from reading and contributing to articles, peer to peer support via online discussion boards as well as journals and goal trackers. 

Recent data from Kooth has shown the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on adult mental health. One in five (21.3%) are presenting with suicidal thoughts, more than half (54.6%) are presenting with anxiety and 27.10% are presenting with sadness.

“The pandemic and months of restrictions have had an impact on everybody’s mental wellbeing. I’m really pleased that we are launching this innovative service to support south east London residents. It is so easy to use and can really help people who are struggling,” Dr Nancy Kuchemann, GP and Clinical Lead for Mental Health at NHS South East London Clinical Commissioning Group

Dr. Lynne Green, Kooth’s chief clinical officer added, “We’re very pleased that we are now able to provide support and counselling to adults living in South East London. We encourage people to use Qwell as a source of support during this difficult time. Via peer-generated content, discussion boards and self-help articles, we aim to help at a range of levels and to create a much needed sense of community. Our qualified counsellors are also on hand 365 days a year to provide support and guidance as when people need it in a safe and confidential environment.

About Kooth

We are the UK’s leading online mental health platform. Our mission is to provide accessible and safe spaces for everyone to achieve better mental health. Our online platform is clinically robust and accredited to provide a range of therapeutic support and interventions. All our services are predicated on easy access to make early intervention and prevention a reality. 

Our services are:

  • Kooth: for children and young persons
  • Qwell: for adults
  • Kooth Work: for organisations 

Kooth is commissioned in 80% of the NHS’s clinical commissioning group areas across the country. It is a fully safeguarded and pre-moderated community with a library of peer and professional created content, alongside access to experienced online counsellors. There are no thresholds for support and no waiting lists. Currently, Kooth sees over 4,000 logins a day. 

Qwell operates across distinct locations and serves specific cohorts, including parents, teachers, victims of crime and those who have suffered from or continue to experience domestic violence. It is also offered as a benefit by a number of corporate organisations delivering anonymous digital mental health support services to employees.

Kooth Work is a corporate service, aimed specifically at employers to support the wellbeing of their employees, providing confidential and anonymous access to a wellbeing community, counselling, content and self-help tools.  Kooth Work provides valuable, anonymous insights into the wellbeing of the workforce so that employers can identify specific areas of improvement for their wellbeing strategy.