Counsellors: Setout builds a calm website where clients book a first session.
£39 a month including VAT. Your domain's included, you can cancel any time and you pay nothing until it's live.
Reaching out to a counsellor is hard. Someone thinking about counselling may read your website several times before they get in touch, looking for signs that this person will understand, that it's safe, and that the first step will be gentle. Your website does the reassuring before you've said a word.
Setout builds you a calm website, on a design made for counsellors and therapists. It says who you are, how you work and what sessions cost. Clients can book a first session or a short call online without explaining why in a form, and they get an email reminder the day before. You see the whole site on your phone before you pay a penny.
What every counsellor's website needs
Whoever builds your website, these seven things help someone take the first step. Use them as a checklist for the site you have now.
Your membership of an accredited register
"Counsellor" and "psychotherapist" aren't protected titles in the UK, so clients look for membership of a register accredited by the Professional Standards Authority, such as BACP, UKCP or NCPS. Show yours and your membership number.
On Setout: Your memberships go in your about section and, on designs with a highlights strip, in a line of badges across the page.
A gentle first step
A free 15-minute call, or a first session booked online, without having to explain anything in writing. The fewer questions before the first contact, the more people make it.
On Setout: Make the first call a bookable service. Clients pick a time and get a confirmation and an email reminder; you get the booking by email.
No health details in your contact form
Anything about someone's mental health is sensitive personal data. Ask for a name, a way to reach them and a good time to call, and say plainly that there's no need to tell you why yet.
On Setout: The enquiry form asks for a name, contact details and a message, and the words above it are yours, so you can say exactly that.
Fees, session length and cancellations
Say what a session costs, how long it lasts, whether you offer lower fees for some clients and how much notice you need to cancel.
On Setout: Set how late clients can cancel or move a session online. After your cut-off, they're asked to contact you.
How you work, in plain words
Person-centred, CBT, integrative: name your approach and say in a sentence what it means in the room. Say whether you work in person, online or both, and whether your room is accessible.
On Setout: Each way of working can have its own description and page on your site, such as "online counselling" or "couples counselling Brighton".
Where to turn in a crisis
Say that you aren't an emergency service, and point people to Samaritans on 116 123 (free, day or night) or NHS 111. It protects your clients, and it shows you've thought about them.
On Setout: Your own wording goes anywhere on your page, such as the footer of every page.
A photo and a few words about you
People choose a counsellor they feel they could talk to. A warm photo and a short, human paragraph do more than a list of qualifications.
On Setout: Your photo and your story go in your about section, written the way you would say it.
Designs made for counsellors
Each one opens live, with example content. Yours carries your name, your photos and your reviews.
Calm Example design for counsellors and clinics: soft and calm, with online booking and a simple enquiry form. Open the Calm design live 
Bloom Example design for wellbeing and coaching: warm and elegant, with an enquiry form and your reviews. Open the Bloom design live 
Mentor Example design for coaches and practitioners: built around you, with online booking. Open the Mentor design live How it works
Tell us about your business
Fill in the form below. We'll call you the same working day, weekdays, if you ask before 3pm. Ask after 3pm or at the weekend and we'll call you the next working day. Send us your current website or Facebook page, a few photos, your services and the area you cover. One phone call is usually enough.
We build it
We build your site on a design made for counsellors, with your services, your area, your reviews and a way for customers to reach you. It's usually ready within a couple of days.
You see it on your phone before you pay
We send you a private link. Look at it on your phone, show it to whoever you like and tell us what to change. You pay nothing until it goes live.
See it before you pay, then 30 days to change your mind
- £39 a month including VAT, or £390 for the year. One price for the whole business, however many of you there are.
- Nothing to pay until it's live. Building it and previewing it cost nothing.
- A full refund within 30 days of your first payment if it isn't right for you.
- Cancel any time. There's no contract, and no setup fee.
- Your web address is included while you subscribe, along with hosting and security.
- Change it yourself from your phone, or ask us and we'll do it.
Questions counsellors ask us
How quickly can you build a website for my practice?
Usually within a couple of days of our call. Send us a photo, a few words about how you work, your fees and where you see clients. You see the site on your phone before you pay anything.
Can clients book a first session without filling in a long form?
Yes. They pick a time and leave a name and contact details. Nothing more is needed until you speak.
Can I offer sessions online as well as in person?
Yes. Make each one a separate service with its own price and length, and say in the description how online sessions work.
Can I change my fees and availability myself?
Yes, from your phone. Or tell us and we'll do it.
Most of my clients come by word of mouth. Do I need a website?
Word of mouth brings the best clients, and many of them look you up before they get in touch. A website on your own address is what they find: what you do, what it costs, who you are and how to book. It's also where Google sends people who search for what you do in your town.
What does it cost, and is there a contract?
£39 a month including VAT, or £390 for the year. That's for the whole business, with hosting, security and your web address included, and no setup fee. There's no contract, so you can cancel any time, and if it isn't right for you we'll refund your first payment in full within 30 days. You pay nothing at all until your site is live.
Tell us about your business. We'll build your site and send you the link to see it before you pay.
We'll call you the same working day, weekdays, if you ask before 3pm. Ask after 3pm or at the weekend and we'll call you the next working day. There's nothing to pay until your site is live.