Bournemouth University has several resources to help support students no matter their situation, if concerned about your mental health here is a list of ways the University can provide support:

There are over 30 services available at Bournemouth University through Health and Wellbeing which help students in a variety of ways, such as with bereavement, homesickness and anxiety. The two main services available through Bournemouth University are Student Wellbeing and Achieve@BU which help students both in different ways, you can find more information on their web pages.

Student Wellbeing is a service which specialises in supporting students who are experiencing stress, anxiety, or low mood. They have a team of wellbeing advisers who can offer short-term practical advice and also longer-term support through counselling. To access this support there are several ways to go about this, firstly there are drop-in sessions available Monday to Friday from 13:00 to 14:00 on the Talbot Campus during term time. This gives students an opportunity to speak to a wellbeing advisor about their wellbeing, to get advice on another student’s well-being and to get more information on what services are available.

Secondly, students can book an appointment with a wellbeing adviser, this is done by completing a self-referral form and an advisor will contact students to arrange their first appointment to discuss their situation and what support will be available.

After this appointment with a wellbeing advisor, there are a number of support services available, depending on the student’s situation, such as counselling which provides students with an opportunity to talk and reflect on their situation in a safe and confidential environment. There are two types of counselling available: One At A Time focused counselling or a course of up to six regular sessions. Firstly the One At A Time focused counselling will be one appointment at a time when the student feels they need it, with opportunity to get more help after if needed.

Secondly, a longer-term counselling could be suggested by the well-being adviser for a course of up to six sessions of counselling. Students can also be referred to the psychological therapies service which is ran by Dorset Healthcare University NHS Foundation Trust.

Achieve@BU is an alternative service for students that can help students with a wide range of support and advice, this may involve putting students in contact with services such as Student Wellbeing. They can meet one to one to discuss students situation, provide information and signpost to other BU specialist support services and are a useful as a first port of call if students are unsure whether a service is right for them. To get in touch with the team they can be emailed here: achieve@bournemouth.ac.uk.

Apart from these services the University Retreat offers a drop in service for students to pop in without needing to book an appointment beforehand, with staff there to provide self-management advice. They are open Monday to Saturday, 14:00 to 21:00 at Tolpuddle Annexe 2, Talbot Campus.

The Student Assistance Programme is another service available to students, it is a free 24 hour confidential helpline and digital resource to support BU students with personal or student-related problems. Their phone line is: 08000 283 766 where counsellors on the helpline will be available for support and advise.

As well as the services above students can contact their academic advisors if circumstances are affecting their university work.

For other support contact:

Connection: a 24/7 NHS helpline for non-emergency mental health issues. Freephone: 0800 652 0190

Samaritans: 116 123

Shout text service (giveusashout.org): Text SHOUT to 85258

Find out more

Health & wellbeing support