Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

TALKWORKS therapists are highly trained NHS professionals. They are accredited and/or registered with a national psychological therapy association (such as the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy), and deliver treatments with a strong research evidence base as recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

You may ask yourself, how can a therapist help me? Our therapists will listen carefully to the difficulties you are experiencing and challenges that you are facing. They will help you to understand and make sense of what's going on, and will work with you to help you to feel happier.

We aim to see all of our referrals for an initial appointment within 6 weeks, however, our current waiting times are shorter - especially for therapy that takes place over the phone or by video call. If you would like to access our services, you can call us on 0300 555 3344 or you can self-refer to TALKWORKS by completing the online form on our website.

There is no charge to receive therapy from TALKWORKS. We are part of Devon Partnership NHS Trust and all treatment is available free of charge to adults over the age of 18, living in Devon (excluding Plymouth). You can access TALKWORKS by referring yourself for support online or by calling us on 0300 553344 (our phone lines are open Monday to Friday from 9am - 4:45pm). If you live in Plymouth please contact Plymouth Options to find out how they can help you.

After you have self-referred to our service, a member of our admin team will be in touch to arrange an assessment. You will then be able to choose whether you would like to have your appointment remotely (either over the phone or by video call), or face-to-face in one of our bases that we work from across Devon.

At the first appointment, your therapist will ask you some questions to get a better understanding of how you are feeling and the problems you are experiencing. Your therapist will then talk through some different approaches for treatment and will work together with you to form a plan to help get you back on track. 

If you'd like to find out more about what you can expect at your first appointment, please watch our video or call us on 0300 555 3344 (our phone lines are open Monday to Friday, from 9am - 4:45pm).

At TALKWORKS we try to be as flexible and as accessible as possible with how we deliver our therapy.

We can offer face-to-face appointments with an NHS therapist, counsellor or employment specialist, at a variety of locations across Devon and Torbay. We also offer one-to-one remote therapy which takes place either over the phone or by video call. Our groups and workshops are normally run online, so that you can access them from the comfort of your own home.

You can also complete online self-help through Silvercloud - a flexible self-help and learning programme. This can be accessed at any time during the day, or at night, and is ideal for those who may not be able to commit to regular sessions with a therapist. You can still access feedback and support from your therapist through the platform, without needing to attend appointments.

If you are unable to attend your appointment, please let us know as soon as possible. To cancel your appointment, please call our reception team on 0300 555 3344 or email dpt.talkworks@nhs.net. We want to help as many people as possible, and if we receive notice that you are unable to attend your appointment, we may be able to offer the slot to someone else. Our team will then work with you to rearrange your appointment at a time that suits you.

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is a form of talking therapy that can help you manage your problems by changing the way you think and behave. Rather than looking into your past, CBT helps you to understand your current thoughts and feelings by breaking them down into more manageable chunks. On the other hand, counselling for depression (CfD) helps you to reflect on how you are feeling, working with you to identify feelings and emotions that may feel stuck or unprocessed. A CfD session is a form of therapy that focuses on the present day, but events from the past may be explored to help you identify themes and patterns that are contributing to your loss of happiness and low mood. 

If English is not your first language, you can still access our service. We can provide an interpreter for your appointments. Please make us aware of this when you refer yourself to TALKWORKS.

TALKWORKS is an NHS talking therapies service, here to treat mild to moderate common mental health difficulties, including low mood, depression and anxiety. Our service is not able to help people with severe or complex difficulties. If you come to us for an assessment and we feel we are not able to meet your needs, we will signpost you to a different service that is better placed to help.

TALKWORKS is not an emergency or crisis service. If you require urgent mental health support, please contact NHS 111 and select the 'mental health' option.

We aim to help as many people as possible who are struggling with a common mental health difficulty. This includes problems with sleep, stress, worry and low mood. Our clinicians are trained to support people with mild to moderate difficulties. TALKWORKS is not a specialist mental health or crisis service and we are therefore unable to work with all mental health difficulties. Please visit our needs we can and cannot meet page to check whether TALKWORKS is able to help you.