'Overwhelming': Tauranga counselling referrals spike 200 per cent since lockdown

Referrals since lockdown ended are up 200 per cent. Photo / Getty Photos

Tauranga charity St Peters House has seen a significant spike in demand for its counselling services since lockdown ended.

In a media statement today, the charity said a high number of people have presented with anxiety from financial pressures, stress, uncertainty due to the pandemic, or relationship issues.

The charity has also seen an increase in young people experiencing severe anxiety, self-harming or struggling with thoughts of suicide since schools reopened.

St Peters House manager Cath Page said, while demand was always high, the post-lockdown wave of referrals was overwhelming.

"We were operating as usual up until March, and over lockdown we continued our counselling services using Zoom and telephone.

"We had a reduced number of referrals, which was good as it gave us a chance to catch up and work through our waiting lists. But as soon as we were out of lockdown, referrals came flooding in, and we were completely overwhelmed. They were up by 200 per cent."

Page said with waiting lists that continue to grow, it could be difficult asking people to wait.

"Our waiting lists have been closed for a number of weeks as we work through them, but we hope to open them again before Christmas.

"It can be really hard when you receive a call from someone where we are their last resort, telling them we cannot see them for two months."

Despite the demand, Page said she was concerned the worst may be yet to come.

"We've had the wage subsidy, emergency housing, and extra food support propping us up for most of this year. While those have all been necessary, as those supports are slowly taken away, I wonder how people will still be able to cope.

"There is a significant financial impact still to come. Our clients are the ones on the lower incomes, in less secure work, and they will need our support more than ever."

St Peters House provides a range of services for those who are financially vulnerable, with most being donation-based. These include individual and couple counselling, debt management, and courses in marriage, parenting, life skills and personal development.

They work to support people through their life challenges, to see them living debt-free, free from abuse, parenting with excellence, engaged in the community and making positive life choices.

Although they welcome self-referrals, they also receive referrals from government agencies, hospital and medical services, mental health and disability services, ECE and schools, and other social service providers.

Page said their programmes had been incredibly valuable for people post-lockdown, and encouraged people to sign up to get the support they need to make a real difference in their lives.

"Our CAP Debt Help programme supports those who are in unmanageable debt. Since Covid, we have seen a lot of people with debt building up, and income that isn't able to cover the things they need, such as rent, food and clothing.

"The service is free, with Debra, our Christians Against Poverty Centre manager, visiting a client's home to learn about their situation, family and debts. This information is then sent to the CAP head office which puts together a budget and negotiates with creditors.

"It's all about giving people the tools to pay off debts with their own money, learn how to budget and how to manage their finances into the future. We recommend people give Christians Against Poverty a free call on 0508 227 111 to discuss."

Page was grateful St Peters House had received a boost in funding earlier this year from the Western Bay of Plenty Covid-19 Recovery Fund, which has been helping them get through to December.

The $14,000 grant from the fund, established by local funders TECT, Acorn Foundation, BayTrust and Tauranga City Council, has allowed St Peters House to increase their capacity with extended contracts and counsellor hours.

Page said the grant enabled them to keep up with demand, despite uncertainties around funding.

Cath Page, St Peters House manager, and Debra, CAP Debt Centre manager. Photo / Supplied

"The recovery funding was so incredibly helpful. Funding comes out at different times of the year, so it can be hard to set a budget without knowing the outcome of all your different applications. Then Covid made that even more uncertain, with many funders putting their funding on hold.

"We were looking at having to reduce our counselling hours to match what we knew was our guaranteed funding. Demand was going up, income was potentially going down, and we weren't sure what we were going to do.

"Knowing we had that recovery funding meant we could commit to extending the counsellors' hours at least for that six months to get us through to Christmas. Of course, we don't want to be reducing our hours for next year, and now we are applying to as many funders as we can to keep going and do more."

Acorn Foundation general manager Lori Luke said the funding had gone a long way to supporting the community's mental health.

"This phase of our Covid-19 funding support aims to enable the longer-term rebuild of the community sector. Ensuring community groups like St Peters House can continue their service delivery is a vital part of that.

"So many in our community are struggling with the impacts of the pandemic and lockdown, whether financially, mentally or emotionally. Having access to counselling support during this time is crucial for our community's wellbeing. We're pleased this funding has allowed St Peters House to meet the increasing community need," Luke said.