About Ruth
I'm Ruth. I sit with people and pay attention.
I run Hampshire HeadSpace from a quiet room at the Cranberry Wellbeing Centre in Eastleigh. Counsellor, BACP-registered. Working with adults across Hampshire, in person and online.
Ruth, Hampshire HeadSpace
Placeholder. Ruth will provide.
Why I do this work
The reason I became a counsellor
I came to counselling the long way round, after years of working in roles where I spent most of my time listening to people who were quietly running on empty, without anyone trained to actually help them with what they were carrying. I kept thinking, someone should sit down with these people properly, and eventually I decided that someone might as well be me.
I trained because I'd been on the other side of the room myself, and I know what a difference it makes when the person opposite you is genuinely paying attention rather than waiting for their turn to talk. Hampshire HeadSpace exists because most of the people I've met who needed counselling didn't get to it, either because the NHS list was too long or because the private options felt cold and clinical from the first click.
I'm here for the people who've been holding it together for everyone else, and who've quietly run out of room to hold it together for themselves.
How I work
At your pace. Without a script.
I work with you at your pace. I don't push, I don't rush, and I will never make you feel like a checklist. The first session especially is yours to use however you want. You can talk a lot, talk a little, or sit quietly. None of those are wrong.
Counselling with me is a real conversation in a private room. Not advice in the bossy sense. Not a formula. Together we'll look at what is actually going on, what it's costing you, and what you might want to do differently. You stay in charge of what we talk about and how deep we go.
In practice, my approach is integrative, which is a slightly bookish way of saying I don't treat everyone the same. Some weeks we'll spend the whole session on one thing that surfaced out of nowhere, and other weeks we'll work steadily through something we've been circling for a while. The frame stays the same, the work flexes around what you actually bring through the door.
What that looks like in the room is a real conversation, grounded in person-centred values, with practical tools woven in when they'd genuinely help rather than because the book says so. If something I suggest doesn't feel right for you, I'd much rather you tell me, and we'll find something that does.
What I value
Three things that shape every session
Compassion
You’re carrying things that nobody around you has fully seen. In our hour, you don’t have to soften them so I can cope. I’ve got the room for it.
Connection
Counselling that works isn’t a technique done to you. It’s a real human noticing what you’re saying and what you’re not saying, and gently bringing both into the room.
Care
Care in the boring practical sense too. The room is comfortable. Your time starts when you sit down. I take supervision seriously. I don’t take you for granted.
“I’d done CBT through work and it didn’t really land. This was different. Ruth doesn’t lecture you. She doesn’t tell you what you should be doing. She helps you figure out what you already know.”
Credentials
And, because it matters too: I'm qualified to do this work.
- BACP registered
- Fully insured for practice
- Enhanced DBS check
- Regular clinical supervision
The room
A quiet room at the Cranberry Wellbeing Centre.
Two soft chairs, a window, a box of tissues, a glass of water if you want it. The door closes properly and no one can hear what you say.
You'll find us in central Eastleigh, opposite The Point. Free parking is right outside. If you would rather not come in person, we can do the same session on a secure video call.
The counselling room at Cranberry Wellbeing Centre
Placeholder. Ruth will provide.