Aurora Counselling

Name: Aurora Counselling

Purpose: Established in 1994 to provide community-based therapeutic services to help individuals address mental and emotional health difficulties

Tech challenge: Children poor mental health prevention

Techie: Katherine, Justine and Caroline, Kippie CIC

Parents often recognise that their children are struggling emotionally but once added to the NHS waiting list parents struggle to know how to help during this period in limbo. Although there is a wealth of information online Aurora’s research indicated that parents have difficulty implementing the information in a practical way to help support their child at home. The reality is many still prefer “human contact” for guidance and reassurance and parents may also need therapeutic support for themselves. 

Therefore Aurora is proposing an app that can help them effectively interact with and support parents using a combined approach of digital and face to face platforms. The content of the app will include information and strategies, a personal section where they can monitor their place on the waiting list, and videos that can be utilized at home by parents to act as conversation prompts. However, most importantly there must be potential for human connection whether that be as simple as Q & A email section, request for a call or perhaps at a more advanced stage the virtual person support promptly. What is important is that parents do not feel alone, feeling supported and guided this builds confidence, motivation and helps reduce stress levels so they can “hold” children until support available.

Aurora believes wholeheartedly in the importance of early intervention and that meaningful relationships and connections can facilitate great change, hence the move to use technology engaging parents and children at home so they can begin to have those important and often difficult conversations early.  

Aurora Counselling was awarded £12,000 through the Techies programme to continue the development of their app.