Our referral criteria

We are currently accepting referrals from people who are residents in Gloucestershire and can commit to 12 months of coaching, with:

• A diagnosis of personality disorder, or personality traits and characteristics that suggest the presence of a possible personality disorder, that causes distress to self or others.
• The presence of co-morbid mental health problems, such as eating disorders, anxiety, depression, complex post-traumatic stress disorder, trauma or alcohol and substance misuse.
• A background of pervasive and persistent interpersonal difficulties causing problems with family, work or other aspects of social life.
• Poor engagement with mental health services.
• Difficulties in experiencing and expressing emotions (emotional disregulation), and poor functioning in social and interpersonal relationships.
• A risk to themselves through suicide attempts, recurrent self-injury, high level of impulsivity and through being vulnerable to abuse from others.
• Frequent use of emergency services (police, ambulance, emergency department), in-patient mental health services, and crisis teams

Referral process

After receiving a referral, we invite the referrer to attend a meeting to discuss the case. We will then assess if our service is suitable for the individual referred and whether we can meet their needs.

After we accept an individual on to the coaching programme, a Wellbeing Coach makes initial contact by email and text. A phone call is scheduled, during which we explain how the coaching service works to the individual and establish some baseline measures depending on the individual’s stated goals.

The individual then enters the pre-coaching stage of the coaching programme which consists of a series of ‘holding sessions’, delivered by Wellbeing Coaches, who support the individual, monitor their risks and assess their readiness to change. Following pre-coaching, individuals move on to the coaching programme itself.

Next: How the service works