In this issue
Features
BACP Universities and Colleges annual survey
Emma Broglia reviews the results
The further education counselling crisis
The impact of cuts and closures, explored by Jane Darougar
Image conscious
Anne Bentley and Dave Sibley outline the importance of a graphic identity for services
Leaving, living… believing (free article)
From international student to university counsellor by Phoebe Song
Shifting identities
Services should adapt to cultural need, argues Sarah Conn
Thinking outside the box
David Mair discusses why gender identity needs to be acknowledged
Preventing and responding to rape and sexual violence
Cambridge University take a proactive approach says Géraldine Dufour
The Good Lad Initiative
David Llewellyn discusses promoting ‘positive masculinity’ among male students
Punts, gowns and sexual consent
Why consent workshops are important, by Amelia Horgan
Divisional news
A pdf of this issue is available in the University and College Counselling archive
From the editor
The theme of this issue of the journal is identity. What has been striking is on how many levels the subject is key to our work. Sarah Conn, in ‘Shifting Identities’, gives a palpable taste of how it feels to be an international student studying in the UK; the conflicted sense of belonging/not belonging… of wanting to belong/not wanting to belong. Phoebe Song writes too of what it is like to be a Chinese student ‘overseas’. For me the most striking (and moving) part of her article is when she realises that she has never before been asked ‘What do you like?… and further, that she does not know what she likes. Enabling clients to access who they really are is central to our work.
But it’s not just internal identity that is important. Jane Darougar writes about the terrible crisis being faced by counsellors in further education; where services are simply having their identity wiped out. Anne Bentley and Dave Sibley, meanwhile, write about how they gave their service a graphic identity. They talk about the importance of letting their service be seen. Finally, of course, we are also publishing the BACP UC survey 2015 results. These reveal trends in the identity of the division.
This is my last issue as editor of the BACP U&CC journal. Maybe the theme of identity was in my unconscious already, for I plan to explore a new professional path. For me, it has been an incredible privilege to have a role in the BACP UC division and witness the therapeutic work that takes place here. I have been repeatedly moved and inspired by the stories and experiences that have been submitted to the journal. So much will stay with me, and become a part of my identity.
I wish you all well going forward during these difficult times.
Toni Rodgers
Editor
ucceditorial@bacp.co.uk