Seven years after launching a phenomenally successful Lincoln counselling hub, its Chief Executive Officer Naomi Watkins-Ligudzinska is “stepping away” from its everyday operations.
Naomi, who co-founded today’s Naomi Watkins Counselling Hub (NWCH CIC) with Alex Parkin, is stepping aside at a high point in its growth and she is leaving it in the capable hands of Operations Director Emma Conway, who is supported by a management and admin team and a Board of Directors.
NWCH will continue to operate as usual, which is great news for its 25-strong team which includes a mix of employed staff and sub-contracted counsellors serving clients of all ages - whose lives have been saved or who are continuing to be helped by the Hub team.
“After years of dedication to building and expanding NWCH, I’ve decided to step back to focus on new opportunities, which include expanding my practice internationally.
“I have relocated to Spain where I will be focusing on delivering Psychotherapy, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing) therapy and Growth Coaching, as well as hosting Retreats to help individuals to work on personal development and healing,”
said Naomi.
“NWCH will continue to operate under the experienced guidance of our Board of Directors, management team, staff team and under the steady hand of Emma Conway, who is taking over the CEO duties.
“The Board is fully committed to maintaining and growing the Hub’s services in the coming years. The focus remains on ensuring continuity of care and expanding our reach to help even more individuals in the community.
“One of our proudest achievements was navigating the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. This was when we quickly transitioned our services to offer phone and online support, ensuring continuity of care during a time when mental health needs were at an all-time high,”
said Naomi.
“This flexibility allowed us to support our clients throughout lockdowns and beyond, demonstrating our adaptability and commitment to accessible mental health care.
“We also returned to face-to-face support after just three months, knowing we were a lifeline for many people in Lincolnshire and, sometimes, the only people they would see. That definitely helped us to save lives during that isolating time.
“We were able to be recognised as key workers after much campaigning for this, which meant with safety features in place we could continue our vital work.”
Naomi and her former business partner Alex originally started the hub to address a gap in accessible mental health support. They recognised many people were really struggling to find timely, affordable counselling services and were keen to create a welcoming space that could provide a range of mental health support tailored to individual needs. It was clear that children and young people were not getting the support they needed.
From the outset the hub offered counselling to alleviate anxiety, depression, grief, trauma and deal with relationship issues. Clients benefited from accessing support for a wide range of mental health needs in an inclusive private space.
Over the years NWCH has enjoyed significant growth, thanks to word of mouth and its success in securing various funding sources. That has already led to its expansion.
“These factors have seen us broaden our offering to including specialist support, such as trauma therapy, EMDR, couples counselling and youth mental health services and also group activities,”
said Naomi.
Growth has been driven by increasing demand and the Hub’s commitment to adapting its services to meet the needs of its community. It has trained people who want to become therapists and ASIST training is still part of its offering, along with contracts with local organisations for support for their employees and students.
Operations Director Emma Conway said:
“We welcome clients facing a wide range of challenges and are busier than ever with appointment bookings across the board, including sessions for those seeking EMDR therapy and couples counselling.
“I am proud to take over the reins from Naomi and I look forwarding to developing the Hub further, with our diverse and highly experienced team.”
https://nwcounsellinghub.co.uk/