STAFF who worked for Yellow Door, an organisation that offered free counselling to survivors of sexual abuse before the Isle of Wight Council ended its contract, have started a new counselling organisation.

Sarah Taylor and Linda Johnson launched Isle Support after the Isle of Wight Council tendered for services from October 1 and Yellow Door was unsuccessful.

Yellow Door is a registered charity based in Southampton that offers a range of free services dedicated to supporting those who have experienced — or are at risk of — abuse.

On the Island, the organisation provided free counselling sessions, but the council stopped its funding, meaning it had to close on the Isle of Wight.

Sarah and Linda have had rigorous training that enables them to work safely and ethically with men and women who have experienced any type of sexual assault, violence or rape at any time in their lives, including child sexual abuse.

They formed Isle Support as they know from their work with Yellow Door that there is a big need for counselling for survivors of sexual abuse on the Island.

They will continue to adopt the model previously used in the organisation, as it is tried and tested.

This includes an assessment to ensure it is safe and appropriate to work with clients, followed by up to 24 weekly 50 minute sessions.

They are unable to offer free counselling, now they no longer have the council funding — they are private counsellors and have to pay for the rent of the rooms and other costs.

They said: "We understand that having been sexually abused can make it hard to trust anyone and may affect many, if not all, parts of survivors’ lives.

"Survivors may be left with some or all of the following: feelings of low self-esteem, shame, anxiety, depression, sleep and self-care problems, relationship difficulties and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms.

"We can help clients learn emotional coping skills alongside the counselling so that life feels less overwhelming.

"Please be reassured that by coming to counselling at Isle Support, clients are always left with the choice of what they talk about, and there is no pressure to ever disclose the details of what happened to them.

"Our role is to help alleviate clients’ distress."

Although not free, there is a sliding scale of charges, dependent on income, with concessions for those on benefits or low income.

Sarah works from a premises at Quay Street, Newport, and Linda can offer sessions in Quay Street and in Freshwater if more convenient.

To find out more, contact Isle Support by phone 07490 367763 or e-mail islesupport@mail.co.uk or visit the Facebook page @islesupportwight.