What the Latest UK Therapy Data Really Tells Us: and What It Means If You’re Thinking About Therapy
TL;DR;
Therapy is now mainstream in the UK: 35% of adults have had therapy, and most found it helpful.
Loneliness is a major mental health driver, especially for young people, sitting underneath anxiety, stress, and depression.
Human therapy still matters: most people trust therapists far more than AI or influencers for emotional support.
Not all therapists are regulated, so training, ethics, and accountability are crucial when choosing support.
Online and in-person therapy both work: what matters most is feeling safe enough to be honest and emotionally present.
Therapy works best when it’s human, ethical, and willing to go deeper, not when it offers quick fixes or generic advice.
For a long time, therapy sat on the edges of public life. Something people turned to quietly, often late, and sometimes with a sense of shame.
That picture has changed.
The British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) has just released its 2025 Public Perceptions Survey, based on responses from more than 5,000 UK adults. The findings are striking, not just in scale, but in what they reveal about how people are actually living now.
More people are seeking therapy. More people find it helpful. And yet, many are still unsure how to choose safe, effective support in a crowded mental health landscape.
This matters…
Therapy Is No Longer Unusual: It’s Common
According to the survey, 35% of UK adults have had therapy at some point in their lives. Among young people aged 16 to 25, that figure is already one in four.
This isn’t a niche activity or a last resort. Therapy has become a normal response to emotional strain, relationship difficulties, and life pressure.
Even more telling:
73% of people who’ve had therapy found it helpful
75% would recommend it to someone else
That combination, uptake and satisfaction, is rare in healthcare. It tells us something important: when therapy is done well, people notice the difference.
Loneliness Is One of the Biggest Drivers
One of the most concerning findings in the survey is about loneliness.
More than half of UK adults (54%) say loneliness affects their mental health. For those aged 16 to 25, this rises to 72%.
Loneliness isn’t just about being alone. It’s about feeling unseen, unsupported, or emotionally disconnected, often while appearing “fine” on the surface.
In my clinical experience, loneliness frequently sits underneath anxiety, depression, and burnout. Not as a separate issue, but as part of the emotional environment the nervous system is trying to survive in.
Therapy, at its core, is a relational process. It’s one of the few places where someone can slow down, be emotionally met, and begin to make sense of what they’ve been carrying alone.
Therapy Works: But Not All Support Is the Same
The survey also highlights an important distinction.
Only 18% of people said they’d feel comfortable talking to an AI chatbot about their mental health. By contrast, 60% would feel comfortable talking to a therapist.
At the same time, 9% of people report getting mental health support from influencers.
There’s nothing wrong with psycho-education or mental health conversations online. They can be helpful starting points. But information is not the same as a therapeutic relationship.
Therapy is not all about insight, and therapy is certainly not advice. It’s a two-way, emotionally responsive process, shaped around you. That’s something no algorithm or generalised content can replicate.
A Risky Myth Many People Still Believe
Nearly half of respondents (48%) believe that the title “therapist” is legally regulated in the UK, like doctor or dentist.
It isn’t.
This doesn’t mean therapy is unsafe, but it does mean who you choose matters. Training standards, ethical frameworks, supervision, and accountability vary widely.
Professional bodies like the BACP exist to set clear ethical standards and protect clients. Understanding this difference helps people make informed, safer choices when seeking support.
Online vs In-Person Therapy: What the Data Shows
Online therapy continues to grow. Twice as many people now use video therapy compared to five years ago.
At the same time:
68% still prefer in-person therapy
78% found it easy to arrange their first appointment
The takeaway isn’t that one format is better than the other. It’s that accessibility has improved, and people now have more choice.
What matters most is not the format, but whether you feel safe enough to be honest, emotionally present, and supported.
Why Anxiety, Stress, and Depression Keep Appearing
The top reasons people seek therapy haven’t changed much:
Stress
Rather than seeing these as isolated “conditions,” it can be more helpful to understand them as signals.
Signals that something in the emotional system is under strain. Signals that feelings may be pushed away, relationships feel unsafe, or the body has been holding too much for too long.
Good therapy doesn’t just manage symptoms. It helps people understand what those symptoms are trying to communicate.
So What Actually Helps?
The data tells a hopeful story.
Stigma is falling. More people are reaching out. Most who do find therapy genuinely helpful.
At the same time, the landscape is noisier than ever: AI tools, influencers, quick fixes, and unregulated practitioners all competing for attention.
What consistently helps is:
A real human relationship
Ethical, well-trained practice
Space to slow down and go deeper, at a pace that’s safe
Therapy works best when it respects complexity, not when it tries to bypass it.
If you’re thinking about starting therapy, the most important step isn’t finding the “perfect technique.” It’s finding a place where you feel taken seriously, emotionally understood, and supported to face what’s been hard to face alone.
That’s where meaningful change begins.
If this reflection resonated, you might explore:
The Therapy FAD? Rethinking our Feelings, Anxiety and Defences Across Modalities
The Power of Coming Back: Lewis Capaldi, Vulnerability, and the Quiet Strength of Resilience
The Hidden Map of Suffering: How the Three Core Fears Dictate Your Life: And How to Find Freedom…
Explore more in BetterHelp
Are you ready to find freedom?
If you’ve been hesitating to reach out for therapy, know that you don’t have to do it alone. Connection is possible…
FAQ: BACP 2025 Public Perceptions Survey
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Yes. According to the BACP’s 2025 Public Perceptions Survey, 73% of people who’ve had therapy found it helpful, and 75% would recommend it to others. Outcomes vary depending on the quality of therapy and the fit, but overall the evidence strongly supports therapy as an effective form of mental health support.
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The title “therapist” is not legally protected in the UK. This means anyone can technically call themselves a therapist, regardless of training.
That’s why professional membership matters. Organisations like the BACP set ethical standards, training requirements, and complaints procedures to help protect clients and ensure safe practice.
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Online content, apps, and influencers can offer information and reassurance, but they are not a substitute for a therapeutic relationship.
Therapy is:
Personal
Two-way
Emotionally responsive
Confidential
It adapts to you in real time, rather than offering one-size-fits-all advice.
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Research and clinical experience suggest both can be effective.
The BACP survey shows:
Online therapy use has doubled in recent years
In-person therapy is still preferred by many
What matters most is whether you feel safe, understood, and able to be honest, not the format itself.
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Anxiety is the most common reason people seek therapy in the UK.
Rather than being a standalone problem, anxiety is often a signal from the nervous system, linked to emotional pressure, avoidance, relationship stress, or long-standing patterns developed earlier in life.
Good therapy helps people understand why anxiety is there, not just how to manage it.
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Completely. Many people feel uncertain, hesitant, or even sceptical at first.
The data shows stigma around therapy has fallen significantly, but starting still involves vulnerability. A good therapist will expect this and work at a pace that feels manageable, not forced.
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There’s no perfect formula, but helpful questions include:
Do I feel listened to and taken seriously?
Does this feel emotionally safe?
Do they explain how they work?
Are they properly trained and accountable?
Therapy works best when there is trust, clarity, and room to go deeper over time.
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Yes. Loneliness is one of the strongest drivers of emotional distress, especially among younger people.
Therapy doesn’t just address symptoms, it provides a real relational experience, helping people understand patterns of disconnection and build the capacity for closer, healthier relationships.
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There’s no single answer. Some people notice changes relatively quickly; others benefit from longer-term work.
Progress depends on factors like:
What you’re struggling with
Your capacity to feel and reflect
The type of therapy
The quality of the therapeutic relationship
Effective therapy focuses on meaningful change, not arbitrary timelines.
