Hope House - Kuils River

Offers donation-based counselling across three centres: Khayelitsha (10 Scott Road), Tokai (Unit 1, Tokai on Main — 071 328 3715 / 021 715 0424), and Kuils River (6 Lang Street — 071 410 1091 / 021 903 0521). Founded in 2004 by Judy Strickland — starting from her own home and garage — Hope House has grown into one of Cape Town's most accessible community counselling services, specifically designed to break the financial and cultural barriers that prevent people in under-resourced communities from accessing mental health support. The model is simple: pay what you can afford. Nothing. Something. Whatever is possible. All counsellors hold formal degrees in psychology or related fields and are trained in the person-centred approach, working under professional supervision. Services are available to everyone aged 3 years and upward, across all backgrounds, cultures, and identities. For GBV survivors, Hope House is particularly valuable: the Khayelitsha centre explicitly focuses on GBV, working in partnership with courts, SAPS, and the Department of Social Development to receive referrals and provide counselling and family support to abused women and their children. The centre offers individual and family counselling for trauma and abuse, educational workshops empowering women in Khayelitsha, and collaborative court and SAPS case support. Other workshops include trauma-informed care, self-care, play therapy, peer mentoring, parenting, relationships, anxiety, stress, and substance awareness. The Kuils River centre runs a 16-week outpatient substance rehabilitation programme and a family addiction support group, highly relevant where substance abuse intersects with GBV. SACE-accredited trauma-informed workshops for educators are also available. Hope House is not a crisis service — for acute GBV crisis: Rape Crisis Cape Town 021 447 9762 (24/7) / GBV Command Centre 0800 428 428 (toll-free, 24/7).