We are a community-based Community Interest Company committed to supporting individuals affected by abuse, bullying, trauma, and social disadvantage. Our work is rooted in creating safe, confidential, and inclusive spaces where people can begin to heal, regain confidence, and rebuild their lives.

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Over the past eighteen months, Zen Waters CIC has experienced significant and purposeful growth within its counselling provision, strengthening both capacity and professional reach. What began as a focused support service for individuals affected by domestic abuse has evolved into a structured, trauma-informed counselling programme supporting survivors of domestic violence, sexual abuse, coercive control, and complex trauma. Demand for specialist, safe, and confidential therapeutic intervention has increased steadily, and in response, we have expanded our delivery model to ensure accessibility, safeguarding compliance, and measurable impact across our community.

During this period, we have delivered an increasing number of structured therapy blocks, providing consistent, person-centred counselling to those who may otherwise face long waiting lists or financial barriers. Our work has developed beyond one-to-one support to include collaborative partnerships with local organisations, charities, and referral agencies, allowing us to create a stronger signposting network and holistic wraparound care. This integrated approach ensures that individuals receive not only emotional support, but guidance towards practical resources, legal awareness, safety planning, and longer-term recovery pathways.

Growth has not simply been in numbers — it has been in depth and professionalism.

 

Over the last eighteen months, we have strengthened safeguarding frameworks, enhanced trauma-informed practice, and widened the qualifications and expertise within our team. By bringing in additional counselling professionals and developing structured assessment and review processes, Zen Waters CIC has positioned itself as a trusted, accountable, and outcomes-driven counselling provider. This ensures funders and stakeholders can see clear evidence of responsible governance, ethical delivery, and tangible community impact.

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Most importantly, the past eighteen months have demonstrated that sustained therapeutic intervention changes lives. Individuals who once presented in crisis are now rebuilding confidence, re-engaging with education or employment, and reconnecting with their families and community. Our counselling service has become a cornerstone of emotional recovery within the region — not only responding to trauma, but actively restoring resilience, dignity, and hope. As we continue to expand, our commitment remains the same: to provide safe, professional, and accessible counselling that empowers individuals to move from surviving to thriving.

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Alongside our physical empowerment programmes, we provide access to trauma-informed counselling for those who have experienced abuse. This counselling support is delivered in a safe, supportive, and confidential setting, focusing on emotional recovery, self-worth, coping strategies, and long-term wellbeing. Where appropriate, counselling works hand-in-hand with physical training to support both mental and physical recovery.

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We offer fully funded women’s self-defence programmes and free martial arts training for children and young people whose circumstances place them at a disadvantage. These programmes help participants develop confidence, discipline, resilience, and a sense of belonging, while promoting positive mental health and personal safety.

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By combining counselling, structured physical activity, and a strong community environment, we provide holistic support that empowers individuals to move forward with strength, confidence, and stability.

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BREAKING NEWS!!!!

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The MHAD Sports Initiative (Mental Health and Disabilities) is a funded community programme delivered by Zen Waters CIC in partnership with Zen Combat School, designed to create truly inclusive access to sport and rehabilitation across Bideford and the surrounding areas. Supported through grant funding and community investment, MHAD removes financial barriers so individuals living with a wide range of mental health challenges, physical disabilities, learning disabilities, and neurodiverse conditions can participate safely and confidently. The programme offers adaptive strength and conditioning, non-contact boxing, inclusive fitness, and expressive dance-based movement — all delivered in a trauma-informed, supportive environment. At its heart, MHAD celebrates diversity, recognising that every individual’s journey is different, and that inclusion means meeting people where they are. For our community, this initiative represents equality of opportunity, improved wellbeing, and a powerful message that sport and strength belong to everyone — regardless of ability or circumstance.

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The Restart Programme begins in July 2026 — and it exists for those who have endured what no one should have to endure.
For individuals rebuilding their lives after domestic or sexual abuse, and for those living with physical, emotional, or learning disabilities, the path forward can feel uncertain. We believe survival is not the end of the story — it is the beginning of strength. The Restart Programme creates a safe, structured, and supported pathway into meaningful careers in Beauty, Massage, and Holistic Therapies. It is not just training; it is transformation.

Through fully and partially government-funded opportunities, we remove the financial barriers that so often prevent recovery from becoming independence.
Participants receive accredited vocational training, mentoring, trauma-aware support, and real career progression pathways. Our approach combines professional qualifications with emotional empowerment, ensuring that each individual is not only skilled — but confident, capable, and supported within a community that understands their journey.

At the heart of The Restart Programme is community, strength, and love.
We recognise that healing does not happen in isolation. It happens in safe environments, surrounded by people who believe in your future. Our programme fosters peer support, practical skill development, and structured progression into employment or self-employment within the holistic and beauty sector. By investing in individuals, we strengthen families. By strengthening families, we strengthen our community.

As a government-supported initiative under Zen Waters CIC, The Restart Programme represents a long-term investment in sustainable change.
For funders, it delivers measurable outcomes — vocational qualifications, employment pathways, increased independence, and improved wellbeing. For participants, it offers something even greater: the opportunity to rise, to rebuild, and to step confidently into a new chapter of life.

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Starting July 2026.
To register interest, refer a participant, discuss partnership opportunities, or request funding information, please contact us directly at support@zenwaters.co.uk or learning@holistictherapiestraining.co.uk. Together, we are opening doors — and helping people rise through them.

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See our events page to see what's happening near you.

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