Our Services

Action East Devon provides friendly, non-clinical spaces for young people who are experiencing low level emotional and mental health difficulties.

We believe that every young person deserves support that meets them as an individual, in a place that feels safe, welcoming, and genuinely accessible.

About our Headlight Peer Support Groups

Headlight is our fortnightly peer support programme, bringing young people together in a warm and non-judgmental space to connect, share experiences, and support one another. We are not a crisis support service we provide low level mental health support for young people who are struggling with their wellbeing, emotions, anxiety or self-confidence. Our groups run across three locations in East Devon, with sessions shaped around the needs of the young people who attend.

We run four groups across Axminster, Ottery St Mary, and Seaton, with sessions for younger and older young people in Ottery, so that everyone can find a group where they feel comfortable. We are also soon to open new groups in Honiton and Sidmouth and are taking referrals for those new groups now via the Joining Form button below.

All sessions are facilitated by trained staff and are free to attend. Young people do not need a formal diagnosis or referral to come along.

Our Commitment to Neuroinclusion

We are committed to being a neuroinclusive organisation and can accommodate mild symtoms, we discuss individual needs at the initial assessment. We recognise that neurodivergent young people are disproportionately affected by mental health challenges, and are often the least well-served by traditional support settings. We understand that a young person’s label, if they have one at all, doesn’t tell us what they need. Many young people we work with don’t have a formal diagnosis, and we take a needs-led approach.

Within our Headlight groups, neuroinclusion is embedded into how we run every session. This means removing pressure to participate in any particular way, being explicit about what to expect, and reducing unnecessary sensory load. We use low-pressure check-in activities and create space for young people to understand what helps them and what doesn’t. We don’t assume everyone is fine because they seem calm, we pay attention to what we see, and we keep learning.