PORTFOLIO / COUNSELLING WITH SALLY
A welcoming website.
A confident owner.
Counselling with Sally: a thoughtful website redesign for an independent Leeds counsellor, with editable pages and help built into the handover.
Counselling with Sally
A SPACE TO FEEL HEARDSpace to talk.
Room to grow.
A calm place to explore what’s happening in your life, at your own pace.
Illustrative design preview. Replace with an approved screenshot for the published portfolio.
CLIENT
Sally Cook · Counsellor
PROJECT
Website redesign & handover
FOUNDATION
Joomla + visual page editing
FOCUS
Clarity, contact & independence
THE BRIEF
Help people take the first step.
Someone considering counselling needs clear information and a sense of who they will be talking to. Sally needed a site that could offer both.
The work brought her services, approach, qualifications and contact details into a consistent design. We also prepared supporting questions, blog content and policy pages for her review.
Owner independence was part of the brief: Sally should be able to update wording and pictures through the frontend, with straightforward instructions when she needs them.
FUNCTIONALITY
What the website does.
A clear route to contact
Dedicated contact page, enquiry form, telephone and email links, and contact invitations throughout the site.
Frontend page editing
A signed-in owner can open Edit Page and update content with SP Page Builder, using the normal website menus.
Room for useful content
Services, About Me, FAQs and four draft blogs explain the practice and answer questions before an enquiry.
On-screen tutorials
A custom Joomla plugin provides password, account, review and editing tours for authorised signed-in users.
Policies within reach
Footer navigation groups privacy, cookies, website terms and counselling arrangements in one accessible place.
Layouts for smaller screens
Responsive page layouts and shared typography and colour settings support a consistent presentation across screen sizes.
BUILD SPECIFICATION
The tools behind the site.
An open-source CMS, visual editing tools and a small custom extension, each with a clear role.
| Layer | Software / provision | Role in this project |
|---|---|---|
| Content management | Joomla 6 | Pages, menus, user accounts and site configuration. |
| Template framework | Helix Ultimate 2.2.9 | Header, footer, navigation and overall site structure. |
| Page building | SP Page Builder Pro | Reusable visual sections, frontend editing and JSON page imports. |
| Runtime | PHP 8.4 | The server-side environment used for the build. |
| Custom development | Idle Spider Frontend Tours | Signed-in guidance, movable panel and same-tab tutorial continuity. |
| Design configuration | Shared presets + custom CSS | Consistent fonts, colours, buttons and visual details. |
| Content preparation | Page copy, FAQs and draft blogs | Client review, factual checks and a clear visitor journey. |
| Handover | On-screen help + PDF / HTML guide | Account access, reviewing content and routine changes. |
Versions describe this build, rather than a permanent requirement. Joomla is open source; SP Page Builder Pro uses a commercial licence. Hosting, licence costs and ongoing support would be specified separately for another project.
PAGE SCOPE
A complete structure for a small practice.
The content is organised around what a prospective client needs to know, with space for future articles.
- 5 main pages — Home, Services, About Me, Contact and FAQs.
- 4 policy pages — Privacy, Cookies, Website Terms and a counselling agreement summary.
- 4 draft blogs — starting counselling, uncertainty, pet bereavement and anxiety.
- Footer navigation — policies, blogs, main pages and signed-in account links.
- Page descriptions — metadata prepared for the site and individual pages.
Practice information, policy details and blog wording require Sally’s approval. No measured traffic, enquiry or legal-compliance results are claimed.
THE HANDOVER MATTERS
Help that stays close to the task.
The build includes a custom Website help panel so the owner can learn while using the site.
The panel offers step-by-step guidance, can be moved out of the way and reopens at the same step after normal navigation in the same tab. It leaves the owner in control of every edit and save.
A documented guide covers the same tasks for printing or keeping beside the browser.
STEP 1 · EDITING A PAGE
Find “Edit Page”
Scroll to the very top of the page to reveal the Edit Page button. Click it to open the frontend editor.
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Illustration of the custom tutorial interface. Help is available only to authorised signed-in users.
HOW I APPROACHED THE WORK
Build it. Explain it. Hand it over.
01
Understand the practice
Work from Sally’s existing content, approach, photographs and practical information.
02
Create a consistent design
Establish reusable layouts and shared styling across the main pages.
03
Prepare content for review
Bring services, questions, articles and policy drafts into the same structure.
04
Make ownership practical
Provide frontend editing, account guidance and both interactive and written help.
COULD THIS SUIT YOUR BUSINESS?
A useful starting point, shaped around you.
What can be adapted?
The content structure, contact journey, shared design settings and handover approach can suit other independent service businesses. Branding, wording, photographs and service details would be developed for that business.
What needs a separate specification?
Online booking, card payments, customer accounts, specialist systems and integrations would be discussed and scoped separately. They are not claimed as features of this counselling website.
What does ongoing ownership involve?
The site needs hosting, software updates, backups and periodic checks. Content should stay accurate, and paid extension licences may need renewing. The support arrangement would be agreed as part of the project.
YOUR NEXT STEP
What would make your website more useful?
Tell me how your business works and what you want the site to do. We can start with the pages, tools and support that would make a practical difference.
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