The Branch Chair of Community’s Northern Ireland Justice and Custodial group has presented a cheque for £500 to Dr David Keenan, founding member of counselling charity Veconi.
Veconi has been very proactive in assisting Community members in Northern Ireland with mental health and stress issues, offering a range of free services including cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR).
Dr Keenan – a trained psychotherapist, counsellor and American armed forces veteran – and his team of counsellors don’t charge referrals because they consider those who serve in uniform have already paid for those services.
Community is grateful to David Keenan and his team for all they have done, and continue to do, for our justice and custodial members. We hope to be able to support them further, as they continue to support our members.
Members have told us about the help they have received from David and his team:
“Dr Keenan put me at ease within minutes of meeting him. He doesn’t judge or jump to conclusions. He listens.”
“David and I got to know each other over the weeks we met. His is so knowledgeable, and I feel I can talk freely to him. He wants to make a difference, and he really helped me.”
“Veconi always say that we are in this together. Dr Keenan makes me feel as if we are.”
“I cannot thank Dr Keenan enough for the way he welcomed me into his home and helped me through a hard time in my life.”
Dr Keenan is pictured with the cheque from Community.
In your community
Community believes that everyone can change the world around them, and we want people to take greater control of their neighbourhoods, building strong communities to create real, lasting change.
In your community is about bringing people together to find solutions to important local issues. We want to help members become a pillar of their community by giving them support and resources.
An integral part of In your community is our regional charity fund, which helps members and branches support local causes that matter to their communities.
Community: the union for justice and custodial sector workers
Community is the union for justice and custodial sector workers, representing thousands of members whose work is vital to our justice system and to public safety.
Our members work for a range of organisations in the sector. We represent workers at private prisons, secure immigration centres, young offender institutions, courts, in prisoner escorting and much more. We are a modern trade union, campaigning for a better working world.
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If you are a member of Community and need help or advice, please contact us at help@community-tu.org or on 0800 389 6332.
© Community Trade Union 2025
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