Everyone knows that there are loads of telephone helplines now in the UK, providing support for all kinds of people in all sorts of circumstances.
But did you know that Samaritans is...
...the first helpline of its kind, set up over 50 years ago in 1953?
...the only emotional support service available 24 hours a day to everyone?
This means that anyone can contact Samaritans at any time to talk about anything. People call to talk about problems at school, work or home. Sometimes their problems might seem so terrible the caller doesn’t know how to go on with life. Some people call because they just need someone to talk to about something they don’t want to bother other people about.
Sick of being told what to do?
If you phone, email or visit a local branch, Samaritans will not judge you or tell you what to do. The volunteer might ask you how you are feeling and invite you to talk about what’s on your mind. Above all, Samaritans will be on your side and want to discuss what you want to talk about – it really can help to talk.
Do Samaritans tell anyone else what callers say?
Samaritans decided a long time ago that most people would not call if they thought that anyone else would find out what they had said. So absolutely everything that anyone says remains completely confidential to Samaritans.
Email
Since 1992 it has been possible to contact Samaritans by email as well as on the phone. Volunteers aim to respond to emails sent to jo@samaritans.org within about 9 hours. Again, everything stays absolutely confidential to Samaritans – emails are routed via a central server, which removes details of the sender from the 'header' section so that volunteers don't even see the sender’s email address. The name Jo was chosen as an anonymous name which could be a man or a woman... the volunteer could be answering your email from any Samaritans branch.
Face to face
Some people prefer to meet someone in person to have a chat face to face. It's not necessary to make an appointment, you can just pop into the branch anytime up to 10pm to ask if there is someone you can chat to.
If you ever want to talk to someone who will really listen, be on your side, not tell anyone what you've said and never tell you what to do, you can call the Samaritans at any time.
National number:
08457 90 90 90 for the cost of a local call
Would YOU like to be a volunteer?
If you are 18 years old or over and think that you would enjoy the very fulfilling role of working as a volunteer, Samaritans would like to hear from you.
Call 08705 62 72 82, or visit the Samaritans website to apply online or find out about how you could help out at major festivals.
On the website, you can also find real-life accounts from young volunteers describing how they find working for Samaritans.
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