When was Samaritans set up and why?

The Samaritans was set up in 1953 by Chad Varah, a vicar working in central London at the time. He wanted to provide an emergency service that people could contact when they were feeling despairing and suicidal. Chad’s inspiration came from an experience he had in his own parish. He had carried out a funeral for a young girl of 15 who had taken her own life because she feared she had contracted an STD. In reality she was menstruating.

Chad offered a drop in service and set up a phone line for people who lived too far away or were unable for any reason to visit in person. The demand for the service was so great that Chad began recruiting volunteers to help him run the service and from there, Samaritans has grown over the last 50 years to Samaritans as it is today.

Chad’s belief was the same as those of Samaritans today: that by listening to someone’s problems and offering them the time and space to work things through, they may be able to find the strength to find a way forward.

Find out more about our history