About our service
24 Hour Availability
Callers can contact Samaritans by telephone, letter, and e-mail. The commitment to making
these means of access available 24 hours a day will be maintained
by all branches (except Festival and Correspondence branches).
Callers can visit a branch for face-to-face support (except
Correspondence branch). Each branch will advertise when they are
available for face-to-face support. Find your local branch
Samaritans' aim is to ensure that telephone and minicom callers
are not kept waiting for a response and that as many as possible
get through first time.
The objective for distributing calls via 08457 90 90 90 (UK) and
1 850 60 90 90 (ROI) is to cascade geographically by locality and
region to try to ensure that no caller receives the engaged tone
when a volunteer is available to take a call.
Confidentiality
All information relating to a caller is confidential to
Samaritans unless:
- We have informed consent from a caller to pass on
information
- We call an ambulance because a caller appears to be incapable
of making rational decisions for him or herself
- We receive a court order requiring us to divulge
information
- We are passed information about acts of terrorism or bomb
warnings
- A caller attacks or threatens volunteers
- A caller deliberately prevents the service from being delivered
to other callers
- Samaritans maintains confidentiality even after the death of a
caller.
Honesty
Samaritans publicly state how information relating to callers is
used.
Callers are informed of what volunteers can and cannot
offer.
Samaritans do not make recordings of calls but occasionally a
colleague may listen in for training purposes and/or to offer
support to the volunteer engaged with a caller.
All complaints will be investigated fully and sympathetically
and callers will receive a response in the shortest possible
time.
Callers in need of Samaritans' service are accepted without
prejudice and encouraged to talk or write about their feelings,
acknowledge their emotions and explore options.
Volunteers use their listening skills, recognise the needs of
callers and respond appropriately.
Volunteers will not impose their own convictions, or influence
callers, in regard to politics, philosophy or religion.
If a caller is at risk of suicide, or in despair, follow up
contact is offered.
With a caller's permission, and after consultation with the
person responsible for Caller Care, a group of volunteers may be
assigned to a caller, to offer support through a period of
distress.
If a caller is in need of other help, information may be passed
on about other agencies (if held). With the caller's informed
consent, and after consultation with the person responsible for
Caller Care, a referral may be made on their behalf.
Samaritans also welcomes appropriate referrals from other
agencies or individuals.
Samaritans aim to offer a consistent service to callers. To
support this aim, the care being offered is regularly reviewed and
evaluated, to ensure it encourages callers to work towards managing
their lives without dependency or attachment.
Samaritans volunteers are subject to a police record check
(except in Ireland), selected and specially trained.
To ensure the safety and welfare of callers and volunteers,
Samaritans' service is only available while volunteers are fully
supported by a colleague and a leader.
If a volunteer deliberately prejudices the emotional or physical
safety of callers, or the reputation of the organisation, this will
be deemed as an act of serious misconduct for which they will be
dismissed.
Samaritans strives to make the service as accessible as possible
to those most in need and supports the Disability Discrimination
and Equal Opportunities Acts.
Samaritans reserves the right to end a call or withdraw the
service if it is being used inappropriately.
Callers remain responsible for their lives and do not lose the
right to make decisions even if that decision is to take their own
life.
More information
Read
some common questions about Samaritans
Who
are Samaritans volunteers?