Exeter

We would like to invite you to one of our upcoming information evenings, if you’re interested in volunteering for our branch. These 90-minute sessions are a fantastic opportunity to ask more questions, meet some existing Samaritans and find out more about the work we do.

In light of the current situation with Coronavirus and social distancing, we have had to cancel our Open Events for the meantime. Future sessions will be announced on this page, so please keep checking back. Whilst you wait, please feel free to email us on: [email protected] and/or follow us on Twitter @ExeSamaritans.

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Exeter Samaritans - who we are

Exeter Samaritans held its first meeting to recruit volunteer listeners in November 1963 - one of the first out-of-London branches, set up some 10 years after the national organisation was founded by the Reverend Chad Varah.

Exeter Samaritans’ telephone number ‘went live’ in 1964 and by 1970 there were 1,800 annual ‘contacts’ from people by telephone or face-to-face.

By 1975 contacts had increased to 6,865. The local branch increased in geographical size to cover parts of Devon as well as Exeter, larger premises were used and at different times the local branch had a city centre charity shop and its own caravan.

In 1992 a Listeners team was created in Exeter Prison where prisoners are trained by Samaritans to support their peers - a vital part of our activities that still thrives today.

In 1999 we moved to our current Richmond Road premises, as the charity began to respond to callers by email and more recently SMS text messages as well as the original telephone and face-to-face.

During 2017 we responded to 38,727 contacts within the branch; 26,079 telephone calls, 4626 emails and 7875 text messages and spoke with 147 callers face to face.

At present, we have over 120 volunteers at our Exeter branch and provide a number of outreach services across the local area. A team of Samaritans deliver emotional wellbeing talks to school students, we regularly hold fundraising collections at supermarkets and a dedicated team continue our work supporting Listeners in Exeter Prison

In addition to this, in partnership with CRUSE, we have a team of volunteers who run Facing the Future support groups for those bereaved by suicide. For more information on this scheme go here: https://www.facingthefuturegroups.org/.

To enquire about volunteering or any of the other services above please contact John on [email protected] or call our admin line on 01392 496649.

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At Samaritans, privacy is at the heart of what we do. We are committed to protecting your privacy and the personal information that we hold. Read our privacy statement here.