Samaritans of Limerick & Tipperary established a Peer Listening service in University of Limerick to support 17,000 students
Peer Listeners 2018
There is now a “tsunami” of students presenting with mental health problems, according to Dr Declan Aherne, clinical psychologist and head of counselling at the University of Limerick (UL). Approximately 10,000 students are attending counselling at any one time across Ireland, which represents 6- 8 per cent of students on every campus, he says. At UL, numbers of students seeking counselling has doubled over the last five years.
Irish Times, Jan 10, 2017
In 2017 Samaritans of Limerick began a student peer listener service in the University of Limerick. The scheme involves students being trained by the Samaritans to become “listeners”, providing an on campus service to their fellow students. The UL Peer Listener scheme was developed in recognition of the essential role students play in supporting and encouraging one another throughout their time at university.
Samaritans Limerick recruited and trained 20 students, graduating to become Peer Listeners across 2017 & 2018. It is hoped that the UL Peer Listeners scheme will become an integral part of the support network in UL. UL students can contact [email protected] if they need support.
