Samaritans awarded new BSI safeguarding standard PAS5222

Samaritans awarded ‘Safeguarding Children in Out of School Settings’ standard. Samaritans has just achieved the new British Standards Institution (BSI) standard ‘Safeguarding children in out of school settings – PAS5222’. BSI is the national body responsible for preparing British Standards and other standards-related publications, information and services. The new standard came into effect on 05 March 2024 and Samaritans commissioned BramahHR and Safeguarding to complete the inspection and audit. Inspection and audit steps BramahHR and Safeguarding held a range of interviews with key stakeholders and those responsible for delivering safeguarding…

Read More

Peter Crouch launches free chat-powered taxi service in support of football fans’ mental health

New research released today revealed that two-thirds (64%) of football fans struggle with their mental health, with almost half (42%) turning to an unlikely source of support – taxi drivers. Today’s study from leading mobile network, Three UK, found that the anonymity of a taxi ride can help people open up, with two-in-five (40%) agreeing that it makes it easier to talk about personal issues, and half (50%) believing it’s easier to talk to someone they don’t know because they won’t be judged. To encourage football fans of all ages…

Read More

Samaritans reports third consecutive year of rising calls from those facing financial hardship

Samaritans is calling on the Government to increase investment in vital suicide prevention and mental health support, as new analysis reveals the number of people accessing the charity’s support services over financial concerns has risen for a third year in a row. Latest data from the suicide prevention charity reveals the toll that the cost-of-living crisis is taking on the nation’s mental health. While people call Samaritans for a range reasons, finance stands alone as the only concern to see a sustained year-on-year increase. In 2024, nearly 160,000 callers for…

Read More

Standard Life support Samaritans to help those struggling this Christmas

Standard Life, part of Phoenix Group, is for a second year in a row providing support to Samaritans with a series of activities ahead of Christmas, designed to ensure people know where to turn if they are struggling to cope during the festive period. Funding of calls on Christmas Day While Samaritans is busy every day of the year, we know the festive period can be particularly tough for some. To support those looking for someone to talk to, Standard Life will be helping to keep Samaritans services running on…

Read More

Three UK helps Samaritans answer the call for more volunteers

Hundreds more Samaritans volunteers will be on shift in the coming years thanks to a donation of £150,000 from Three UK as part of its ongoing partnership with the charity. The funding sees Three UK become a proud supporter of the Samaritans Training School, a project designed to make the charity’s volunteer training more flexible and accessible. Three’s funding will help Samaritans recruit and train 300 more listening volunteers who will go on to deliver around 13,000 hours of volunteering – answering around 50,000 calls from people who need emotional…

Read More