Help is at hand this Christmas
All areas: Samaritans volunteers prepare for rise in calls
Slough Windsor and Maidenhead Samaritans is launching its Christmas campaign to help support callers with increasing family worries this season.
New Samaritans data has revealed that family concerns have continued to rise over the past five years – exacerbated by the festive period.
Throughout 2021, family worries have made up 34 per cent of reasons for contacting the charity – a 26 per cent increase over the past five years.
“If there’s a problem in the family, they may feel they can’t talk to the family about it,” said Graeme Buck, trustee of Slough Windsor and Maidenhead Samaritans.
“They talk to Samaritans because they find it easier and they know it’s confidential.”
He added that the number of calls increases around Christmas as it is ‘one of the pressure-point times of year’.
The 100-or-so volunteers at
Slough Windsor and Maidenhead Samaritans receive around 4,500 calls a year – around 1,000 of these are over the Christmas period.
“It’s a time when people who’ve lost loved ones most miss them,” Graeme said.
“There are people who haven’t been able to get in touch with their family at all.
“They are missing the support people can feel just from being with family.”
Though the challenges of last year’s Christmas with tough Tier 4 restrictions in Berkshire look unlikely to return this year, there have been increasing concerns about the new variant.
“We’re starting to see people becoming more and more concerned about travelling and parties,” said Graeme.
As such, the branch expects to receive the same number of calls this Christmas as last.
Its Christmas campaign, Be A Samaritans Christmas Star, will help make up for some loss of fundraising opportunities due to COVID and cover the costs of keeping its offices COVIDsafe.
Sue Yerburgh, branch director for Slough Windsor and Maidenhead Samaritans, said: “Our amazing volunteers will, as they do every hour of every day, be giving their time this Christmas to anyone who needs support.
“I think that is a pretty special gift to give and I know what a huge difference it makes to people’s lives.”
For anyone who is struggling this Christmas, the Samaritans can be contacted for free, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Call 116 123 or email jo@samaritans
.org