Have you ever used a Helpline?

Options
Albus_Scope
Albus_Scope Posts: 10,242 Scope Online Community Coordinator
in Coffee lounge
Whether you’ve used one in the past, or you work or volunteer for one, it’s likely almost everyone has come across various helplines and the important work they do.

In 2023 the Helplines Partnership launched Helpline awareness day, in celebration and to bring recognition to all of the life-affirming and sometimes overlooked people that work on helplines, like secret superheroes providing support day (and sometimes night!).

Have you used a helpline? Is there a helpline you’ve found particularly helpful in the past?

Here’s what one of Scope’s very own helpline staff had to say:

"Working on a disability helpline is the most rewarding role I’ve ever done in my career life. When you are able to empower and support someone via a short phone call. And they feedback to you that that conversation has helped them immensely the rewards cannot be described.
You also get the benefit of learning from customers from their experiences. More than you’d ever learn from a course, reading or degree.
Having lived experience of disability doing a role at Scope helps me give back to a cause I am incredibly passionate about." - Louise

Comments

  • Albus_Scope
    Albus_Scope Posts: 10,242 Scope Online Community Coordinator
    Scope's helpline provides free, independent and impartial advice and support on issues that matter to disabled people and their families.

    The team is made up of 15 hard-working advisers, two team leaders and a benefits specialist and on average each year they manage around 40,000 different contacts.

    Increased demand for helpline services during the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis in the UK have put additional strain on our service. As a result, it is more important than ever to raise awareness about the valuable work that helplines do.

    The helpline team support 100s of customers each day and it is really important that as a service we understand and capture what is impacting disabled people and their families the most so that we can share this with the wider organisation to support the work we do as a charity.

    The main trends we see on the helpline are queries relating to benefits, housing, social care and employment and more recently the cost of living.
    We provide people with information and signposts to services that specialise in those areas to help them reach solutions.

    Where appropriate we guide people on their rights and what they may be entitled to and provide them with the tools and direction they need.
    We seek to empower people to take action themselves where appropriate rather than completing the action for them.
  • 66Mustang
    66Mustang Online Community Member Posts: 14,995 Championing
    As someone who can't use the phone I appreciate the value of helplines to others, whether they offer practical or emotional support or anything in between, but would appreciate it if the "industry" was more inclusive. For example if there were more "helplines" that were accessed via some other source such as live chat
  • Albus_Scope
    Albus_Scope Posts: 10,242 Scope Online Community Coordinator
    I agree there's often a lack of accessibility with helplines, so online chat and such, but I think that is often due to a lack of funding. 
     And yes, having worked on helplines before, it can be very emotionally draining, but a simple thank you can really make your day. :)  

    I'm very glad they were able to offer you assistance @woodbine, that's great to hear. <3 

Categories