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Thanks for taking the time to visit our JustGiving page. The EY Cambridge office is fundraising to help support the Cambridge branch of the Samaritans service. Samaritans are an active listening charity aimed at providing emotional support to anyone in emotional distress, struggling to cope, or are at risk of suicide, 24 hours a day and 365 days a year.
The Cambridge branch has continued to operate throughout the Coronavirus pandemic, with volunteers travelling to the centre throughout lockdown to give up their time to be there for those who need it the most. Despite the continued commitment of volunteers and additional costs to continue to open, traditional fundraising methods have come to a halt. Therefore donations are needed now more than ever to safeguard and continue to develop such a vital service.
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Who are we?
Whatever you're going through, a Samaritan will face it with you. We're here 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. You can contact us free on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org and we will answer.
Our vision is that fewer people will die by suicide.
Cambridge Samaritans is run and staffed entirely by volunteers. There are 170 of us, from the branch director to the admin support volunteers, and we recruit and train around 40 more people every year. Our superpower is listening and as Samaritans Listeners, we do it morning, noon and night.
In 2019 Cambridge Samaritans:
- answered over 32,000 calls
- answered nearly 4,000 written contacts
- saw nearly 200 visitors at our centre
- spent over 9000 hours on the phone
In 2020/21 we:
- are providing part of the NHS "Our Frontline" helpline during the Covid 19 crisis
- will re-open our face to face service once it is safe to do so
- will increase our capacity to respond to calls and emails
- will Introduce instant messaging as another way for people to contact us
An economic miracle:
Public Health England estimates that every suicide carries an economic cost of 1.6 million pounds.
JW (a caller) put an even higher value on our service “Cambridge Samaritans were my lifeline when I was feeling desperate. They saved my life.”
For more information on the support offered and how to access that support, please visit: https://www.samaritans.org/
To find out more about what it was like to volunteer through the lockdown, please read: https://www.cambridgeindependent.co.uk/news/your-turn-to-be-good-help-cambridge-samaritans-9112029/
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Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.