We’re extremely pleased that our Helpline is now open. We hope that our one-to-one listening service, run by trained and vetted volunteers and via live-chat, will help young teens worried about friendships, bullying or feeling different and older teens and young adults with concerns about coming out, relationships and navigating the world as a lesbian, gay man or bisexual.
Take a look at our Q&A to find out more.
Q: Why did you set up the Helpline?
In short, it was needed. There is no other dedicated service for teens and young adults who want to talk about their feelings around being same-sex attracted.
Q: What kind of service is it?
It’s a listening service. The Helpline does not offer counselling or provide therapeutic interventions. Instead it provides a welcome space for those who’d like to share their feelings.
As all of the volunteers are lesbian, gay or bisexual, and the young person getting in touch will know that, we hope they will feel able to speak freely in a warm and empathetic place, without judgement.
We’re all so positive about being LGB and we hope that a young person, who may be feeling worried about their own future, is reassured that it will be OK to be gay for them too.
Q: How is it different to any other service?
Like other helplines, we’ll be there to support teens and young adults facing a whole host of issues – ranging from coming out and bullying to break-ups and family alienation.
What makes us unique is that the service won’t suggest to a teenage girl who feels different, because she prefers short hair and playing sport, that she might really be a boy. And it won’t tell a teenage boy who is being bullied for being effeminate that maybe he’s really a girl.
Many young adults report being shamed for their lesbian, gay or bisexual relationships by those who would say that same-sex attraction is in some way bigoted. We start from the premise that homosexuality is perfectly natural.
Q: How did you find your volunteers?
We sent out a call for Helpline volunteers in our newsletter and expected, perhaps, ten responses. We were astonished to receive more than one hundred, and many of those people were extraordinarily well-qualified. As a result we were able to select volunteers with decades of helpline experience between them gained at organisations such as The Samaritans, Crisis or the Lesbian and Gay Switchboard. In addition, in their professional lives, many worked in roles related to the safeguarding of children or vulnerable adults or were mental health or education professionals.
As a new service, having that level of expertise on board from day one was a huge advantage.
Q: What about safeguarding?
At the very start of this process, LGB Alliance decided that if we could not deliver this service safely, we wouldn’t deliver it at all.
So we developed Safeguarding, Code of Conduct and Privacy policies, which were reviewed and approved by the safeguarding lead on our Board, and which were read and signed by all candidates.
We undertook a Safer Recruitment process that included an in-person assessment and training day where sample scripts were discussed, scenarios were role-played and ethical questions around the operation of the line debated.
Each candidate also underwent an interview with a panel, certified in Safer Recruitment, and was asked questions that explored their understanding of safeguarding and their responsibilities as they relate to young people.
Despite the fact that no personal data is captured by the Helpline, we asked all candidates to sign a non disclosure agreement (NDA) forbidding discussion of any of the conversations they had or viewed, to add an additional layer of confidentiality.
Finally, each candidate underwent an Enhanced DBS check with Barred Lists. This is the highest DBS Level.
Our volunteers have all received a training manual which includes the relevant policies and processes and we are committed to refreshing training at regular intervals.
Q: Why did you select the age range 13 – 24?
Adolescence is often a time of turmoil and change and teenagers can struggle as they begin to think about who they are.
Whilst acting on any sense of same-sex attraction may be years away, the worries and fears associated with the idea that you are ‘different’ often start early.
Young adults, on the other hand, may be more settled in their sexual orientation but struggling with a new world of relationships.
Whilst the support would be framed differently and always in an age appropriate manner, the underlying message from our volunteers will be meaningful to all teens and young adults – it’s always fine to be you.
Q: Can you be sure that children are kept safe when using your service?
This is our top priority.
Everyone who gets in touch will be connected directly, via live-chat, to a one-to-one conversation with a trained volunteer. There are no chat rooms and there is no peer-to-peer contact. We are alert to the fact that any service for young people is liable to be targeted by those who would seek to exploit their vulnerability and we have taken steps to guard against that.
All contacts will be asked how old they are so that the volunteer can respond to them in an age-appropriate and responsible manner. It will also ensure that they can advise children against risky or illegal contact with others.
Each volunteer who is responding to a contact will be overseen by another volunteer to ensure the appropriateness of their response and to help all volunteers to learn and improve.
All text-chats are saved, securely stored in the cloud, and are not accessible to anyone beyond the official administrators of the helpline.
All calls will be logged to include details of the caller’s age, the reason for the call and a summary of the outcome.
Delivering support to teens and young adults is an enormous responsibility and we take it extremely seriously. We need ‘critical friends’. It would be foolish to pretend we know everything and we will listen to experts and service users who suggest how we can improve. We welcome comment and scrutiny and we will actively seek advice and always aim for best-practice.
Q: What’s next?
This is a six-month pilot and we want to determine which age group is calling the most frequently, what are the most common problems and how we can better meet the needs of the young people who get in touch. There will inevitably be changes to the way the service is delivered and to the way it is presented and promoted over time. We aim to improve and hope to grow.
Ultimately, our sincerest wish is that we can help adolescents and young adults to feel good about themselves and to live happy and fulfilled lives. We hope our support will help to make that happen.
Help us share this important service by downloading a copy of the helpline poster and putting it up in your local community, college, university, workplace…wherever you think it could make a difference!
Download a copy HERE.