By Isle of Wight Observer
Childline can today reveal it has seen large numbers of children getting in touch due to Coronavirus (COVID-19), carrying out over 1,700 counselling sessions about the issue in the last three weeks alone – bringing the new total to over 2,200 since the end of January.
In the South East, Childline’s London base has delivered 353 counselling sessions to children worried about the coronavirus from the 21st of January to the 8th of April.
Despite Childline having to close the night service for the first time and having a 30% drop in volunteer hours, due to counsellors having to self-isolate, it’s battling to still be there for children across the UK.
The NSPCC, who runs Childline, grows increasingly concerned about the number of children who will experience abuse or neglect due to the impact of Coronavirus, with families struggling with lockdown, job losses and school closures.
During the past week Childline has delivered 363 counselling sessions where children have experienced physical, sexual, emotional abuse or neglect – up nearly a fifth from the week before. Counselling sessions about physical and emotional abuse increased by 36% and 31% respectively during this time.
To continue to support children during this challenging period, and to adapt to the ever- changing situation, the NSPCC has launched its emergency appeal ‘We’re still here for children’.
The NSPCC is urging the public to visit its website and donate £10 to help fund vital services like Childline, so the charity can continue to answer calls and be here for the young people who desperately need someone to talk to, especially when home isn’t a safe place.
A 15-year-old girl told Childline:
“I am not happy at home. My parents are physically abusing me – it’s happening quite often now since schools closed and I’m really scared. They hit me and often it leaves me with bruises. I really want to get out of the house and be somewhere safe and happy. I’m scared that my parents will get angry and hurt me more if I tell someone.”
In the past few weeks Childline has heard from children whose parents have lost their jobs and are under growing financial pressure, as well as from young carers struggling to look after their siblings whilst their parents fall sick with Coronavirus symptoms. Childline is also hearing from children who have had suicidal thoughts and talk about feeling trapped and isolated.
To support the appeal, the NSPCC has launched a new TV ad which features a Childline counsellor talking after a shift about the vital importance of the service.
Dame Esther Rantzen, Founder of Childline, said: “The world is an unfamiliar and very frightening place for thousands of children across the UK at the moment. We know that school no longer provides the sanctuary it once did and many young people are having to face unprecedented challenges at home without the vital support networks that normally surround them. Childline is more crucial than ever as a safe way children can reach out for help. We really are, as one volunteer counsellor told me, the fourth emergency service.
“Now more than ever we must continue to be there for the young people who desperately need us, no matter what. We don’t know what other challenges lie ahead, but we want to be prepared to weather any storm so that we can be there for children. That is why we are urging the public to get behind our very important emergency appeal and donate £10 so that we can provide essential support.”
Peter Wanless, CEO of NSPCC, said: “At this uncertain time when children’s lives have changed so dramatically the NSPCC needs to be there as a reassuring voice for those worried about their children and for the most vulnerable in our society.
“Sadly, we know that for many children, home isn’t a safe place and they need our Childline counsellors more than ever. This is the greatest challenge we’ve faced in decades and we are calling on the support of the public to help us ensure we can still be here for children.”
Isle of Wight Observer