Samaritans Avis 

It says to call anytime day or night. I called 3x at 3am and no answer. I was in my darkest of times. Aren't these supposed to be available for you?

If you’re even lucky to get someone

I hate using the services because they’re pointless and they don’t do anything. But when you feel low you don’t have a choice,

I tried the online one and sat there waiting for somebody to join the chat. The estimated time was five minutes which was actually more like 15 but when this person did arrive, all they said was I will say bye-bye and then give the chat.

Yeah, mental health means nothing to , Companies use it as a way to make themselves look good Every year for a week they put posters up, saying mental health matters open up

Truth is, she’s just a burn to society and nobody really cares whether you here or not, If you stay, you pay taxes For everybody else and get nothing out of society If you die, somebody else just takes over

Mental health You do alone

I have just had a very bad experience with 'a listener'.
I have given them two chances now and each time I have received the same respoinse, not interested, patronising and intimates the problem is yours and yours alone. Do not bother to phone these people.

I have just had a call with Michael from Samaritans and I was really struggling but he seemed genuinely happy to be speaking to me and didn’t judge me at all, this brung me back to reality and I’m really happy that we have good people like this in the world to help us in hard times.

I DON’T SAY THIS LIGHLTY BUT IT’S THE WORST MANGERED SHOPS I HAVE EVER COME ACROSS AND I WILL NEVER VOLUNTEER DUE TO THE TRUAMA AND NEGECT THAT COMPANY HAS CAUSED!
As of today (11th march) my husband has left with immediate effect and they came across as uncaring and handed a letter which we hope they will follow what they said about payment he has been bullied by another assistant manager who also made a threat of if he touched one of her displays, she would hurt him and when complaints were put In, they did nothing and blamed him. He has tried to communicate with the other assistant manager but was then accused of harassment when I also put in complaints, I also got accused of things I didn’t do and no proof was provided. My husband has been silenced and because he sent a truthful email to all volunteers and why he had to leave the main manager who refuses to listen to staff and volunteers he then sent an email to all volunteers blaming him. We will not be silenced or lie about how bad our experiences got after the mangers passing and how poorly this business is run. They would rather let go of loyal staff and volunteers instead of listening to feedback. The assistant manager has been a bully and has pushed my husband out of work and have ruined his health. I would honestly not support this charity. It’s a shame to say it has gone down hill ever since the manger passed away since the new one took over, he's uncaring with no compassion. As such we are left with no other option but to publicly display our grievances, as complaints and meetings have gone nowhere.
I had to leave after the manager took his own life and since the other took over he refuses to do anything about complaints. one assistant manager made it a toxic environment to be in. i have put in complaints to then be accused of things i haven't done and when i asked for polices on conflict of interest and proof of accusations they have gave me nothing but the other assistant manager is allowed to have her house mate volunteer along side her. so they made one rule and didnt enforces it on other people who live together. they would rather give a poor services and not look after their own staff. for a company to claim they listen and help they defiantly don't do that but if you put in complaints you wont get anywhere. they have also been letting a dog run around the shop and when the volunteers have said they have allergies the main manager will not do anything but it they let assistant manager do what she wants. may i add that may husband was with this charity for 6 yrs and myself for 1 yrs.

Wasn’t sure whether to give 3 or 4 stars to be fair. I called before in 2022, it did help. I was almost ready to finish the conversation. I just needed just a few minutes more. They ended it just a little abruptly. My only complaint for that time. If it was just eased up. I’m not sure how. It’s not really my job to know how. Someone said they felt like they’d woken someone from their sleep. Kind of how I felt this time. I’m of course I wouldn’t want an over the top, hyper response lol, just a LITTLE bit more life, only a little bit. Honestly it sounded like they’ve given up. If someone is calling, they’ve most likely given up, I think it might help if they’re not greeted by someone who sounds like they have. There IS. WARMTH with them. KEEP THAT WARMTH PLEASE!! When giving a 1-2star review. You’ve written, “What went wrong this time?” Umm, maybe take way the words, ‘this time’. A simple, ‘what went wrong?’ Is sufficient & to the point. Yous don’t come off like yous are taking umbridge to any critique & suggestions on how to improve & I don’t think yous are looking to come off like yous take criticisms, or possible suggestions for improvement personally. I hope this helps. I do appreciate the service you provide.

Spoke to Martin (Nottingham) who was calming and supportive though I do think they should be trained not to ask "what should you do?" ... if I knew what to do I'd do it! It's a bit hit and miss who you get but this guy helped. I've had someone advise me before when I had self harmed to have a hot drink!

I needed some support a little while a go after I began to feel depressed .I felt much happier after talking to them

I'd Never Ring The Samaritans Again Spoke To A Guy Called Stuart (I Think) The Next Minute He Fobbed Me Off To Speak To Someone Else (Another Caller) From The Advise Of His Colleague Shame On You Both And The Samaritans AVOID Like The Plague People!!!

I was on hold with them for 7 minutes then they said I was going to be connected with an agent. They said I was about to connect with an agent and then they hung up the phone on me after 5 minutes of silence and nobody on the other end. I called back to complain about this and nobody believed me. I ended up SHing due to this and when I tried to ring them back up today I found out I've been banned from the service for 3 months.

I applied for a volunteer role with Samaritans, but my experience was deeply disappointing. My application was ignored for 15 months until I sent a reminder email. Eventually, I was told that my physical disability disqualified me because I couldn’t do night shifts—this was after they had already invited me for an interview.

The entire process felt disorganized and unprofessional. The staff lacked basic interviewing skills, and the questions seemed designed to assess how easily someone could be manipulated rather than genuinely exploring suitability for the role.

After reading similar reviews, my experience was, sadly, no surprise. If you're seeking help, I’d strongly recommend looking for an organization with trained and professional staff. Trusting this one could be a mistake.

I would not like to be associated with Samaritans.

Samaritans real life heroes
Samaritans have been there for me at my lowest times and given me the support and the time that I needed. I think what they do and the service that they provide as VOLUNTEERS is nothing short of remarkable. Without their support I am confident that I would have not made it through the night. Thank you to those who give their time to support people in need. You are all Angels.

I can be silent no longer on this subject. Please be mindful & aware that Samaritans are exploiting & abusing vulnerable individuals. By making them go through a series of intrusive questions about their personal lives. When they don’t get the answers they want, they become abusive, aggressive & arrogant towards vulnerable people. This leads me to believe that they are secretly working undercover for the DWP. Only the DWP would be asking questions about your personal day to day care not some random unqualified person on the phone who claims to be a volunteer. You feel like when you come on the phone that you’re being interrogated. It’s a horrible experience not being able to trust someone especially in a mental health crisis. The advisors don’t have any empathy at all. It’s a case of oh why can’t you this or why can’t you do that. When you try explaining you are on certain medications or have disabilities. They just try to shut you down & disregard you as a person. Everything has to be on their terms! I personally won’t be using Samaritans again because of everything I’ve just mentioned. They are untrustworthy & you could be speaking to anyone who might not have had proper checks. Some volunteers cannot be DBS checked because they do not meet the criteria to be considered a "true" volunteer under the law, which means they might be receiving payment, are on a work placement, or are taking part in a training program that leads to a paid position, essentially benefiting directly from the role and not purely volunteering their time unpaid; in such cases, a DBS check is not applicable.

I rang up tonight wanting to speak to some one not only did I wait more than 5 mins but the phone line cut me off then when I rang they said almost the simaritens where busy on the phone lines was not impressed sorry

I called them and felt I was in the wrong for waking them up!!!!!! In the end I ended the call!! What a complete waste of time this call was!! Will never call them again!!!!!!!!

Tried calling in my “hour of need” and gave up after waiting over eight minutes to speak to someone.
Their website states they’re available any time of the day.
It’s a good job I wasn’t feeling suicidal.

I have only ever had really good experiences with the Samaritans, I think they are an amazing charity and believe if it wasn't for them I would have died a few times. When you are in a crisis, their is no point in having a crisis team if you have to wait 4 to 8 hours to speak to them but, I did not have to wait long to get through and being able to speak to someone in the height of my crisis, helped me so much and I always got someone lovely to speak to be a man or woman. They were kind, caring and listened and showed empathy. I have had to ring them a lot over the last two years because, my mental health hit rock bottom and I have no other support. When I suicidal and do low, they listened to me with no pressure to finish the call, when I could not lift my mood up myself after trying very hard myself I would ring them and just talking to them and the distraction would live my mood up and give me energy to fight on. I found it easier than the crisis team, because they are so busy and stretched. I was grateful for any help especially unpaid, they are volunteers and they do it out of the goodness of their hearts and I do grateful to them for saving my life at times. To me any charity help is a bonus because the mental health service don't help you or you wend up going round in circles and being past from pillar to post and it sends you mental. So for me Samaritans all I have to say is Thank you Samaritans.

I am deeply saddened by the cultural attitudes of the Samaritans here in Norwich, Norfolk, particularly in the retail section. I believe the individual in question has been with the Samaritans for many years, and while I expect this behavior has not been typical in the past, it was still disheartening.

During my experience, I felt unwelcome, particularly due to the influence of the manager, David, on some of the other volunteers. However, I did encounter a lovely, strong, mature individual who extended a welcoming hand to me in the city center shop.

David, the manager, appeared to obstruct my attempts to become a volunteer, but I refused to be discouraged by this. My overall experience left me feeling uncomfortable.

It was evident that the manager was influencing some volunteers, who would only engage with me when absolutely necessary. In his significant position, he should be displaying maturity and acting in a non-judgmental way, certainly not engaging in age discrimination or showing personal dislike towards someone.

I consider myself an outgoing, sociable, and well-rounded individual, so I found the overall mentality and culture very alien to me. In the retail section of the Samaritans, there are many vulnerable and impressionable individuals. It is crucial for them to feel that they will not be judged for their sexual orientation, gender identity, or any emotional and mental health challenges they may face while seeking social interaction.

Sent an email hoping for some moral support during a severe depressive episode. Never got a reply. This is obviously appalling, and I feel they should be taken to task for that. I mean, they're as much use a chocolate fireguard and have left me with no support during a very difficult and vulnerable time. Now what?

If 0 was possible would post, if suicidal at end of conversation will Want to do it. Useless automatic responses, and literacy if in state of need want to read!