27/02/2008

Childline Calls Unanswered

The Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children has revealed that over half of the calls made to Childline go unanswered.

The charity answered 294,908 of the 630,812 calls made to it during 2007, and blamed a lack of resources for its inability to answer all the calls made.

The figure is however a nine per cent improvement on 2006 and the ISPCC said that while it is pleased at being able to respond to more callers last year, it is hoping to improve on the figures further.

According to the figures released, 13% of the calls it dealt with last year related to abuse and violence. In addition, 16% of calls were connected to issues of sexuality, while four per cent were concerned with mental health issues.

The Charity has been faced with an unprecedented number of calls placed to Childline over the past few years. In 2002, the helpline responded to 101,658 calls from children, equivalent to 22% of all calls to the service. Last year, staff at the helpline were able to answer 47% of all calls.

The charity has however recently unveiled a new strategy aimed at ensuring it can answer all calls to its helpline by 2011.

(DW)

Related Irish News Stories
Click here for the latest headlines.

21 August 2013
Figures Show Extent Of Malicious Calls Made To Fire Service
Some 4,640 false calls were made to Cork City fire services from 2007 to 2011, figures obtained by Fine Gael TD John O’Mahony have revealed.
03 November 2014
Childline Night Service Under Threat Of Closure
As many as 45,000 calls could go unanswered by children and young people in need next year if Childline is forced to cancel its night service. The charity, which currently runs a 24-hour service, says it is in need of emergency funding if the service is to remain operational.
30 October 2009
Under Half Of Medical Questions Answered In Dáil
An Irish medical journey has revealed the Minister for Health has answered just 45% of parliamentary questions put to her during Dáil question time this year.
17 May 2013
ISPCC Figures Show 800,000 Calls Made To Childline In 2012
Almost 800,000 calls were made to Childline in 2012, with one in three going unanswered, RTÉ have reported. The Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children’s annual statistics for last year show that 14% of calls answered related to the issues of child abuse and welfare.
18 September 2024
Ireland's Biggest Winners From 2023 National Broadband Plan
It's been five years since the Irish government signed off on the National Broadband Plan, which aims to bring high-quality fibre internet to over a million Irish residents. It pays particular attention to an intervention area spanning over 500,000 premises, 65,000 farms and approximately 1.1 million people living in them.