ABSTRACT
Helplines are often viewed as points to access advice or information rather than sources of therapeutic input. However, the first official helpline call was made on 2 November 1953 to a young vicar, Edward Chad Varah. After he had officiated at the service of a 14-year-old girl who had taken her own life he was inspired by the coroner’s comment that the tragedy might have been averted if the girl had had somebody to talk to, so he set up a telephone service from his church in London. He took 27 calls in the first week. Since those initial calls, the number of helplines and the variety of services offered by them has mushroomed, with the Telephone Helplines Association directory listing nearly 1,300 helplines throughout the UK. This is perhaps unsurprising given the advantages of accessibility, availability and anonymity that a helpline confers. The phone can also be less intrusive than face-to-face work and the caller has control, allowing them to disclose issues at a time and pace comfortable for them. This chapter will explore the work of a helpline that is specific and unique in that it was established to provide help in the particular area of sexual trauma and intellectual disability, with a brief to provide direct support to people with intellectual disabilities – a group that traditionally have found it difficult to access help for themselves.
