Childline received 300 ‘urgent risk of suicide’ calls last year

Children feel they cannot talk to their parents about their problems because they are already so worried about money and matters related to the recession, the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (ISPCC) has warned.

Caroline O’Sullivan, ISPCC director of services, was speaking at the publication of the organisation’s Childline figures for last year. The phone service for children in distress received 652,382 calls last year, of which 462,595 were answered.

Some 264,819 of these were considered serious and required “full engagement” from the call-takers. Some 300 of these, said the charity, were from children at “urgent risk of suicide”.

A total of 44.5 per cent (117,844) of these serious calls were about family and personal life and 13.5 per cent (35,750) were related to abuse and welfare issues.

Mental health issues accounted for 7.5 per cent (19,861) of the serious calls; concerns about sexuality for 11 per cent or 29,130 calls. Requests for information accounted for 17.5 per cent or 46,343 calls.

Ms O’Sullivan said an increasing number of children were turning to Childline to talk through their fears and concerns, who may in the past have turned to family.

However, she said the recession was putting increasing pressure on parents and families, and children felt they could not “add” to parents’ worries.

“The big thing the recession has done is that it has made children less likely to talk to their families about their worries, because they think the family is under enough pressure and they don’t want to add to it.

“So while children aren’t talking to us about money concerns, they are telling us they can’t tell mum or dad because they have enough worries with paying the mortgage or whatever else. They are worried about their families as well.”

Asked was the impact of the recession a feature in a high proportion, she replied, "it was nearly part and parcel of all the calls". Chief executive Grainia Long said an increasing proportion of contacts were made via the charity's online service.

Childline can be contacted 24 hours a day at 1800 66 66 66 or by texting "Talk" to 50101.