UPDATE: PREVIOUS RELATED ARTICLE:
THE number of crisis calls from children to one of the country’s leading emergency helplines has risen by a shocking 56,000 in just one year.
Figures revealed by the Irish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (ISPCC) show that in the past 11 months a massive 722,849 calls to the group were made by vulnerable children.
HELPLINES:
The number of cries for help — which equates to more than 2,200 calls a day since the start of 2010 — is 56,000 higher than the 666,849 contacts during the same period in 2009.
The ISPCC has confirmed the startling rise is directly linked to growing recession-related family incidents, with all kinds of abuse (13%) and everyday family disagreements (63%) now accounting for almost three out of every four calls.
However, despite this situation the group has warned that funding problems mean 40% of crisis calls are left unanswered — a situation which is unlikely to change in the near future.
“All of our services have seen a huge increase in demand as the current state of the economy impacts on children and their families,” explained ISPCC chief executive, Ashley Balbirnie.
“Worryingly, too many of these children are in abusive or harmful situations and are dreading what Christmas may bring.”
According to the ISPCC, a total of 484,218 calls from children in danger have been answered by the service since the start of this year. The figure is more than double the 203,889 contacts in 2005 and is likely to exceed the overall annual figure of 512,689 calls in 2009 when the full 2010 level is announced.
The average number of weekly calls to the service so far this year stands at 10,086, with a massive 4,500 calls a week in the Dublin area alone and 1,100 in Cork.
The figures came after the ISPCC told a Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children meeting in July that funding difficulties meant almost 300 children were on waiting lists at the time for specialist services provided by the charity.
The ISPCC has called for public donations to help provide support to children at risk of abuse. Funds can be given via the www.ispcc.ie website, by calling 1850 50 40 50, or by purchasing an ISPCC “Holly badge” for €2.
* To contact ISPCC’s Childline, the free, 24-hour helpline for children and teenagers, tel: 1800 666 666.
---------------The number of children calling ChildLine with concerns about their parents' drinking and drug abuse has doubled in the past year, the charity has said.
The NSPCC's 24-hour helpline received 5,323 calls - more than 100 a week - from children worried about by their parents' behaviour, up from 2,509 the previous year.
Many of the children who contacted the service were between the ages of 12 and 15, but a substantial minority - one in 10 - were aged 11 or under and still at primary school.
The charity said thousands of children live in fear of being on the receiving end of their parents' anger, with one in six saying they had fallen victim to physical violence by their mum or dad when they were under the influence.
Many children are being forced to live in dirty and even dangerous surroundings because the household money is frittered away on alcohol, the charity added.
The emotional trauma of their parents' substance abuse combined with their chaotic home lives is driving many children to depression, self harm and even suicidal thoughts, the NSPCC claimed.
One child told ChildLine: "My dad has been drinking and taking drugs a lot recently - it's ruining our family.
"He gets angry when he has been drinking so he says nasty things to us like we are stupid and worthless. I'm finding it difficult to deal with because underneath it all I know he's a really good dad."
Tom Rahilly, head of services for families affected by alcohol and drugs at the NSPCC, said: "What we hear from children is that they are concerned that their parents are using drugs or alcohol to blot out worries in their lives around jobs, money and housing issues.
"The recent benefit cuts are hitting families in particular households. But the higher counselling rates could also be that more children are aware of ChildLine and that they have someone to turn to."
However, he warned against stereotyping and said that children from all walks of life, including middle class families, were affected by the problem.
He said that many children were faced with a "feeling of helplessness", while others were faced with the traumatic role reversal of playing parent to their own mother and father.
The charity warned the figures were just the tip of the iceberg, and estimates that some 250,000 children in the UK have parents with drug problems, and three in 10 children live with at least binge-drinking parent.
:: Children can seek help by contacting ChildLine on 0800 1111 or at childline.org.uk. Adults with concerns about a child should call the NSPCC helpline on 0808 800 5000.
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