Managing Loneliness project

If you have been introduced to the service by an adult in your life, we will only tell them that you are attending your sessions and making progress. We will not share anything you have told us in your sessions.

If you were not introduced to the service by an adult in your life, we will not share anything without your consent.

There are some situations that your befriender might need to pass on information to keep you safe. You can find out more about this on Childline’s confidentiality promise.

A befriender is a trained volunteer or Childline worker who offers companionship and support to someone feeling isolated and lonely. They are there to help you make changes in your life to improve how you are feeling.

They may share some interests with you which makes is easier to relate with them. They will only contact during the agreed times through your Childline online account.

Yes. If you change your mind or you do not feel the sessions are helping, you can withdraw your consent for this service at any time by informing your befriender. We will ensure the work is ended in a way that is suitable for your needs.

If you know in advance that you can’t make one of your weekly sessions, tell your befriender when you next speak to them. It is ok to miss a session and move it to the following week, or you can either agree an alternative day/time that suits you.

If you can’t make a session at the last minute, just send us a message from your Childline account to let us know. We can then offer you an alternative day or time for that session or move it to the following week.

If you think you are not getting on with your befriender, send us a message from your Childline account, we’ll work with you to understand what might be happening and explore the possibilities of pairing you with someone else. We will try our best to match you with someone that works for you, but we may also have to take the decision that the service may not be right for you if our attempts do not work.

Childline is available to speak to you about anything, any time. With this new service you’ll get support with how you’re feeling by having regular, planned sessions for a set period of time to help you find your own ways of coping with loneliness.

We hope that everyone feels supported by their befriender however it won’t be possible to continue speaking with them after your sessions have ended.

Yes, you can still speak to Childline as you normally do.

Your notes for this pilot will be kept in the same place as when you speak to Childline, but counsellors at Childline won’t look at what you’ve said to your befriender unless you ask them to, or they’re worried about your safety. Your befriender will know that you’ve spoken to Childline but won’t look at what you’ve said to the Childline counsellors unless they need to keep you safe.

While we pilot this service we will not be able to speak to other people. But your friends or other people will still be able to speak to a Childline counsellor any time.

We will keep notes on the discussions you have with your befriender, and we have a responsibility to keep all your personal information safe. You can read more about how we handle your personal information on the Childline Website.

You can ask for a copy of any personal information we have about you. This is called a ‘Subject Access Request’ and you can find the details on ‘asking for a copy of your records’ on the Childline website.

If you want to make a complaint, we want to hear it so we can think about how we might do things better. There is a choice of ways you can tell us your complaint and you can find the details on how to do this on the Childline website.