VOLUNTEERS from a Cornwall charity have been putting in the miles to help those in distress.

Samaritans of Cornwall at Truro’s “Outreach Volunteers” have visited locations across the Duchy to reach those communities most in need of their services, especially over recent weeks, with plans under way for even more opportunities throughout the year.

Their latest visit was to Porthleven Food Festival last months, with plans now under way for a big display lasting six to eight weeks at the new council offices/library at Chy Trevail in Bodmin.

The team recently attended a ‘Well-Being and Health’ day at St Austell library to raise awareness, as well as spending a day at Truro railway station as part of #SmallTalkSavesLives; to give out awareness material and talk to those using the trains – a location that they frequent with support from GWR and Network Rail.

Over the past two months they have also given talks to Bodmin Rotary, Mevagissey WI, St Buryan YFC and BT Comms Workers Union, with talks arranged for St Day and Bethel WIs in May.

Richard Sutton, deputy director publicity for Samaritans of Cornwall at Truro, said: “Many people see Samaritans of Cornwall at Truro as a telephone support service for those with suicidal thoughts. It is vital that we communicate that, although this element is of course vital, we do so much more.

"We have an excellent team of Outreach Volunteers who go out into the community to reach people struggling with their mental health or in distress. Our work involves preventative measures, as well as dealing with the extremes.

"By visiting key locations, we can reach people that may not know about our services which include listening in places such as A+E and community groups such as Plant Eat and Teach, through to providing talks for other organisations such as Rotary Clubs and schools.

“The main purpose of visiting St Austell library and Truro station was to give out publicity material and help raise awareness. As a result, Samaritans of Cornwall at Truro has received requests to give talks to four different groups and interest from two potential new volunteers – which includes much needed help with our IT.”

Samaritans of Cornwall at Truro receives more than 50,000 contacts a year – as phone calls, emails, texts, face-to-face interviews and, vitally, proactively reaching out to make contact and meet the community.

The number of suicides in Cornwall is higher than the national average, with the instances of self-harm and attempted suicide continuing to rise; whilst some areas of the county are in the top 10% most deprived areas of the country.

Director of Samaritans of Cornwall at Truro, Sue Wright, said: “We want to visit more locations more often, to help those suffering from mental health issues, through face-to-face listening anywhere someone may be suffering a suicide or feelings of despair. We also want to give more talks to organisations embedded in our remote communities, such as Young Farmers, churches, village hall groups, Foodbanks, libraries, Rotary and WIs.

"This will help to build strong networks and open a dialogue about mental health within the organisation. It also encourages attendees to reach out within their personal networks about mental health.

“We receive many referrals from partner professionals in the mental health field, working closely with them to deliver the best course of action – including the Cornwall Multi Agency Suicide Prevention Group. We are proud of our outreach and share our successes and practices with the rest of the national Samaritans network.

"For example, Samaritans of Cornwall at Truro were one of the first to visit A+E departments 11 years ago, building a model that has now been adopted by other Samaritans across the country.”

Vital to increasing its outreach and talks is Samaritans of Cornwall at Truro’s plans to relocate to a different site within Cornwall that will be more accessible for its volunteers and beneficiaries. With an appeal target of £625,000 the charity has £148,000 remaining to raise in order to accomplish this and is currently searching for the ideal location.

As an independently registered charity, run entirely by volunteers, Samaritans of Cornwall at Truro is the only branch in Cornwall and relies on more than 120 volunteers to reach those in the county who are desperate, depressed, anxious and having suicidal thoughts, or who may be in the process of taking their life.

To support the appeal, or for further information, email CornwallSamsFR@gmail.com, visit Samaritans of Cornwall at Truro’s website www.samaritans.org/truro or tweet @CornwallSamari1