Please be aware, Live Chat is not an emergency or crisis service. If you are in immediate danger, please phone 999 or visit your local A&E department.

What is Live Chat?

  • Live Chat is a free, confidential* space for you to get emotional support and information.
  • Live Chat is open to anyone aged 13 or over who has been affected by sexual violence at some time during their lives.
  • It is open to people living in the Avon and Somerset region (Bath, Bristol, North Somerset, Somerset, South Glos).

Support for survivors outside of Avon and Somerset

When is the Live Chat open?

  • Tuesday: 12pm – 2pm & 6pm – 8pm
  • Wednesday: 6pm – 8pm
  • Thursday: 12pm – 2pm & 6pm – 8pm

Other Resources

  • Friends and family
  • Self help guides (these are available in various languages and cover direct support for survivors, how to support someone you care about, and supporting men and boys).
  • You can also contact us via our email support service (support@sarsas.org.uk) or through our anonymous telephone helpline: 0808 801 0456.

Other questions

The session will last up to 30 minutes (you may have less time if the Live Chat session is ending soon). You will talk to one of our volunteer support workers.

We are here to provide emotional support and to give information about resources and services that might be of help.

You decide what you want to talk about. You are welcome to talk about what has happened to you, but you do not have to. You may want to talk about how you are feeling now, discuss a situation you are finding hard, or simply talk about how your week is going.

What you decide to share is up to you and at whatever pace works for you. You can end the chat at any time and do not have to give a reason.

Our team members can explain SARSAS services to you on Live Chat.

You can ask for an assessment for longer-term services, but at this point we will ask for information about you (e.g. address, date of birth…) which we will enter onto our database. The team member will explain this to you at the time and talk you through the process to check you are happy.

The team are all part of SARSAS. We are trained in supporting Survivors of Sexual Violence. We work as a small team with a supervisor on each shift so that if a team member isn’t sure how best to support you, they can ask their Supervisor for ideas or suggestions.

You will not be identified in any way when you join the chat. This means that the team member will not know who you are or if you have used the service before. The only identifying information we will be aware of is what you decide to share with us.

We have a duty to work with other agencies to support you if we are concerned that you, or someone else, is at immediate risk (often known as ‘safeguarding’). We can only do this if you have decided to share your information, for example your name and where you live, with us. We won’t do anything without telling you unless this would place you (or another person) at greater risk, which is a very rare situation.

The chat will remain, anonymously, on our system for a short time (1 month), during which time the supervisor may check some of the chats to see if there are any training needs for the team. After this time the chat transcripts will be automatically deleted and not saved on any system. If you do not want your transcript to be stored for 1 month please let us know and we will delete it immediately after your chat.

For more information please see our Privacy Statement.

Your chat will only be seen by the team member you are talking to, and their supervisor, who will monitor conversations to check you are receiving the best possible support.

You are welcome to contact us multiple times. However, as chats are not saved the team member will not know what you have shared before. Team members do not use their real names so it won’t be possible to connect you to the same person you spoke to before.

Our team members only speak to 1 person at a time, and as conversations can last up to 30 minutes there may be times when you aren’t able to get through. You are welcome to call our helpline or contact us via e-support in the meantime. You may also be able to use Rape Crisis England and Wales Live Chat which is open to women and girls 16+.

Should a team member believe they are dealing with a prank or obscene caller, they have the right to end the chat.

At the end of the session a short survey will pop up on your screen. Your views are incredibly important to us so that we can keep improving the service as well as supporting us to gain future funding for the service.

Your feedback will not be seen by the person you have chatted with.

If you would like to make a complaint about the Live Chat Helpline service or an operator, please visit our complaints page.

Want to talk?

Our two helplines have been combined. Anyone can call either line at anytime.

Call

0808 801 0456

0808 801 0464

Mon and Fri: 11am – 2pm,
Tue, Wed and Thu: 6pm – 8pm

Live Chat

Tue and Thu: 12noon – 2pm & 6pm – 8pm, Wed: 6pm – 8pm

Email

support@sarsas.org.uk

What to expect when you call

These lines are open to all.  Girls, boys, women and men can call either of our two helplines. Trans and non-binary callers  are welcome.

Want to talk?

From Monday 23 March our two helplines will be combined. Anyone can call either line at anytime.

Call

0808 801 0456

0808 801 0464

Mon and Fri: 11am – 2pm,
Tue, Wed and Thu: 6pm – 8pm

Live Chat

Tue and Thu: 12noon – 2pm

Email

support@sarsas.org.uk

What to expect when you call

These lines are open to all. Girls, boys, women and men can call either of our two helplines. Trans and non-binary callers  are welcome.

Listening, believing & supporting