The Scottish Government

« Previous | Contents | Next »

Listen

EVALUATION OF THE SCOTTISH DOMESTIC ABUSE HELPLINE

CHAPTER THREE: CALLS TO THE HELPLINE

INTRODUCTION

3.1 This chapter presents information on the calls made to the Helpline which is useful: a) as a means of assessing the benefits to callers; and b) as a basis on which to plan future developments.

3.2 The information provided is based on an analysis of the Thus Plc statistics and/or the 459 completed research caller survey forms regarding:

• the level of use made of the Helpline
• characteristics of callers and victims
• the service provided
• access to the Helpline.

LEVEL OF USE

Annual Comparisons

3.3 The only Thus Plc statistics available for 2001 and 2002 relate to 'total calls' which include engaged calls and those which reached the answering machine when the line was engaged or out-of-hours. Therefore the data relate to the total number of attempts to speak to an operator and do not provide an indication of the number of people trying to access the Helpline number or the number of calls answered by Helpline operators.

3.4 As data were missing for several months in 2001 and 2002, an analysis was made of the average calls per week for those weeks where data were available. As the missing data relate to different times of year ², comparisons of average calls per week should be made with caution.

2 In 2001, data were missing for 9 weeks: 14 May to 1 July and 2 weeks in November.
In 2002, data were missing for 13 weeks: from 16 September to 15 December.
Figures for 2003 relate to 1 January to 19 August (2 days beyond the fieldwork to provide a full 33
weeks).

Table 3.1: Average Calls Per Week by Year

3.5 Table 3.1 shows that the number of calls has increased each year, particularly in 2003 (an increase of 26 % since 2002). This increase could possibly be due to instances where one person constantly presses the 'redial' button on their phone when the line is engaged with a long call. For example, 409 calls were recorded in one week from a town where the usual number was one or less per week and 150 in one week from another town although only one other call had been received from that town during 2003. However, it is not known whether such high levels of redialling occurred during 2001 and 2002.

Monthly Comparisons (2003)

3.6 Data are available on the number of calls which were received by Helpline operators (excluding calls made when the line was engaged) between 1 December 2002 and 30 July 2003. Figure 3.1 shows that the highest number of calls were received in January (972) with the quietest period being March (392), April (377) and May (468). The average number of calls received from February to July was 527.

Figure 3.1: Calls Received 1 December 2002 to 30 July 2003

3.7 The national Christmas and New Year TV campaign had an immediate and dramatic impact on the number of calls received by Helpline operators. For example, calls received in December rose from a range of 3 to 16 per day, to a peak of 122 on the 30 ^th. Two telephone lines were provided to meet the high demand during the TV campaign. (Other factors, particularly TV documentaries and TV 'soaps' featuring domestic abuse also have an immediate impact if the Helpline number is displayed at the end of the programme.)

3.8 The impact of the TV campaign can perhaps be seen more clearly when weekly statistics for December 2002 to March 2003 are examined. Figure 3.2 shows a sharp increase in the number of calls in the week ending 29 December (from 67 in week ending 22 December to 266) and the week ending 5 January (387). The number of calls received then decreased sharply, from over 200 in the weeks ending 12 and 19 January to about 170 in most of the following weeks until 9 March. There were less than 100 calls per week from 10 until 30 March. This would suggest that TV campaigns have only a short-term impact on the number of calls received by the Helpline.

Figure 3.2: Weekly Calls December 2002 to March 2003

Time of Calls

3.9 Information on the time when calls are received is necessary to inform a decision on the need for a further line or to reduce the length of shifts during busy periods and to assess the current demand for a 24-hour service.

3.10 Thus Plc statistics by hour of day include an occasionally large but unknown number of calls which were put through to the answering machine when the line was engaged, many of which could be one person constantly pressing the 'redial' button. These statistics can therefore be misleading.

3.11 An analysis by duration of call should reduce the problem of answering machine calls distorting the results. However, some calls can be of one hour or more whilst others can be a few minutes. Therefore this analysis cannot provide an indication of number of calls received by an operator by hour of day, but it can provide an indication of the times of day when operators are most likely to be responding to a call.

Opening Hours (10am to midnight)

3.12 Figure 3.3 shows the number of minutes spent on calls during each 2-hour period as a proportion of all minutes spent on calls on weekdays during each month. Figure 3.4 relates to the proportion of time spent on calls at the weekend during each month. Three months have been selected for comparison: February, March and July.

Figure 3.3: Duration of Weekday Calls by Time of Day (Selected Months)

Figure 3.4: Duration of Weekend Calls by Time of Day (Selected Months)

3.13 There does not appear to be an overall trend in times of day when operators were most busy. Figures 3.3 and 3.4 show that the period when operators were most likely to be answering calls was:

3.14 The average length of time spent by operators answering calls varied considerably between months. Although the number of calls received during February and July were similar, the average daily duration of calls in February was longer.

• Weekdays
  2.4 hours in February
  1.5 hours in March
  1.75 hours in July

• Weekends
  2.6 hours in February
  1 hour in March
  1.75 hours in July.

3.15 These figures would suggest that, as operators spend on average less than 3 hours per day on the Helpline during the 14 hours which it is open, there is currently not sufficient demand to provide a second line.

Out-of-Hours

3.16 The Helpline is open from 10am to midnight 7 days a week. The Helpline poster, Scottish Executive booklet and some other forms of advertising state the opening hours although the Helpline stickers for ladies toilets and possibly some local leaflets on domestic abuse do not. As a result, the Helpline receives a number of calls out-of-hours. A total of 458 out-of-hours calls were made between 1 Dec 2002 and 31 July 2003, ranging from 40 to 53 per month with the exception of February (69) and January (103).

3.17 Figure 3.6 shows that out-of-hours calls (by the hour the call was started) during 2 busy months and one quiet month (February, July and March respectively) were most likely to be made between midnight and one in the morning, and between 8 and 10am.

Figure 3.6: Out-of-Hours Calls in Selected Months

Location of Caller

3.18 Thus plc statistics provide the town (telephone exchange) from which all calls (including those not put through) were made from 27 January to 17 August 2003. The location of almost 500 calls was not defined. Of the remaining calls (5,176), 8 per cent (428) originated from outwith Scotland.

3.19 As seen in Table 3.2, a call had been made by at least one person from each local authority in Scotland, with the exception of East Dunbartonshire and East Renfrewshire. Fewer than 10 calls were made from the Western Isles, Midlothian, Moray, Orkney and Shetland.

Table 3.2: Total Calls by Local Authority (Scotland) 2003

3.20 The highest proportion of calls originated from South Lanarkshire (24%) and over one fifth (22%) of all calls from Scotland originated from North Ayrshire. It is assumed that local advertising and the location of the office being in North Ayrshire has had an impact on the number of calls from this area.

3.21 The third highest local authority was Glasgow with 17 per cent of all Scottish calls, followed by Edinburgh with 7 per cent. Only a relatively few calls were received from Aberdeen (34) and Dundee (16).

3.22 A low number of calls from one area might indicate that there are alternative sources of support in that area and that information on local services for victims of domestic abuse are widely known. However, it is more likely that the level of calls reflects the level of advertising in that area. The above figures may be useful in identifying which areas the Helpline might consider targeting for future advertising campaigns.

CHARACTERISTICS OF CALLERS

3.23 The source of information for this and the following section is the research caller survey forms which cover calls received during the eight-week period between 23 June and 17 August 2003. As stated earlier, not all volunteers submitted a form for each call, thus these analyses can only provide a general indication of the type of calls which the Helpline receives, rather than an accurate quantitative analysis.

Agency callers

3.24 A total of 53 forms (12%) were submitted about calls received from agencies or people seeking general information about the Helpline or domestic abuse. The most common types of agency were the police and health services.

Table 3.3: Type of Agency Caller

* comprises one each from: Muslim Support Group, Rape Crisis, Money Advice Centre, Penumbra, Youth Employment Agency, Victim Support, CAB, English DA Helpline, a local authority, support agency (unspecified).

3.25 Most of these calls were either about abuse of a female adult (45%) and/or for general information about the Helpline or about domestic abuse in general (38%). Six per cent were phoning about a male victim (6%).

Reason for Calling

3.26 Some examples of calls include:

Victims and Other Callers

3.27 Forms were submitted for 406 calls from people usually phoning about themselves as a victim of domestic abuse or a friend, relative or neighbour who was a victim. However, included in this number were 49 calls where the caller hung up before talking and four abusive calls which together accounted for 13% of the total calls recorded. The Helpline receives a large number of hoax calls, many from children particularly over the school holidays, who hang up when the phone is answered by the Helpline operator. There were also some calls made to the Helpline which were not directly concerned with domestic abuse.

3.28 Complete information was not always sought by the duty volunteer as it was not always appropriate to do so. Therefore percentages throughout this section of the report relate to the proportion of all those where information was provided on that topic - rather than as a proportion of the 406 calls.

Characteristics of Callers

3.29 Some information on the callers include:

• 90% were female
• 5% were children aged under 16
• 3% were made by the abuser
• 1% were abusive calls
• 82% were the victim of domestic abuse
• 5% were a friend or neighbour of the victim
• 10% were a relative of the victim (mainly the mother)
• 4% were the partner or ex-partner of the victim

Reason for Calling

3.30 Information was provided on 283 callers about their main reasons for phoning - this excludes those who hung up. For this part of the analysis, those who phoned several times on the same day are counted as one case. The main reasons for contacting the Helpline were:

Support and Information:

• 45% wished to talk about the abuse only (many of whom would also be given support, information and numbers of other agencies)
• 9% sought information so that they could help a friend or relative
• 6% phoned to ask for information on the law, their legal rights or benefits
• 6% wished to discuss their options and steps to take
• 2% were male victims seeking support
• 3% were male abusers seeking help/accommodation

Accommodation:

• 9% were actively seeking refuge accommodation
• 5% wanted a Women's Aid telephone number
• 4% were unable to access their Women's Aid
• 2% were in a refuge and needed help but could not access their Women's Aid staff
• 2% were seeking accommodation other than a Women's Aid refuge
• 2% asked for the number of an agency (mainly sympathetic solicitors)

Other:

• 2% were complaining about an agency
• 4% were not phoning about domestic abuse but other problems or were lonely and wanted a chat

Location of Callers (Caller Survey)

3.31 The area from which 44 of the 53 agency callers were phoning from was provided but these tended to be scattered, the most common being: Glasgow (7 cases); England (7 cases); and 3 each from Edinburgh, Fife and Inverclyde.

3.32 Although the local authority of victims and other callers was not provided in 27 per cent of the 406 cases, the location of the remaining 297 calls does provide some indication of areas where publicity should be targeted (i.e. where there were less than 10 calls during the 8-week period).

• the highest number of calls came from Glasgow (15%), South Lanarkshire (11%), North Ayrshire (10%), Edinburgh (9%) and North Lanarkshire (8%)
• 7% originated from elsewhere in the UK, mainly England
• none of the callers came from the following local authorities: Clackmannanshire; Dundee City; Moray; Orkney; Shetland; Stirling
• less than 10 calls originated from each of the remaining local authorities.

CHARACTERISTICS OF VICTIMS

3.33 An insufficient number of cases was provided to enable analysis on the age-group and ethnic group of the victim, and whether the victim had any disabilities. However, information provided about the victims include:

• 3% of the victims were children
• 95% of victims were female
• the abuse was current in 84% of cases and had ended in the past year in 12% of cases.

3.34 The relationship of the abuser to the victim was:

• 82% current partner
• 10% ex-partner
• 6% a relative (half were their son/daughter and almost half their father)
• 2% other.

Contact with other Agencies

3.35 Thirty per cent of victims (81 of 266 where information was available) had not spoken to anyone else about the abuse. Thus the Helpline is an essential source of support to victims, enabling them to talk about their experiences for the first time and, through the Helpline, being able to access further support to help them leave the abuser or address the abuse and move forwards.

Agencies Spoken to

3.36 The remaining 70 per cent had spoken to a friend/relative/colleague and/or one or more agencies:

• 33% had spoken to the SDA Helpline before
• 19% to a friend, relative or colleague
• 12% to Women's Aid
• 12% to the police
• 3% to social services
• 2% to their GP
• 2% to a solicitor
• 4% to other (unspecified).

3.37 However, one quarter (25 cases) of those who had contacted another agency indicated that they were not satisfied with the response:

• 36% (9 cases) police - main reasons being: not interested/unhelpful or abrupt; could not remove the abuser through lack of evidence; removed the abuser to a pub (but he was an alcoholic)
• 20% (5 cases) Women's Aid - no refuge spaces available so they said they could not help; not satisfied with the refuge; not happy that the refuge was closed; said they could not help as the abuser was not her partner
• 8% (2 cases) solicitor - not sufficient support provided
• 8% (2 cases) social work - unspecified
• housing (1 case) - refused to put her on the list for a council house or offer a house to her
• health (1 case) - nurse wanted to deal with her mental health and viewed the abuse as secondary
• the remaining 5 cases did not specify an agency or the reason.

Unable to Contact an Agency

3.38 One quarter (50) of the 204 cases where information was recorded, had tried to contact one or more agencies but were unable to speak to anyone. These agencies were:

• Women's Aid (28 cases)
• police (9 cases)
• Victim Support (2 cases)
• other (5 cases, including social work and Childline)
• agency unspecified (10 cases).

3.39 The reason for being unable to speak to an agency worker was:

• had the wrong number (1)
• no reply (12)
• answering machine message told the caller to phone back during office hours (17 cases)
• answering machine gave the caller one or more numbers to call but could not phone/had no money etc (5 cases)
• the caller was told to phone back as they were 'on their lunch' (1)
• the caller left a message but they did not phone back (1)
• message said to phone the Helpline (1) - volunteers report that this is common amongst Women's Aid groups
• the caller could not hear the answering machine message (1)
• they did not understand what the caller was saying (1)
• the caller's partner cut her off (1)
• the line was always engaged (1).

THE HELPLINE SERVICE PROVIDED

Volunteer Action

Agency Callers

3.40 The action(s) taken by volunteers about calls from agencies or individuals seeking information about domestic abuse in general, was:

• 20% no further action
• 39% referred the caller to another agency (mainly Women's Aid)
• 37% referred the caller to the Helpline office
• in 8% the volunteer called another agency
• 6% were other unspecified actions.

Victims and Other Callers

3.41 Helpline operators are trained to listen to the caller, provide reassurance, explain about domestic abuse being gender-based and being about power and control, assist the caller to examine her problems clearly, discuss her options and provide information on sources of other support if wished. Callers are always invited to phone back if they want to talk again or need more support and information.

3.42 Of the 330 cases where information on one or more steps taken by the volunteer was recorded:

• 25% took no further action
• 65% referred the caller to one or more agencies
• 2% referred the caller to the Helpline office
• 4% passed details to the Helpline office
• 8% called an agency (mainly Women's Aid)
• 2% other.

3.43 The types of agency about which the volunteer provided information and contact details are listed in the table below.

Table 3.4: Referral to Agencies

Satisfaction with the Service Received

3.44 Where appropriate, the volunteer asked the caller whether they were satisfied with the support provided or whether they could have been of more assistance to the caller. Of the 152 cases where this question had been asked, 76 per cent were satisfied and had benefited from the service in a number of ways:

• they appreciated being able to talk about the abuse (often for the first time) to someone who was sympathetic and patient
• several stated that it was helpful talking to someone they did not know or who was not personally involved
• some benefited from talking through the options and gaining the self-confidence to take action to leave the abuser
• one caller was grateful for the volunteer helping her to recognise that her partner was not being abusive towards her
• another was grateful for the information about Women's Aid as she had not realised that they provided so much assistance to women
• others commented that they had been made to feel valued and gained self-respect
• one was unaware that the Helpline provided information as well as support
• one was 'at the end of my tether - I thought there were no options for me'
• several stated that the Helpline call had helped them calm down and see things more clearly.

3.45 However, about a quarter felt that the operator could have helped them more - although this often related to the lack of availability of other services - for example:

• four said that they needed to speak to someone face-to-face
• one would have preferred to have been able to speak to Women's Aid so that she could have made arrangements for leaving
• one had wanted the Helpline to phone her mother
• three were annoyed because the Helpline could not access a refuge space without them having to make further calls
• a male caller would have preferred talking to a male operator although he appreciated the help provided.

3.46 None of the volunteers recorded negative comments from callers about the way they had handled the call. However, the Helpline has a few repeat callers, some of whom genuinely require ongoing support about their abuse, whilst there are two in particular who constantly phone the Helpline, being abusive towards the operator and hanging up in a temper. All volunteers have been given guidance on how to deal with these callers.

ACCESS TO THE HELPLINE

Publicity

3.47 Publicity is a major issue which should be constantly reviewed to assist the Helpline to provide support and information to as many victims of domestic abuse as possible. An earlier analysis showed that there are some areas of Scotland which do not appear to advertise the Helpline sufficiently. This section explores the means by which callers found out about the Helpline.

3.48 About two-thirds of callers (229) were asked how they knew of the Helpline number:

Media

• 9% from TV advertising (although this percentage would be much higher during TV campaigns)
• none from radio
• 2% from newspapers
• 9% from a domestic abuse website/Internet

Agencies

• 27% from the police
• 7% from Women's Aid
• 11% from another agency

Other sources

• 6% saw the Helpline stickers (usually displayed in ladies toilets)
• 1% from adverts on buses
• 5% saw a Helpline poster
• 2% from a leaflet or card about domestic abuse
• 5% from a friend or relative
• 2% from directory enquiries/Yellow Pages
• 2% from other sources
• 12% said that they did not know.

3.49 It would appear that referral from other agencies (particularly the police) is the most common source of gaining knowledge about the Helpline. However, the Helpline is aware that it needs to produce a leaflet to distribute amongst agencies and in all public places, to provide more information to victims other than just the telephone number and basic information displayed on posters and stickers. Further suggestions for improved publicity were discussed in the previous chapter.

Difficulties in Accessing the Helpline

3.50 Some victims are not able to contact the Helpline themselves for a variety of reasons, most of which are outwith the control of the Helpline - with the exception of providing multi-lingual operators. Reasons why the victim could not phone personally was provided by some of those callers who were phoning about a victim:

• victim was too upset/depressed (6)
• victim did not know the caller was phoning (4)
• victim was unable/not allowed to access a phone (4)
• victim did not speak English (2)
• victim did not want to phone (2)
• victim lives abroad or in England (2).

3.51 The research attempted to identify any other barriers which victims might have in accessing the Helpline. Of the 273 callers who were asked about difficulties accessing the Helpline:

• over half (54%) had experienced no difficulties
• 33% found the line engaged one or two times
• 12% found the line engaged more often (between 3 and 20 times)
• 1% had other difficulties such as her phone was not working properly and the Helpline was closed.

Calls Resulting in an Engaged Tone

3.52 It is perhaps surprising that the line was engaged for 45 per cent of callers as, during the survey period, the line was used for 1.5 hours on average each day during the 14 hours of operation. During the survey period there were 426 attempts to access the Helpline when the line was engaged, accounting for 27 per cent of all calls during opening hours.

3.53 This problem in accessing the Helpline is much greater during TV advertising campaigns. Figure 3.7 shows the number of attempts made to access the Helpline when the line was engaged from 1 December 2002 to 17 August 2003 (a total of 2,684 calls - 11 per day on average). It should be noted that these data do not refer to the number of callers as one person may account for many attempts in one day. (For example, the February figures were skewed by 467 engaged calls being recorded in one day.)

Figure 3.7: Calls When Line was Engaged

24-hour Service

3.54 To assist in the debate about whether the Helpline should be extended to 24-hour cover, callers were asked (where appropriate - 127 cases) whether it would have been easier for the caller/victim if the Helpline had been open overnight. Forty-six per cent (59 cases) said that it would have been easier. Forty respondents gave specific reasons:

• have difficulty sleeping at night (lonely/worried/frightened) and would have welcomed some support at that time (10)
• it would have been easier to call when abuser and/or children were sleeping (14)
• abuse often occurs during the night and it would be helpful to talk to someone then (7)
• abuser works night-shifts, so it would be easier to phone then (4)
• one caller had to whisper as the abuser was in the other room - she said 2am or 3am would have been much better
• when she needed to talk, there was no-one available at agencies - only answering machines (2)
• the victim could have called herself (1)
• had to wait until 10am when the Helpline was open (1).

3.55 It would appear from survey respondents and Helpline statistics (see Figure 3.5) that there is a demand for a 24-hour service and that it would play an important role particularly at a time when victims cannot access many other services.

DISCUSSION

Monitoring and Evaluation

3.56 Having accurate statistics on the use made of the Helpline is essential for planning publicity campaigns, future development, accountability to funders and when seeking grants. However, Thus Plc statistics can only show how many attempts have been made to access a Helpline operator (rather than number of callers) which provides a distorted picture as it is evident that some people may try many times (a few may try hundreds of times during one day) before being put through.

3.57 It is therefore essential that the Helpline office obtain a record of each call received by operators. This would also provide more detailed information about the call and caller which are not available from Thus Plc statistics. The office is aware that not all volunteers had submitted a caller form for each call in the past and the research caller survey forms were only completed for 43 per cent of calls received by operators.

3.58 The co-ordinators have indicated that they intend to redesign their call monitoring form and provide further training on its completion. Agreement to complete a form for each call should perhaps be part of the volunteer's agreement which they sign when recruited. Helpline staff should perhaps also be more vigilant in checking the return of forms and sending a reminder to volunteers who have not done so. Regular analysis of these data would also avoid the need to set aside a large amount of time at short notice to respond to an urgent request by funders for statistics, as has happened in the past.

3.59 Although an Interim report was submitted to the Scottish Executive in January 2001, annual reports providing detailed statistics would meet the demand for information about the Helpline from agencies with an interest in the Helpline (such as Women's Aid and others).

Level of Use

3.60 On the basis of the available statistics, it would appear that the average number of attempts to contact the Helpline might have risen from 170 to 230 per week from 2001 to 2003. In relation to calls received by operators in 2003, January was the busiest month with a daily average of 31 calls, followed by February (23 calls), June and July (each with a daily average of 21 calls received). Volunteers spend on average less than 3 hours a day answering Helpline calls during the 14 hours it is open.

3.61 Some parts of Scotland rarely use the Helpline, if at all, indicating a need for wider and more effective publicity. It is suggested that the Helpline liaise closely with each local Domestic Abuse Partnership to ensure that the Helpline is advertised in local domestic abuse leaflets and local campaigns.

Type of Calls

3.62 Many callers just wanted to talk about the abuse but the research has shown that the Helpline operators, in addition to providing emotional and practical support, are also an important source of information about rights, benefits, housing issues and local agencies. Thus it is important that ongoing training is provided to each volunteer to update them in changes and to share experiences in dealing with difficult calls.

3.63 A small number of callers were male victims and it might be worth considering whether volunteers should receive training to be better able to provide support to such callers, particularly as provision elsewhere for these victims is sparse and inconsistent.

3.64 It is evident that callers and volunteers are frustrated at the difficulty in accessing Women's Aid, a refuge space, other accommodation and other agencies outwith normal office hours. Many callers were relieved to be able to talk to someone rather than an answering machine. Feedback from callers indicated that a 24-hour service would be extremely helpful to many victims as they are most likely to need support between midnight and 10am when the Helpline is presently unavailable.

Barriers to Accessing the Helpline

3.65 The main barrier to accessing the Helpline (expressed by 45 per cent of callers who were asked about this issue during the survey period) was that the line was engaged on their first or subsequent attempts. In addition, a significant number of people tried to access the Helpline when it was closed.

3.66 Although only two of those calling about a victim said that the victim was unable to call personally because she could not speak English, this may be a significant deterrent to women from ethnic minority groups. These issues are addressed further in the following chapter.

« Previous | Contents | Next »