Samaritans is a charity that provides confidential emotional support 24/7 to those experiencing despair, distress or suicidal feelings. The service is provided by over 20,000 volunteers from 202 branches.
The Samaritans Operations Manual explains in detail the policies and processes which volunteers must follow when delivering the service. This new online manual will replace four paper manuals and will be accessible in every branch by every volunteer. Cherryleaf has provided conversion and editing services so that Samaritans can make the manual available online through its intranet.
Miriam Piterkova, Samaritans’ Operations Officer, said:
“The Samaritans Operations Manual will be one of the most important resources volunteers use to support them to deliver our service. For the first time, all the information they need will be in one place. This will make it so much easier for volunteers to find what they need quickly.”
The manual will be written in such a way that volunteers can skim through it, or read every detail. It will be stored on the Samaritans intranet and be fully searchable. It is written in plain English and version-controlled, so it will be always up-to-date.
The new Operations Manual has been uploaded onto the Samaritans intranet, and has been reviewed by Regional Officers and the Quality and Visitors group. It is now being reviewed by the branches prior to its official launch later this year.
The Samaritans are also in discussions with Cherryleaf about turning other manuals into online resources.
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