Darryl was neglected. His parents didn’t give him the care he needed. They would go out drinking, leaving him alone in the house to fend for himself. Sometimes there would not even be any food.

He didn’t want to hide it. He spoke out. He called ChildLine. They helped his parents sort out their drinking problems and give Darryl the life he deserves.

Neglect explained

Neglect is when you are not being looked after or supervised properly. If the people who look after you don’t give you the important things you need, or make it hard for you to take care of yourself. You could be suffering from neglect if:

• you don’t have enough warm clothes
• you don’t have enough to eat and drink
• you’re left alone, or left in charge of family without adult help
• you’re forced to sleep somewhere cold or uncomfortable
• no-one helps you when you’re are ill or you’ve been hurt

If this is happening to you, you might think that it’s your fault. It isn’t. No-one has the right to neglect you. If you speak out about neglect, there are people who care – they will listen to you and help you.

Sometimes the best help can be provided by social services, but speaking to someone about neglect doesn’t mean that you’ll automatically be taken into care. Even if social services need to help, they will always try to keep children with their family whenever they can. Talk to a ChildLine counsellor who will be able to explain to you exactly what might happen.

Why you should speak out

“It went on for ages until I told someone. It felt better just to be able to talk about it.” Jenny, 18. If you or someone you know is being abused, then telling someone about it is the best way to help make it stop.

“On the phone you feel like you’re so much more in control.” Kirsty, 17. Doing nothing about the problem may seem like the best thing to do, but difficult situations almost never go away by themselves. There are people at ChildLine who will listen, and they know what to do.

“There’s no way I could have done face-to-face counselling before talking to ChildLine.” Gavin, 14. Remember - they can help you, but only if they know what’s going on.

So if there’s a problem, no matter what it is, then speak out. Call ChildLine on 0800 1111.

Who you can talk to

If you don’t want to call ChildLine, that’s OK. But if something is happening to you or someone you know, then it’s important to speak out about what’s going on, so that something can be done about it.

Try and find someone you trust to talk to. It could be a parent, a teacher, a relative, a friend, a youth worker or someone else that you feel comfortable with. It doesn’t have to be someone in authority, just someone that you think you can talk to and trust to do the right thing.

If they don’t want to listen, keep trying until you find someone that does, or call ChildLine on 0800 1111.

What happens when you call ChildLine

When you phone ChildLine, you’ll be able to speak to someone who cares about your problems. The counsellors are all trained - they will listen to you and try to help you. If you’re scared or feel out of control, that’s OK. You can tell them. It’s their job to listen to you and put you in touch with someone who can make it stop. Speaking out about abuse can be really difficult, but it’s the right thing to do. Think about how you’ll feel when the abuse has stopped.

All calls to ChildLine are completely confidential – you can talk about whatever you want to and we won’t tell anyone else, unless you want us to. Your ChildLine counsellor will only take action if they feel it’s an emergency. ChildLine is always open - call 0800 1111 anytime. Lines can sometimes be busy, but please keep trying and someone will answer.

Want to find out more? Just click on the link below:
www.donthideit.com