Dragon promotes Childline

Entrepreneur and Dragon’s Den judge Deborah Meaden recognises that in the current economic climate some people may struggle to give money to charity. But the tough-talking businesswoman said that people can still raise money for the NSPCC and do their bit to help children in the South West, some of whom would be directly affected by the recession.

Deborah recently became Chairman of the South West Child’s Voice Appeal which aims to raise £1.6 million to expand the Exeter-based ChildLine service by recruiting more volunteers to answer calls from children across the region who are in desperate need of help.

The base will also soon be running online counselling and text services so that children can access support how they want it, when they want it.

Last year counsellors answered around 3,000 calls but a third of calls to the 0800 1111 number went unanswered due to lack of resources, something Deborah is determined to change.

She recognises the fact that there isn’t a lot of money around and says,”If you can’t give money, you can do something to raise money. And that could be the simplest thing from a coffee morning, to a walk or bike ride.

“I encourage people to do something fun and get themselves sponsored. We are a pretty creative bunch us Brits, I’m sure we can come up with some really fun ideas.”

As part of the appeal, the charity wants to recruit and train additional counsellors in Exeter to bring the total counsellor numbers to as many as 150. This will allow the base to answer more calls from across the South West. The NSPCC Helpline, for adults all across the UK and Channel Islands with a concern about a child, will also be expanded as part of the appeal.

To find out how to get involved visit www.nspcc.org.uk and follow the links to the Child’s Voice Appeal in the South West or telephone 0844 892 0562.