With Samaritans having announced the potential closure of 100 of its branches across the UK and Ireland, including the branch in Rhyl, Clwyd West MS Darren Millar has written to the charity calling on them to rethink their decision.   

Currently, Wales has nine Samaritans branches and one 'hub'; of which, only two branches are in North Wales (Rhyl and Bangor) and one in Mid Wales (Aberystwyth).

The Rhyl and North East Wales branch is the smaller of the two North Wales branches and provides advice to people over the phone. 

Darren is concerned that if the branch is closed it will impact the service currently provided and is therefore calling on the Samaritans to reconsider their plans. 

He said: 

“I was extremely disappointed to hear about the potential closure of the Rhyl Samaritans branch in Bedford Street. The volunteers who operate from there currently feel well-supported, in a way that they wouldn’t be if they were operating from home.    

“In recent years, they have made great strides in the recruitment of new listening volunteers, all of whom travel to the Branch facility, and I am told there is a strong community spirit within the branch.

“If any of the volunteers are struggling with any of the calls they take, they are able to reach out to their colleagues and Branch Co-Directors for guidance, this simply won’t be possible if they are operating from home. There is also concerns regarding the confidentiality of calls if volunteers are carrying out the work remotely. 

“The Samaritans is a fantastic charity which is saving lives every day – closing branches risks putting all that in jeopardy. 

“I therefore urge the charity decision makers to seriously think again about their plans to potentially close branches, particularly here in Rhyl where the service currently works so well.”