§ Sandra GidleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the outcome was of the study that considered expanding Victim Support's helpline to 24 hours, referred to in Annex 1 of the joint Home Office/Women's Unit publication, "Living Without Fear: An Integrated Approach to Tackling Violence Against Women. [85312]
§ Hilary BennStaff and volunteers manning Victim Support's Victim Support line provide support and information to anyone affected by crime. The phone lines are open from 9 am–9 pm Monday to Friday, 9 am–7 pm weekends, and 9 am–5pm on bank holidays. Calls are charged at local rates and are confidential.
A study of calls to the Victim Support line has not provided evidence to suggest that there is a high volume of callers attempting to call the helpline outside the hours that it is already available.