Our wonderful and dedicated volunteers give up their own time to make sure the phone lines remain open every day of the year. We now receive no statutory support and rely entirely on the generosity of our friends and supporters to help cover our running costs such as phone and heating bills and IT expenses. Without their support we wouldn’t be able to carry on answering calls.
On average it costs £16 for full wrap around coverage of each call and we answer around 15,000 calls a year. If you would like to help us cover these costs, we’d love to hear from you.
Download this Switchboard Introduction 2019 (PDF) to learn more about how you can get involved.
You can make a donation right now by using your credit or debit card. It’s simple, straightforward, safe and secure. And if you are a UK Taxpayer, you can Gift Aid it and make your donation go further.
Donate Today
You can also donate by text via Donr. Simply text SWITCHBOARD 5 (or your choice of amount up to £20) to 70085 to donate now.
How about becoming a friend of Switchboard?
We appreciate your support – whatever you can offer – but have you ever thought about becoming a Friend of Switchboard? Choosing this option is making a commitment to the life of Switchboard through regular donations, which means we can plan not just for today, but also for our future.
For example, by setting up a monthly direct debit of £16, you could help us be there every month to offer calm words when needed the most to one service user. That could be a person who might otherwise have nowhere to turn.
You can set up a monthly donation here.
If you are a UK Taxpayer, Gift Aid allows us to claim back the tax on your donation, increasing its value to us without any extra work from you.
How about fundraising for Switchboard?
So you want to help Switchboard raise money? How about hosting a sponsored event? It’s easier than it seems, and can be everything from running your first 10K to a Bake Sale, to giving up drink for a month, or something fabulous with mirror balls and sequins.
Set up a page at JustGiving
How about a legacy?
There is another way you could make a lasting contribution to the work Switchboard does, and that’s by leaving a legacy.
We know the issues facing those who call us won’t disappear overnight. We also know there will be new issues that lesbians, gay men, bisexual and trans people face in the future. Issues that we perhaps can’t even imagine today. However, we do know we want to be ready to deal with whatever the future brings, to continue providing those calm words.
By leaving a legacy you will become a Switchboard Guardian. You will be ensuring that the many thousands of LGBT+ people who call us our or Instant Message us every year will have someone to turn to. It’s a crucial and dedicated way of serving the LGBT+ communities now and in the future.
By becoming a Switchboard Guardian you really make a difference. If you’d like more information, please email [email protected] or call us on 020 7886 8782
Dudley’s legacy Here’s an example of what a legacy can do. Dudley was a founding volunteer of Switchboard and volunteered with us up to his death in 1999. The support he gave Switchboard continued after he died. Dudley remembered Switchboard in his Will – something we’re immensely grateful for. The gift he gave Switchboard helped make sure we can keep our phone room up and running and continue to be there for those who need us today. Dudley’s legacy means that we can help people who weren’t even born when Dudley first started taking calls on our helpline. A lasting legacy, indeed.