Our helpline put loneliness on the map...please ring the older people in your life for a chat

THE lifesaving charity founded by Dame Esther Rantzen "put loneliness on the map" but the battle is getting harder, she says.

- Giles Sheldrick

Every day The Silver Line, the country's only around-the-clock helpline for older people, helps more than 500 bereaved, marginalised, frightened and forgotten OAPS with nowhere else to turn.

And with Christmas approaching and demand set to soar, Dame Esther, 83, has begged the public to do her a favour and reach out to vulnerable older people.

She said: "There have been heartbreaking times when I wondered if The Silver Line could survive. We have proved how crucial we are to isolated, vulnerable older people it has literally become a lifeline.

"At one of our most fragile times, I turned to the readers of the Daily Express for help because of the many campaigns on behalf of older people, and they responded incredibly generously.

"The difference we make to older people's lives is so profound. As one told me, 'I am not exaggerating when I say my life has changed so much for the better since The Silver Line was started. When I am heavyhearted I know I can pick up my phone and someone will listen.' The Silver Line has put loneliness on the map."

Valued

She added: "So would you mind doing me a great favour? Some time over Christmas, can you ring up the older people in your life to have a laugh, to share a memory and to have a friendly chat that proves we are still valued."