Helplines Standard 2023-26
Thirtyone:eight has been awarded the national quality standard for ‘outstanding’ helpline provision for both our Safeguarding and Disclosures Helplines for the second time. This national accreditation has been awarded by Helplines Partnership (the national body for helpline providers) and has been specifically developed for the helpline sector to recognise excellence and best practice in service delivery.
What this means for you?
This accreditation means that users of our Helplines, and those commissioning our services, can be confident that the service you receive is always of the highest quality which has been independently audited against industry standards.
What's included in the standard?
The Helplines Standard identifies the practices that enable an organisation to deliver a helpline service which is ‘consistent, relevant to the needs of its stakeholders and effective in what it is trying to achieve’.
The accreditation framework looks at the following three areas:
"We recognise your dedication to providing a high-quality service and best practice for the benefit of your callers, funders, staff and everyone impacted by your service." - Helplines Partnership
1. Planning and running the helpline
- Mission, aims and strategic planning
- Confidentiality, data protection and risk
- Operations
- Technology and resources
2. The service that is provided
- Service user experience
- Interactions with service users
- Social media and online services
- Performance, monitoring and development
3. Recruitment, training and development
- Human resources
- Recruitment and selection
- Training
- Supervision, support and continuing development
In granting the award, Helplines Partnership said “We recognise your dedication to providing a high-quality service and best practice for the benefit of your callers, funders, staff and everyone impacted by your service. This is an important commitment to raising standards in the sector. Helplines Partnership would like to congratulate those involved." - Helplines Partnership