The Foundation for Social Welfare Services 179 support line received 6,359 calls between January and June 2019, information tabled in Parliament reveals.
The 179 support line is the national helpline offering support, information about local social welfare services and other agencies, and a referral service to callers who requires support. It is also a national service to people who are in times of difficulty or crisis. The primary mission of the Supportline 179 service is to provide, immediate and unbiased help to those seeking information, support and/or require a referral to social service agencies.
The information was tabled by Family Minister Michael Falzon, in response to a Parliamentary Question posed by PL Whip Byron Camilleri.
The information included further details as to what the calls were about. 2,000 of the calls were listed under ' listening', however no further information was provided about this. 611 of the calls were about loneliness, the information shows, and 681 were for information related to services. 236 of the calls were related to depression, and 172 related to homelessness.
The information also showed that 99 of the calls were about suicide. The rest of the calls were about a diverse number of issues