Janice, a volunteer telephone counsellor with Lifeline Western Sydney since 1993, has listened to many people in crisis.

"So many people feel isolated and lonely" she says. "Some feel so much pain that they have thoughts of suicide. Others are experiencing the loss of a loved one and are not sure of how they'll cope. Some people just need to talk to another human being who cares."

"Although telephone counselling can sometimes be challenging, I get so much out of volunteering my time" she says. "I go home after each shift knowing that I have made a difference in the lives of many people. That feels good."

Janice, a mother of 6 who works part-time, said her volunteer work allowed her to give back to her community and at the same time maintain good interpersonal communication skills.

OBJECTIVES

The primary objective of the course is to train people wishing to become volunteer Telephone Counsellors with Lifeline. Each session is oriented towards the development of skills and knowledge to be utilised in the process of telephone counselling according to Lifeline procedures.

AIMS

• To teach telephone counselling skills.
• To increase self-awareness.
• To promote the concept of personal responsibility.
• To facilitate effective helping procedures and behaviours.
• To teach non-directive counselling skills.
• To increase knowledge and awareness of issues which regularly arise in telephone counselling.
• To teach crisis intervention skills.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

• Aged 20 years old or over
• The ability to communicate with people from a wide variety of backgrounds.
• The ability to function independently or as part of a team.
• The ability to maintain a level of consistency in commitment, reliability and punctuality.
• Able to commit to rostered duties for a minimum of 2 years
• The ability to problem-solve in a variety of situations.
• The ability to be open to a wide variety of peoples, situations and belief systems.
• An understanding of and a commitment to the Christian values of unconditional positive regard and a non-judgmental attitude.
• The ability to function within an organisation’s policies and procedures
• The ability for self-assessment and openness to an ongoing learning process.
• The ability to demonstrate a high level of verbal proficiency in and comprehension of the English language which allows the counsellor to fully enter into a reflective process with a client, in particular a client who is in crisis.

For more information call 9689 2860 or download an Info Pack and Application Form here.

SHORT COURSES:

To download our Short Courses Info Sheet please click here.