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Did you know?

Is This OK? has been supporting young people since 2019. Our staff are trained professionals who want to help you through anything you are finding difficult. You can get us on our 1-2-1 Chat below. You can also contact us for advice if you are worried that someone else is being treated badly or abused.

It’s all free, confidential, and anonymous.

Is This Ok? is a safe digital space for young people to access support in an anonymous and confidential way. This means that we do not know who you are when speaking with you (anonymous) and that this service doesn’t share your conversations with other professionals (confidential).

We want to support and empower you to share information on your terms. If you would like us to share information on your behalf, then we can do this with your consent and details such as your name, DOB, and address. If you are worried about someone else and want information shared to professionals then we can do this with your consent.

We do not and cannot track you and a chat with us won’t be able to be traced back to you.

When you first come through to the Is This Ok? service, you will be put through to a chat-bot. A chat-bot is used to create an on-line chat conversation via text, before providing direct contact with a person.

At Is This Ok? we use a chat-bot as an easy way of identifying the support you need. You will then have the option to be transferred through to a trained chat advisor who will be able to listen and provide non-judgemental support.

We support young people with a range of different issues or concerns, including when a young person feels they don’t have options to leave or stop a situation. It may be that you are wondering if your situation or a friends situation is okay and would like to chat to someone anonymously and confidentially about this. Out trained advisors are here to chat.

Our specialist advisers are available for you to chat to between these hours:

Monday: 14:00 – 23:30

Tuesday: 14:00 – midnight

Wednesday: 14:00 – midnight

Thursday: 14:00 – 21:30

Friday: 14:00 – 23:00

Saturday: 14:00 – 01:00

Sunday: 14:00 – 22:30

Useful information

Are you are worried about something, or someone you know? Here you’ll find information and advice for young people on topics like sex, relationships, gangs, or running away. Information includes resources and advice from Runaway Helpline.

Being part of a gang can provide protection, friendship, money, and status. A gang can be a group of mates from the same school, same area or that just chill together. Some gangs take part in criminal activity and might try to get you involved. Being involved in a gang can be life-threatening.

If you become worried about the kind of things your gang is doing, or if they are trying to pressure you into doing things you don’t want to do such as crime, you may be scared and want to run away to escape it. If you are part of a gang and want to get good advice from people who understand, there are organisations you can reach out to who will not judge you.

  • Away from home or care?
  • Caught up in a gang or going country?

If you have been affected by gangs or County Lines, you can talk to our call handlers today for help and advice.

There can be lots of reasons you want to run away. Every situation is unique and we understand that there are many reasons or situations which may drive you to leave home. We know that for many people, home is not a safe place and they do not feel like they can stay there.

Running away is never a completely safe thing to do, but thinking about what you are doing and what you might need to do could help keep you a lot safer than you would have been.

Before you run away try to talk through your options with someone. A good option would be an adult you can trust, like a teacher, or a relative. Talk to them about what you could do instead. There might be another solution you hadn’t thought of. If there’s no one you trust, you can talk to us – you don’t have to tell us your name, or where you live. Our chatbot can also direct you to other organisations if you are unsure where to start.

If you are definitely going to go then make sure you have everything you might need to stay as safe as you possibly can.

Here are some things to think about:

  • think carefully about where you are going and how you are going to get there – will you be safe getting there? Do you have everything that you might need with you? If you’re definitely going, remember important things such as warm clothes, medication, food, drink, money, your phone, your phone charger…
  • if you have somewhere to go that you would be safe like a friend’s or relative’s house then that is probably the best option, or if you don’t have that as an option, try going somewhere with shelter such as a hospital where there are also people around which means you will not be alone
  • memorise or write down important phone numbers in case your phone gets lost or the battery dies and you need to contact someone urgently
  • you may have turned off your phone to stop people calling you but it can be good to turn your phone on as you may receive a reassuring text message from your family or someone else who understands
  • always avoid hitch-hiking or getting into a stranger’s car. This can be incredibly dangerous. You don’t know who they are or where they might take you
  • make sure you know the area where you are running to. If you end up in an area that you don’t know then try and find out about safe places to go by asking in a supermarket, a train station or at the Citizens Advice Bureau
  • if you’re already on the streets always try and stay in public, well-lit areas. Only stay somewhere where you feel safe and you can trust people. Remember that if someone is nice or flirty with you then they may want something in return later on. If you find yourself in a situation where you are somewhere that doesn’t have many people or there are people who make you feel unsafe around then you can call the police and they can come and get you – you won’t be in trouble for calling them, the most important thing is your safety.

We can help

If you do need help, remember there are projects and services that will listen to you, help make you safe and find somewhere to stay. If you need advice, you can talk to our call handlers about this at any time.

All relationships have their ups and downs. It might never feel 100% ‘perfect’ and that is totally ok because no one is really 100% ‘perfect’. Your first romantic relationship can be hard to get used to – relationships are different to friendships, and every relationship is different from other relationships, so it can all be very confusing and hard to get used to.

It’s important that you feel safe, supported, and in control of your own decisions. You should never feel like you are being pushed into doing something before you’re ready, and you should never push them either. It’s also good to remember that although you are in a couple, you are both still individuals, capable of making your own decisions and having your own different thoughts and feelings about stuff. Respect is very important, and you should feel like you have this as a couple – if you don’t, this is probably something you should talk about together.

If you need advice on relationships, if you just broke up with someone or you are having problems in your current relationship then there are experts who can help you, or you can ask someone you know who is in a good relationship for advice.

If you’re worried about your friend or someone else you know, there is lots of information on this site that could help you understand what is going on for them.

In hard times, everyone needs a good friend. Being a good friend, listening and supporting someone when things are tricky, isn’t easy. Sometimes being honest about why you are worried about them can feel very difficult.

We know that people talk to their friends usually before they talk to any adults. It might be that you are holding a lot of worries about someone and you feel you need some advice and to talk things through. OKbot is here to talk to you, in confidence.

If you feel that talking to someone would be grassing on your friend or breaking their secrets, knowing you can talk to us without anyone knowing who you are or who your friend is, could really help.

You and your friends deserve to be safe and happy.