Samaritans Ireland answered a call for help every 56 seconds last year

The report said: "Loneliness and isolation remained among the top reasons why people reached out for support, as well as mental health, family or relationship issues, bereavement, and illness."

Volunteers with Samaritans Ireland answered a call for help every 56 seconds last year - including contacts from Irish people as far away as Australia and Canada.

The charity's latest impact report, launched today, shows that more than 560,000 calls and emails were answered across the island of Ireland, with volunteers listening for more than 100,000 hours from March last year to March 2021 - the first year of the pandemic.