York Samaritans welcomes new Branch Director

York Samaritans is pleased to announce the appointment of David Moyles as its new Branch Director.

David, who was nominated by his fellow listening and support volunteers to lead the team, will be running the branch and its community outreach activities from July 2023.

David has volunteered with York Samaritans for 6 years answering calls for help from people struggling to cope. David has also taken on the responsibilities of coordinating Yorkshire and Humberside Region’s Rural Support scheme, leading Branch outreach activities, establishing links with local organisations and charities and supporting other volunteers across the branch.

David said: “I’m honoured and excited to be taking up this post as Branch Director at York Samaritans. I feel passionate about what we do, not just within the branch but as an organisation. We strive constantly to help and support those in need.”  

David joined Samaritans as he wanted to be part of an organisation that offered help and support to anyone in need, without judgement. He added that everyone should have someone to talk to, no matter the time of day or night and Samaritans provides that unique service.

David takes over from Diana Gibbon, who has led the branch since 2020. David said, “Diana has guided the branch through particularly challenging times. Covid had a significant impact on many of our callers and our branch and Samaritans responded to the challenge by maintaining our 24/7 availability despite the restrictions placed on all of us. I’d like to thank her for her hard work over the last 3 years.”

With over 130 volunteers, York Samaritans, which is based at Nunnery Lane, has been providing emotional support for the past 50 years. Last year, volunteers from York Samaritans spent over 5000 hours supporting the public through the 24hour freephone helpline, 116123, our email jo@samaritans.org and our online chat service.

David said, “We have a particularly exciting period ahead of us. As well as regular fund raising and awareness events, we look forward to Samaritans being the 2024 TCS London Marathon Charity of the Year.”

You can find out more about the Branch’s activities by following York Samaritans on

Twitter - https://twitter.com/YorkSamaritans

If you would like to make a donation to support the Branch’s work visit https:// www.samaritans.org/branches/york/

Anyone interested in volunteering with York Samaritans should visit www.samaritans.org/support-us/volunteer/ for more information.