The Support and Information Line Program and Alberta One Line for Sexual Violence Program provides immediate information and emotional support to all people impacted by sexual violence, including supporters.

SACE volunteers provided over 400 hours of phone support to Edmontonians and Albertans impacted by sexual violence during the Support and Information Line Program 2022-2023 year.  They also contributed over 250 hours of text and chat support on the One Line. We would not be able to provide the quality of support that we do if it were not for the dedication, resilience, and passion that our volunteers bring to the SACE SIL and One Line! 

The Support and Information Line Program (SIL) continues to be foundational to our work at SACE. The Volunteer Services program relies on over forty volunteers who provide specialized support to folks impacted by sexual violence, in addition to our staff team. Volunteers play a key role in supporting the work of both the SACE line and Alberta’s One Line for Sexual Violence, for which SACE acts as the central and northern hub. This province-wide phone/text/chat line gives all Albertans a place where they are listened to, believed, and supported. 

Support Line Program Training Highlights  

SACE facilitates two trainings per year to support the recruitment of new support line volunteers. Working on the lines is a coveted volunteer position, and once again this year, we received many more applications than available training spots. In 2022-2023, over twenty new volunteers successfully graduated onto the line! New volunteers attend roughly 70 hours of training, but so do new SACE staff, since they provide on-call back-up and debrief support for the lines. Attending training is a standard part of the SACE onboarding process, and helps acclimate staff to the agency, provides an opportunity for them to review and reflect deeply on our values, and strengthens their knowledge of topics related to sexual violence. The majority of training was once again provided via Zoom this year, however the Fall 2022 training was the first hybrid training offered since the start of the pandemic. 

As with our previous year, Volunteer Services was not solely focused on training new volunteers and staff. Program staff provided another three-hour staff on-call refresher training in March 2022, the purpose of which was to refresh and increase staff’s knowledge, skills, and confidence regarding their on-call work. Survey responses to this annual training continue to be universally positive. Ensuring staff take and refresh their support line training is not the only way we keep our skills sharp, however: the agency organized a professional development day, where staff attended the Indigenous People’s Experience at Fort Edmonton Park. This was a powerful experience that highlighted the histories, cultures, experiences, and perspectives of Indigenous life in the Beaver Hills (Edmonton) region. Not only is this type of PD important for overall staff training, but it also will directly assist staff to support self-identified Indigenous folks on the support lines. 

Between April 2022 and March 2023, SACE volunteers provided over 400 hours of phone support to Edmontonians and Albertans impacted by sexual violence. They also contributed over 250 hours of text/chat support on the One Line. We would not be able to provide the quality of support that we do if it were not for the dedication, resilience, and passion that our volunteers bring to the SACE SIL and One Line! 

Support Line Program Development 

Once a month Volunteer Services meets as part of the One Line Operations Committee, which also includes staff from the Association of Alberta Sexual Assault Services (AASAS) and Calgary Communities Against Sexual Abuse (CCASA). These monthly check-in meetings ensure the phone, text, and chat support on Alberta’s One Line for Sexual Violence continues to run effectively. Not only do these meetings strengthen our professional relationships between member agencies, they also contribute greatly to the program auditing process. 

Towards the end of this reporting year, Volunteer Services began talks of a new after-hours on-call program for staff. The goal of this program would be to further streamline the staff on-call scheduling process, as well as to reduce staff burnout and overtime hours. As we continue to explore this project, we are considering the ways in which this may continue to help reduce barriers for folks hoping to access specialized sexual violence support services through our agency.