Out of hours emergency service
We have social work offices throughout Aberdeenshire. If you need access to a social work service, please contact your local social work office.
If you need an urgent social work service out with the normal office hours, you can contact the out of hours emergency service. The team is there to help anyone experiencing personal or family problems that reach a crisis at nights, weekends or bank holidays.
The out of hours emergency service provides an emergency social work service in situations that cannot wait until the social work offices reopen. Contact with this service is made primarily by telephone.
All phone calls are screened by experienced staff who will prioritise those referrals that need to be dealt with as emergencies, and pass on other referrals to daytime services.
When necessary, out of hours emergency service staff will visit you in your own home, in hospital, at a police station or at another relevant location.
Priorities
The main priorities for the service are:
- statutory assessments for child protection
- detentions under the Mental Health Act, and
- urgent community care / child care assessments
Contact us
After office hours, you can contact the out of hours emergency service on
0845 8400070.
This service is available Monday to Friday 5.00 pm to 8.45 am and over the weekend Saturday and Sunday 8.45 am to 8.45 am.
The office is not staffed after midnight. However if your call is an emergency you will be put through to someone by dialling 0845 8400070.
Aberdeenshire Responders for Care at Home (ARCH)
We run an out of hours responder service for home care users and sheltered housing tenants in crisis. Aberdeenshire Responders for Care at Home (ARCH) is available out with normal working hours.
A response can be activated by calling 0845 608 120. Alternatively sheltered housing tenants can press their pendant. All none urgent care and support needs should be directed through your local social work office.