Children calling the helpline service regarding alcohol misuse were also more than three times more likely to mention suffering physical abuse than other children who called.
Between April 2008 and March 2009, ChildLine received 986 calls from children aged five to 11 concerned about their parents’ alcohol problem.
One 10-year-old girl told the helpline: "My mum drinks all the time. She leaves me alone lots of the time. I feel scared and lonely. I look after mum when she drinks and put her to bed. She shouts and hits me. I don’t want to feel pain. I want to die."
Parental drug misuse was reported as a problem in the lives of 2,284 children given ChildLine counselling.
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