There is hope for the victims of crimeHOW would you react to becoming a victim of crime? Would you b

None of this would be possible without the 25 loyal volunteers and committed fund-raisers attached to the Bridge house office on Pool Street South.

Recently, they brightened up Harwood with 500 balloons -- raising more than £200 thanks to donations by Safeways shoppers. A further collection is planned in Westhoughton next month.

Sometimes a victim of crime can become a trained volunteer for Victim Support -- and that's what happened to Sally (not her real name).

This is her story. Why victim Sally became Victim Support volunteer SALLY had been married for 15 years to a man who was seen as a pillar of the community by the outside world.

But within the walls of the family home, it had come to light that he drank and gambled, amassing huge debts. And at one stage, Sally's husband hit her.

It was, she said, "the first and last time" that happened.

She called the police and, in the end, she "had to kick him out" as his drinking and temper had become dangerous and the stress on the family was getting "too much".

Alone, penniless, desperate and on anti-depressants, she turned to Victim Support.

"I realised I couldn't cope," Sally recalled. "I was at my wits' end, I didn't know which way to turn."

The volunteer listened and helped with matters such as benefits' applications, as Sally -- once a successful professional -- felt she couldn't arrange these things on her own.

And when the house was repossessed, it was again the volunteer who helped Sally and her children.

"During that month, I quite simply would have gone under but for her coming round," said Sally.

And she added: "Without Victim Support, I would have been locked up on a mental ward."

It took three years for Sally to "get back on her feet", during which she was glad of the occasional contact with Victim Support.

"It kept me going, really," said Sally."I found my friends thought that after six weeks I would be 'over it by now'. They have no idea of what's underneath.

"It's like cases of assault -- once the bruises fade, people think it's forgotten. But it can go on much longer than people realise."

It was June last year when she trained as a volunteer herself. "I like helping people. Every time I do something, I remember how I felt when someone helped me.

"I hope I can make someone else feel like that."

She learned to listen -- no mean feat for someone who says: "I can yap for Britain" -- and helps the people who are referred to Victim Support by the police, or who contact the office directly.

Sally's role is to talk to them in confidence, offer information on repairs, security, compensation and insurance, and point them in the direction of other sources of help -- social services, health visitors, doctors.

If anyone has to go to court or the police station, Sally is able to accompany them.

"My role is to help them get over the effects of crime and get on with their lives," Sally explained."I get all the agencies involved that I think are necessary.

"When all that is in place I step out and ring up a few times."

Sally takes her responsibilities very seriously and always thinks "Don't let me make a mistake" when she first visits people.

"You could mess up people's lives," she explained." All the volunteers take it seriously."

Sally isn't able to talk about individual cases, but said she clearly remembered one case where a wife barricaded herself into her home after her husband threatened her with a hammer. It made her realise the work isn't always without risk.

And in the course of her work, she has learned that crime makes victims of people from all levels of society.

From the well-to-do widow who has had her jewellery stolen, to the family whose home betrays "appalling hygiene, low education and bad speech".

Sally is just there to help. BOLTON Victim Support can be contacted on 01204-399736. Anyone who could print balloons or donate gas to fill them, lend a bouncy castle or other form of entertainment for the next fundraising event, please phone and ask for a member of the fundraising committee. Fighters who won't be beaten BOLTON victims of crime will NOT be beaten.

As one volunteer with Bolton Victim Support explains, they're fighters who refuse to bow down to the crimes against them.

"I met a blind gentleman who asked me to leave him some notes about what he should do in the future to protect himself.

Naturally, I asked how he would read these notes and he told me that the 11-year-old girl across the road would read it to him as she reads his mail every day. Another neighbour came and read the newspaper to him every night. Their name is Patel. Such a close community.

I also visited a a high dependency unit for the old people. One tenant had been burgled -- the offender had been caught by the all-female staff. When I enquired as to what had happened, they simply said: "Well, he won't be back!" and dissolved into fits of laughter.

I am constantly reminded of the courage and strength of our older generation.

I remember the postmistress who felt she did not need help. She had been threatened with a shotgun in the post office and told the man to "Hop it", then pressed the alarm. So he hopped it.

I frequently become inspired by the person I have met -- a lady in Deane being my best example.

"She was the victim of a mugging and had suffered a break-in. She had also lost three very close friends in the past three months.

"However, she did not have too much time to spare because she visited the old people from church and she had to go out that night. She was 85.

"The victims always win in the end because they are stronger." Burglaries are the big fear FOUR out of 10 referrals to Victim Support are burglaries.

Over the last six months, these break-ins cost Greater Manchester more than £16 million in terms of property stolen and criminal damage.

But that is just the tip of the iceberg, according to new research by Victim Support and Direct Line.

These two organisations have just started a nine-month Burglary in Britain campaign to raise awareness of the effects of burglary.

Andree Wright, co-ordinator at Bolton and District Victim Support, said: "Though some people may be able to get on with their lives following such crimes, many suffer emotionally as a result and in some cases this can lead to severe psychological disturbance."

The effects of burglary can be far-reaching, as one 22-year-old graduate from Bolton knows.

Tania (not her real name) recently had her house burgled while she and her fiance were asleep.

Thieves had broken in through a locked kitchen window, ransacking the kitchen and taking Tania's handbag including £20.

The intruders were disturbed when neighbours were alerted by the noise and switched their lights on and fled.

But to Tania, the feeling she was left with was far worse than the damage done to her house and the items taken.

"I felt like I had been raped," she said, adding she doesn't want to offend anyone by making this statement.

It's simply the fact that the burglars -- whom she expects to be "drug users"-- invaded her life and personal space and made her feel "angry and dirty".

Since the burglary, she has been "scrubbing" her kitchen constantly, she hasn't slept properly and is reluctant to go out.

"What gives them the right?" said Tania. "It has left me with an awful feeling." Burglary factfile UNIVERSITY of Surrey figures reveal that:

Six per cent of households (1.6 million homes) are burgled each year;

One in five burglaries are cleared up by police;

Nearly half of all properties are occupied when a burglary takes place;

One in 20 people take more than five days off work to recover from the ordeal;

15 per cent of burglars enter through an unlocked door or window;

Eight out of 10 households are covered by insurance;

77 per cent of respondents to a poll said that burglary was the crime they most feared;

Common reactions to burglary include feelings of violation and intrusion and long-term effects include feelings of fear, insecurity and a sense of injustice.