Leeds Emergencies

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Leeds
"Up North!"
Country: United Kingdom

Links:
CS Group	Wikipedia	Wikitravel
Ambassadors:
Geoff McConnell

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SERIOUS EMERGENCIES

In any serious emergency, requiring the police, medical attention or fire services, always dial 999 and state clearly which service you require. This is free from any payphone, mobile or landline and often works even when you have no network coverage. If it is not an emergency, you should instead call the direct line to the service you require (see numbers below).

POLICE

West Yorkshire Police

For non emergencies please dial: 0845 6060606

Local policing authority: West Yorkshire Police

If you need to visit a local police station, find your nearest on the West Yorkshire Police site. They also appear on our Leeds CS Map.

Rape Crisis

Avoid walking alone at night, particularly through deserted places such as parks. Always tell someone / your host where you are going and what time you expect to be back.

In case of rape, do get in touch with the nearest hospital (see below). Visit them, get examined and of course report the incident to the nearest police station. Should you need to discuss the incident further and require support do not hesitate to contact the Rape Crisis Unit. The nearest one to Leeds is in Manchester. Their confidential helpline is 0161 273 4514 (office: 0161 273 4591). Check their website for further details. For details of national rape crisis centres click here.

Women’s Walk-in Refuge

This is a women's aid unit/ refuge centre for women and children who have experienced domestic violence. It provides safe temporary accommodation & support for women who need it. For more information please check their website. The national freephone domestic violence helpline is 0808 2000 247

Tourist Police

We don't really have these kind of police in Leeds, probably because tourism isn't our main business. What we do have though are lots of community support officers, who wear bright yellow police clothing and patrol the streets. They are probably your best bet if you need directions or something :)

Fraud Prevention Unit & Info

For national details on Fraud and further links for information about Fraud Prevention please visit the Home Office website.

Other Crime or Police Related Assistance

Victim Support - free and confidential advice and support to help victims, witnesses and their families, regardless of whether the crime has been reported. 0845 30 30 900
Stop Hate UK – help and advice for victims of hate crime. 0800 138 1625
Missing People – works with runaways, missing and unidentified people, and those who care for them. 0500 700 700.

MEDICAL ASSISTANCE

Hospitals

There are two major hospitals in Leeds, the Leeds General Infirmary which is in the city centre and St James' University Hospital, about 1 mile from the city centre. Both have Accident & Emergency Departments open 24 hours a day.

General Enquiries St James': 0113 243 31 44

General Enquiries LGI: 0113 243 27 99

A full list of free NHS hospitals in Leeds can be found here.

Medical Advice Helpline

NHS direct: 0845 4647

You can also contact an NHS nurse over the phone at the NHS Direct helpline for medical advice and suggestions if you are having minor medical emergency or you can not reach a hospital. They will usually take your telephone number and have a nurse give you a call back within 5 minutes, so you can talk them through your situation and they can offer you their free advice. They can also provide advice on where to go / what help you need and have details of the out of hours GP services and Emergency Dentists in our area.

Walk-in Centres

Walk In Centres specialise in providing medical care to people not living in the area e.g. tourists and visitors.

There is an NHS walk in centre located in The Light Building on the Headrow in the centre of Leeds. Tel: 0870 818 0003‎ Website: The Headrow NHS Walk-In Centre

For more information on NHS Walk In Centres follow the link!

EMBASSIES & CONSULATES

All foreign Embassies are located in London, however there are a few regional offices in Leeds.

Last-Minute Difficulties

Accommodation

Always make sure you are aware of ways to get to your host's home, but also out of it as well, should you need to.

There are no backpacker/youth hostels in Leeds whatsoever. But there are plenty of hotels and B&Bs – try the Gateway Yorkshire search here.

If your couch falls through at the very last minute, we have an email list of emergency couches. We really do mean emergencies though – it’s not a cheat sheet! So if you’re really desperate, send an email to emergencycsleeds[at]googlemail.com and you will receive a list back of CS members who you can contact at short notice. However please remember to leave a bit of time for the emergency contact to check out your profile before they agree to host you.

Transport

National Operators:

Local Operators:

Taxis:

There is a major taxi rank outside the Leeds Railway Station
- Note that you can only hail black cabs; you must phone ahead for a private car.
Amber Cars 00441132636445

Other info:

HitchWiki Leeds page

CITIZEN'S ADVICE BUREAU

The Citizen's Advice Bureau is the main official place where you can get information and advice on pretty much anything! They help people resolve their debt, benefits, housing, legal, discrimination, employment, immigration, consumer and other problems and is available to everyone regardless of race, gender, sexuality, age, nationality, disability or religion. If you can't find an answer to your problem anywhere else, they will be able to help and if not help you, then at least will point you to the right direction. They will offer advice in person if you walk in or over the phone, and their locations as well as further information can be found here: Citizen's Advice Bureau

THE IMMIGRATION ADVISORY SERVICE

If you have trouble with immigration, they will be able to offer you initial free consultation and depending on your circumstances, take it from there: Immigration Advisory Service

LEGAL ADVICE

Should you need it, the Leeds City Council website provides full details about where and how to get legal advice.

YOUR LOCAL CS AMBASSADOR

Geoff McConnell can be contacted by email - if you have any questions or problems with couchsurfing whilst in our area, please do not hesitate to get in touch. For a phone number in an emergency email emergencycsleeds[at]googlemail.com

MORE INFORMATION & ADVICE

More useful information can be found on these other CS wiki pages: