HANDS in pockets, shoulders hunched and lost in thought, the young man shuffles further into the depths of despair. If he has friends, they can't help. In a region where machismo is everything, how can he open his heart to them?

If he has parents, they can't help. They're adults, how can they understand what he's going through?

There are teachers, but they can't help. They're grown ups too, they'll tell him not to be silly, to get a grip, so what's the point?

Then there's the Samaritans, but they can't help either. They're all old-fashioned, religious, they'll judge him as well.

So the youngster bottles it all up, until he can bottle it up no longer, he reaches crisis point and another young life is lost, like the 50 in the North-East and North Yorkshire last year.

Pressure on the young has never been so great, in a society where children have never had so little time to be children. Modern life is sophisticated, expectations high and youngsters today get little time to develop the skills needed to survive in the 21st Century.

Most adults don't understand because life was simpler in their days and the youth of today are judged by those standards. Few will even agree with this simple fact - which is why many youngsters become despondent.

"Young men are not in the habit of expressing their feelings, so they lock it up inside themselves," says Roger, chairman of the Central Durham branch of the Samaritans, which is pioneering a scheme to combat the problem, an initiative which is being scrutinised nationally.

"You see them, shoulders hunched, deep trouble inside. A person who wants to take his own life has lost all self-esteem. But by listening to such a person there's the chance you can convince them that perhaps they do matter."

In the early 1990s, only one or two men a year under the age of 25 took their own lives in County Durham. By 1998 the figure had risen to 11, and last year the North-East and North Yorkshire saw 50 suicides.

"It's the tip of the iceberg and a sign of young distress," Roger says. "We have also seen increasing incidents of young women self-harming."

Helping people in despair is something the Samaritans have excelled at for years. "We are there all the time and take calls from all ages, anybody. But we realised that the number of young people contacting us was not representative of the number of young people," Roger says.

As a result, the Central Durham branch began talking to youth leaders in the area. A meeting followed last May involving ten of them and this grew into a full-scale seminar on the issue.

Youth leaders recommended a group of youngsters who had been involved in a variety of community projects. They were charged with examining the problem of distress in young people and recommending what could be done to help them. They have met every week since June to discuss their findings.

A report entitled Youth Matters - A Cry for Help found the causes of despair were wide-ranging. High expectations at school, in the home or at work was a main factor highlighted. Physical and mental bullying and the isolation which goes with it came high on the list. Isolation was also felt in the family when marriages broke down. The gamut of problems associated with the drug culture was another area pinpointed. And the changing pattern of consumption in a society where youngsters are under immense peer pressure was another area of concern.

The youth group also looked at who youngsters could turn to for help when they found themselves troubled.

"Their conclusion was there was nobody they could trust," says Roger. "They were worried about confidentiality as they didn't want their anxieties spread around, which ruled out friends.

"Youth leaders, teachers and parents were seen as having a direct response to their problems, 'we will tell you what to do', and they didn't want that. They also felt that no one was fully aware of the environment youths lived in. They feel it's so much different from before.

"The Samaritans endorse all these principles - we are confidential, we don't judge - but the image is wrong. They see us as holier-than-thou, that we are adults and will tell them what to do, that we'll see their problems as trivial.

"Even little details like you have to pay for the calls, or they'll appear on parents' phone bills, were obstacles."

The answer lies in the Samaritans' latest initiative. From tonight, a special freephone will be manned by trained counsellors - aged 16 to 21.

The service will available every Wednesday, from 6-9pm, with plans to make it more frequent if it proves to be widely used and if funding can be secured to maintain it.

Volunteer Samantha, 18, says: "When we first got together we had a discussion about what the Samaritans were. We thought they were old fashioned, religious and would judge young people because the Samaritans were adults. A lot of young people can talk to other youths better than to adults.

"We get all the support we need from Samaritans and community education. The Samaritans hope to open this service on more nights when more volunteers are recruited."

Stacey, 17, says: "We think that a lot of the calls will be about bullying and exam pressures." And Gary, 16, adds: "Adults might think some problems young people have are small but to us they are major problems."

It is the first youth call centre in the country and could go nationwide if it proves to be well-used.

"Nationally, Samaritans are interested in what we are doing to see if it works," says Roger. "We are very keen to go on from here and are looking for funding to keep it going."

More than 75 per cent of youngsters approached by the youth team say they believe the line will help. The young counsellors know it won't be easy but are prepared to persevere.

They are convinced they can make a difference and stop the spiral of despair. They are young, they understand and they can help.

l The youth call line is 0800 2986121. Anyone wanting to help the Samaritans' latest venture should ring 0191-384 2727.

www.samaritans.org.u