We have set up our web-site at probably the most important moment of the Association’s history since the mid-1950's, when we completed most of our post World War 2 building programme. We have started building the first of a planned 60 or so disabled friendly, single storey or single floor houses, spread over a number of locations across Scotland. These are needed to meet the growing demand for houses from those younger Veterans who are casualties of the conflicts of the last 25 years, from the Falklands through to the ongoing ones in Iraq and Afghanistan. The formal launch of the appeal to raise a target of £6 million to fund this building programme took place in the presence of the First Minister Alex Salmond in Edinburgh, 30th April 2008. We are grateful for any donations from individuals or groups. If you feel able to help us please click on the link; SVCGA(Inc) Donation Form Alternatively we would be happy to send you an information pack. Please email us at:[email protected] Newsletter No 4. April 2010 INTRODUCTION At last what has been the longest and severest Winter for many years appears to be over. All has not, however, been gloom over the last six months for either the fundraising or building aspects of the Appeal as we approach, at the end of this month, only the second anniversary of the launch which took place in Edinburgh Castle on 30 April 2008. This date increases in significance when viewed against the fact that we have passed the halfway mark in fundraising and have already built, or are building, one third of our projected total of sixty houses. This edition of our biannual Newsletter is slightly longer than normal in order to fully inform both our supporters and potential supporters of where we presently are and where we see ourselves going in the next two years. WHERE WE ARE Fund Raising On 1 September 2009 the Appeal stood at £2,679,550. We set ourselves the aim then of passing the £3M figure, or halfway to our target of £6M, by the end of the year. We made it (with £68 in hand!) thanks to some last minute donations from supporters and, as at 1 April, had pushed this on to £3,007,186 received or promised. While this is still well short of our end target, it has meant we have been able to fund, and push ahead with, the first four phases of our building programme. Expenditure on running the Appeal, paid from Association funds rather than from monies donated, continues to be very tightly controlled and stands at under 0.4% of the total raised so far. Building Motherwell Scone Phase 1. Motherwell. A block of four flats was completed at the very end of 2008. All are occupied, proving very popular with the tenants and we have now paid the retention percentage to complete the expenditure. Phase 2. Scone. Fortunately A&J Stephen, our builders, managed to get sufficiently ahead in their programme to have completed all externals and roofing before the snows arrived in mid-December. The result was that no time was lost to weather and, indeed, the contract came in a month early and on budget with ten, quite excellent flats handed over to us on 29 March. Tenants have been selected for three of the flats with others being sought. Lieutenant General Sir Alastair Irwin, President of Poppyscotland, the main supporters of this Phase, has agreed to officially open the flats on Friday 23 July. He will be supported by representatives of the other Charities and Trusts who have helped fund this phase, notably The Robertson and The Gannochy Trusts, and the many individuals who have donated. The Penicuik site as at 10th April, 2010 The refurbished cottages at Airdrie Phase 3. Penicuik. After the appointment of John Dennis & Company (Scotland) Ltd as the main contractors, work began on what is a very tight site in early November 2009. Unfortunately, although all foundations had been dug by mid-December not all had been laid when the very heavy falls of snow came before the Christmas stand-down. This, combined with severe frosts, prevented the site from re-opening until mid-January and, even then, further falls and frozen ground delayed progress. Some catching-up was possible during the dry period in early March and by the end of the month the frames and roofs were complete on all four houses with brickwork complete on three. Completion is expected to be about a month late in July. The development is to be known as Linburn Court in acknowledgement of the hugely generous support to the Appeal from Scottish War Blinded. Other major donors include Poppyscotland and BAE Systems. Phase 4. Airdrie. The first part, 4a, the full refurbishment and alteration to wheelchair standard of two 1950s bungalows owned by the Association, was completed in late September 2009. Both are now occupied by young Veterans severely disabled as a result of the Iraq operations. On 23 February 2010 we received full planning permission from North Lanarkshire Council for Phase 4b, to build two new bungalows within the extensive gardens to the rear of the existing Phase 4a ones. Building warrants are presently being obtained before going out to tender for the contract. Hopefully work will start in July with completion expected in December. The main funder is The Henry Smith Trust supported by Poppyscotland, Scottish War Blinded, The Dowager Countess Eleanor Peel Trust, The Beatrice Laing Trust and the W M Mann Foundation – to all of whom, together with other donors, we express our enormous gratitude. Summary. As at today’s date, within two years of the launch of the Appeal aimed at building sixty new, two bedroom, wheelchair friendly houses, we have completed sixteen (27%) with four more under construction and two in planning. When completed, hopefully by the end of this year, the total available for the young disabled will have reached 22 (37%). Increasing Contacts. Our primary aim within the Appeal has always been to help meet the housing needs of those younger Servicepersons having to leave as a result of wounds received in the current or recent operations. Now that our new houses are becoming available we have stepped up our direct contacts with all three Services, at all levels, to ensure that any potential tenants, drawn from across the UK, are kept up-to-date on the housing we have available and how we can help them. If any of our readers know of, or are currently trying to place a disabled ex-Serviceperson in housing, please contact us directly as shown at the end of this Newsletter or through the Veterans Scotland Central Housing Register (which covers all ex-Service housing in Scotland via a single application form) on www.veteranscotland.org.uk or by telephone on 0131 550 1595. WHERE WE ARE GOING Building Dundee Bungalows (before renovation!) Phase 5. Highlands. We continue to make slow progress with Defence Estates over a possible site on the edge of RAF Kinloss, although the Station itself could not be more supportive of our efforts. We have, however, recently had a possible offer from Tulloch Homes of a truly superb, “no cost” site, on the high ground on the South side of Inverness. The five houses we plan to build whether at Kinloss or Inverness, would be well placed to support former RAF veterans with links to both Kinloss and Lossiemouth as well as the Army based nearby at Fort George. Phase 6. Dundee. We have confirmed our intention to adapt four of our bungalows at Broughty Ferry, to the East of Dundee and close to the 45 Commando RM base at Arbroath, to full wheelchair standard. This will be the last phase in an ongoing £1.2M, nine-phase project to fully renovate and upgrade our thirty-six houses there. It is funded separately from the Appeal including very generous donations from Scottish War Blinded and the three Service Charities, Seafarers UK, ABF – The Soldiers’ Charity and The RAF Benevolent Fund. Twenty-one houses have been completed so far in a rolling programme with the final phase, the four bungalows, planned for Summer 2011. The nine houses in Phases 5 and 6 will bring our ‘Houses for Heroes’ total to thirty-one or 52% of our target. The balance of twenty-nine, intended for the Stirling and Glasgow areas, will be taken forward as funding becomes available, possibly in conjunction with the plans of other ex-Service housing Charities within Scotland and with whom we work very closely. Fund Raising. Our immediate aim, with Phases 1-4 fully funded, is to raise a further £500,000 to build the five houses planned for the Highlands, hopefully at Inverness, and to provide for the additional conversion costs at Dundee. Although it is likely to be a year before building starts we are increasingly conscious of the calls for help from our fellow, and equally deserving, ex-Service Charities, many of who have already supported us. Without their, and your, hugely generous help we could not have reached where we are in only two years. Our aim now is to keep the momentum up and to continue to push forward, step-by-step, towards our goal of £6M and sixty houses. Thank you for the tremendous support you have given and, in many cases, continue to give to ‘Houses for Heroes’. Our next Newsletter will be published in September. In the meantime regular updates and information on donating can be found on our web-site at http://housesforheroes.org.uk Registered Office: New Haig House, Logie Green Road, Edinburgh, EH7 4HQ Telephone/Fax Number: 0131 557 1188 Email: [email protected] This company is limited by Guarantee. Registered in Scotland No. 10795 DATE FOR YOUR DIARY (see below) BLAKE 'THE CLASSICAL FAB FOUR' Featuring Pipes from The Black Watch October 22nd 7.30pm PERTH CONCERT HALL In aid of the ‘Houses for Heroes’ THE BOYS BEHIND BLAKE When four young classical singers formed an informal group on social networking site Facebook in September 2007, little could they have imagined what was to come of it. Within days they had formed BLAKE and not long after had signed a contact with a major record label.Bridging the gap between pop and opera, the boys took the music industry by storm with their debut album ‘BLAKE’ which went straight to No 1 in the UK Classical Album Chart and won Album of the Year at the Classical Brit awards. 'Houses for Heroes' A Scottish Charity particularly devoted to housing disabled ex-Servicemen wounded in Iraq And Afghanistan. All proceeds from this concert will go towards funding 10 new flats near Perth. For further information on the Charity, visit http://housesforheroes.org.uk tTtt For Tickets: Telephone: 01738 621 031 or go on-line: http://www.horsecross.co.uk Registered Office: New Haig House, Logie Green Road, Edinburgh, EH7 4HQ This company is limited by Guarantee. Registered in Scotland No. 10795 |