Friends of the Craighalbert Centre

Registered Charity Number: SCO19427

The Friends of the Craighalbert Centre is the charitable trust for the centre.
All donations made are deposited within the friends of the Craighalbert and used specifically for the children.
The main funds within the friends are:

• The Hydrotherapy Pool
• Sponsorship of children
• Toys and Equipment
• Maintenance of Sense Garden and two playgrounds
• Outreach Project

The Hydrotherapy Pool Fund

The fund was created in the early life of the centre to build a pool, to extend the children's programme.

£200,000 had been raised by January 1999, when an application was made to the National Lottery Charities Board (now The Community Fund) for a grant, which if awarded, would allow the building of the pool to commence.

In March 1999 a grant of £379,602 was made, and building commenced in November 1999. The pool was completed in August 2000 and officially opened by HRH The Princess Royal on 14 May 2001. Fund raising continues to provide the £20,000 annual running costs.

Sponsorship of Children

Children who attend the Under Twos, Ramblers Group, Saturday School, Summer School are sponsored by the Friend of Craighalbert. Fund raising to support places within these groups is on-going.

Toys & Equipment

The Friends of Craighalbert helps to buy toys, equipment, and pay for gifts and outings for the children.

The Friends of Craighalbert undertake to maintain The Senses Garden donated by the staff at Oki (UK) Ltd, Cumbernauld and the two playgrounds donated by the R S Macdonald Trust, Edinburgh

Outreach Project

The Centre is now very full, with a role of forty five pupils from eighteen Scottish local authorities. In addition there are some twenty former pupils attending regularly in order to maintain and further develop their physical skills and mobility. This has now highlighted a need for additional accommodation to assist with outreach services.

The demand for outreach services is increasing and we are developing our staff development programme for professionals working with children with cerebral palsy.

A three phased plan to build two classrooms, two observations rooms, a children's toilet block, additional car parking (a planning stipulation) purchase furniture and equipment, fund initial staffing costs and build additional family accommodation is in place to meet this challenge.

Funds to build phases one and two are in place and construction of the classrooms, observation rooms, toilet facilities and car park is underway. The furniture and equipment has been purchased and we are working towards funding the initial staffing costs. The plans for phase three, the family accommodation, are in the early stages of development.