Rehab charity splashing out up to €40k on new identity
THE Rehab charity is to completely rebrand – as it believes its name ‘is no longer fit for purpose’.
The group is to appoint a branding agency to draw up a new identity for the organisation at an estimated cost of €30,000 to €40,000.
Rehab was rocked by a controversy which culminated in the resignation of its chief executive, Angela Kerins, in 2014 and a new board being appointed five months later.
There was significant anger when it emerged Ms Kerins received a €240,000 salary, while more than €400,000 in consultancy fees was paid to former board member Frank Flannery over seven years.
However, the disability charity said the reason it is rebranding is because the word ‘rehab’ is ‘now largely associated with drug and alcohol rehabilitation services and is no longer fit for purpose for an organisation whose key three pillars are care, training and employability’.
It stated: ‘To put it simply we are not in the business of “rehabilitation”. We are in the business of changing hearts and minds around disability, in all its forms, by giving our people a chance to thrive, achieve and shine.’
The statement confirmed that the directors of the Rehab Group decided to invest in the development of new brand strategy this year.
The organisation stated: ‘This process has revealed the name Rehab is weak, making a name change imperative if we are to achieve our organisational strategic goals... During a robust and collaborative process, we asked our staff, the people who use our services and our key stakeholders whether there is an appetite to find a new name and visual identity for Rehab which more truly reflects the work we do in 2017. The answer was a resounding yes.’
The charity’s new identity is to be put in place during the first three months of next year.
Last year, Rehab’s income totalled €151million and its spending amounted to €154million.
In total, 14 employees received salaries in excess of €100,000 – with new chief executive Mo Flynn receiving €140,000.