Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
Foundation has 20/20 vision for HQ revamp
The Moira Anderson Foundation’s major new campaign is officially off and running following a colourful launch event.
Senior pupils from Golfhill Primary attended the Airdrie charity’s Mavisbank Street headquarters to show their support for its new 2020 initiative, which aims to raise £ 50,000 to reconfigure and refurbish its premises in time for its 20th anniversary next year.
They shared a special cake and heard more about the project from charity staff and volunteers including its founder, Sandra Brown, and chair Maggie Docherty.
It would see the organisation, which supports people affected by childhood sexual abuse, renovate its current home to provide seven more counselling spaces to help meet continuously increasing demand for its services.
The Foundation assisted its highestever number of people in 2018 when more than 400 different clients came through the doors, while March of this year set a new single-month record total of 50 referrals.
Staff and volunteers ultimately aim to go on to raise £250,000 in order to rent or purchase additional nearby premises to be used for extra therapy spaces and office facilities.
Maggie told the Advertiser last month: “If we can’t expand to other spaces and premises, we’d have to stop taking referrals for a while – and we’re determined not to do that, because as long as people are coming to us for help, we want to be able to provide it.
“The 2020 appeal is all about expansion, because having more space would give far better provision for clients.
“We currently keep in touch between their first contact and starting therapy, but if we had more rooms we could have all that moving more quickly.
“Our first target is to create new counselling rooms; if we can then expand into additional premises too, it would give full wheelchair access and create more dedicated therapy and counselling rooms, including a space and the right environment for teens.”
Sandra added: “The campaign came about from increased demand and the number of referrals having gone through the roof, and we’re hoping local businesses, groups and individuals can help us.
“We’ve never done anything like this before, but we’ve reached quite a pivotal situation.”
Charity director Gillian Urquhart said: “It’s important that our therapy spaces are effective as we need to have the right environment to work with clients – it takes huge courage and strength to walk in the front door and we want it to be absolutely right.
“We’re the only charity working with all ages and all genders on childhood sexual abuse – we want to be fully equipped to meet that demand, so every penny counts.”
Donations can be made to the Foundation via www.justgiving.com/moiraandersonfoundation, the donate button on its Facebook page and by cheque payable to the Moira Anderson Foundation, and contributors can specify that they would like their donation to go to the 2020 campaign.