Hear to Help charity put in touch with council funding gurus

Mairi Gougeon MSP has enlisted the support of Angus Council’s external funding team to try to save the Hear To Help Angus group.

The Angus North And Mearns MSP is hoping to secure a grant to prevent the closure of the hearing impairment charity, whose funding is due to run out soon.

Mrs Gougeon said: “When I visited Hear To Help in Forfar I was incredibly impressed.

“The clinic was very busy and the volunteers staffing the clinic were incredibly informed and approachable.

“It’s an invaluable service and one that I hope we can keep in Angus.

“They failed in their funding bid to the Angus IJB (Integrated Joint Board) but it’s important that they leave no stones unturned in their attempts to stay open.

“If there is a fund they can tap into then I’m confident the best people to find the fund are Angus Council’s external funding team.

“They are experts in their field and both very approachable to local community groups and supportive in their attempts to attract grant funding.”

In Angus, Hear To Help supports around 600 people with an average age of 82. Services include a fortnightly drop-in session in Arbroath Library and monthly drop-ins at Brechin Library, Carnoustie Library, Forfar’s Whitehills Health Centre and Montrose’s Links Health Centre.

The charity, run by Action on Hearing Loss Scotland, is supported by six volunteers who are trained by the NHS Tayside Audiology Balance department.

All funding options to keep Hear to Help going beyond September have been exhausted.