Fears ‘invaluable’ Fife charity could close

Kindred service, which helps vulnerable families, in funding plea after Lottery cash is cut

A Fife charity fears it could close within a matter of weeks without vital emergency funding to keep it afloat.

Staff at the Kindred service, which is based in Dunfermline, have written to Fife councillors, politicians and Fife Council chief executive Steve Grimmond requesting their assistance in sourcing more than £21,000 which would see it survive for the rest of the financial year.

The Kindred team in Fife has helped children with disabilities and their families for the last decade and has a high level of referrals directly from consultants, community paediatric nurses, the neo-natal ward, child development centres and Fife’s social work department.

If the organisation fails to find the additional cash needed to keep it going until at least April, it will be forced to close its doors by December 1.

The Courier understands the charity suffered unexpected cuts in external Lottery funding, contributing to the current predicament. The level of council funding has remained the same.

Linda Black, information and advocacy manager at Kindred in Fife, said staff had been issued with letters informing them of the threat of redundancy unless the funding shortfall can be plugged.

A Facebook appeal has been launched along with a Justgiving page.

“In the last year, we supported 314 families with in-depth, one-to-one support throughout Fife and also had 122 families come along to our parent support groups and information events,” said Ms Black.

“If Kindred closes then there are no other third sector services to refer the families to and we will have to refer these very vulnerable families to Fife Council statutory services, putting a further strain on social work, education and health services.”

Kindred work with some of the most vulnerable families in Fife, with more than 50% of the families supported living in the highest areas of deprivation and facing significant social emotional issues along with the added responsibility of caring for a child with disability.

One family member, who did not want to be named and who has benefited from the charity’s advice, described the organisation as “invaluable” and added: “I can’t thank Kindred enough, the help we received was amazing.”

Fiona McKay, head of strategic planning, performance and commissioning with Fife’s Health and Social Care Partnership, said: “We provide almost £38,000 each year to the Kindred Advocacy Project to help families with children who need extra support. However, the organisation also relies on Lottery funding which unfortunately has been cut.

“We’ll continue to work with Kindred to explore options for the future.”

If Kindred closes then there are no other third sector services to refer the families to and we will have to refer these very vulnerable families to Fife Council statutory services ... LINDA BLACK, INFORMATION AND ADVOCACY MANAGER AT KINDRED

Picture: Steve MacDougall. Concerned parents during a meeting of the charity Kindred in Dunfermline.