Poppyscotland confirms closure of its high street welfare centre in the Highlands
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Poppyscotland has confirmed the closure of its welfare centre in Inverness.
The charity announced its plan, today, saying in spite of the closure it was re-organising and expanding its services in the region.
Staff employed at the centre will now be working remotely from home.
The Inverness welfare centre is located in the MacRobert Centre on Strothers Lane,
A spokeswoman for Poppyscotland said: "Following a period of consultation, Poppyscotland’s Board of Trustees has confirmed that the charity will remove its high street welfare centres in Inverness and Ayrshire.
"This move is part of a re-organisation of the charity’s vital, life-changing services, which will be expanded in the months ahead."
Proposals to change the charity’s physical footprint were initially put forward in April 2021 as part of a wider review being undertaken by Poppyscotland and its parent charity, the Royal British Legion (RBL).
The review seeks to ensure the wider group is delivering its services to have the greatest impact possible and meet the modern-day needs of the Armed Forces community it serves.
The RBL has also announced plans to remove 15 of its equivalent high street pop-in centres elsewhere in the UK, with the group adopting a remote-working and regional hub model instead.
The spokeswoman continued: "The Covid-19 pandemic has created a significant shift in people’s habits and behaviours, including how members of the Armed Forces community are choosing to use and access the charity’s support.
"By introducing a more flexible delivery model and making changes to its office set-up, Poppyscotland and RBL will be able provide more personalised care to a greater number of people and significantly reduce response times for those in need.
"Poppyscotland’s welfare centres and RBL’s pop-in centres were opened based on information and data that was valid more than ten years ago but is no longer reflective of societal habits and behaviours.
"With numerous other ways for people to reach out to the charity and significant operating costs involved in operating the welfare centres, Poppyscotland has concluded funds could be put to better use with greater impact for individuals seeking help."
PoppyScotland has offered support to the armed forces for more than 100 years.
"The Armed Forces community is changing, with the type of support needed growing increasingly complex," the spokeswoman continued.
"Since 2016 the charity has seen a 20 per cent increase in people needing support with housing, financial issues, mental health and well-being and mobility. "The profound impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on people’s lives means the charity is also anticipating a substantial increase, beyond that which it has already seen, in the number of people looking for support across a complex range of areas."
Poppyscotland chief executive, Mark Collins said: “In everything we do at Poppyscotland, our aim is to create better futures for our Armed Forces community and their families.
"Making these changes to the way in which we deliver our vital, life-changing services, will allow us to focus our resource and streamline our operations, ultimately meaning we can provide greater levels of support to those who are coming to the charity at their lowest ebb.
"It is our responsibility to ensure the donations we are given are being spent as effectively as possible to provide the right help and support that many within our Armed Forces community are in desperate need of."
He continued: "These changes will allow the charity to operate more effectively, freeing up more of our funds to spend directly on supporting our Armed Forces community rather than on operating costs.
"However, we are acutely aware of the impact the changes will have for staff members and volunteers based in Inverness and Ayrshire and we have not taken this decision lightly.
"We have been working closely with the affected staff, volunteers, and partner organisations throughout the consultation period and will continue to support our staff members who will now be moving to a permanent remote working model.
"We would like to thank everyone who contributed to the consultation process, and we will use the feedback to help shape how we deliver our work going forward.”
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