Tag: Parkhead

SPACE: Social investment builds foundations for a brighter future

£500,000 from Foundation Scotland helped develop the state of the art Broomhouse Hub, transforming the lives of hundreds living in South West Edinburgh

For over 30 years, Space @ The Broomhouse Hub has delivered transformative personal, social and community development opportunities for local people in and around Broomhouse, Parkhead and Sighthill.

The charity offers training, volunteering and employment opportunities for those disadvantaged by poverty or other limiting factors, counselling and befriending support, community food initiatives including school holiday support, social groups for isolated older people, and a range of classes and groups designed to support mental health and wellbeing.  

An important organisation for many people, Space @ The Broomhouse Hub successfully navigated the many challenges of the pandemic and they are now helping local people to manage the continuing cost of living crisis. 

As one of the most deprived areas in Scotland, Broomhouse feels the impact of rising costs disproportionately. Over the past few years, the charity has delivered numerous events to support all parts of the community in coping with mental and economic challenges.

Key services now include dignified access to food.  From their popular community café, they offer nutritious, good value food, providing over 1,500 community meals so far this year including free meals for struggling young carers who may barely be getting one meal each day, and free meals for all children (no registration, no other purchase needed) throughout the school summer holidays.

Thanks to their ambitious vision and support from funders, Space @ The Broomhouse Hub has undergone a massive period of growth, equipping them to support the growing numbers of people that need them.

Across the last few years, the charity has tripled their staff capacity and doubled the reach of their vital support services post-pandemic. The charity cites the development of their multi-purpose community hub as the catalyst for this expansion. 

Foundation Scotland’s social investment played a pivotal role in this development.

The Foundation Scotland social investment relationship with Space @ Broomhouse began in 2018. The two organisations had already worked together on several grant awards, but with growing demand for their services and an ambitious strategy in place, the team at Space turned to Foundation Scotland for expert advice and growth funding.

The social investment support offered by Foundation Scotland is a unique form of blended grant and loan, designed to help organisations to open doors and grow effectively.  Over the past 11 years, they have invested over £12.5 million in 72 organisations around Scotland. 

The Foundation Scotland team works closely with applicants to offer more than just traditional funding, also providing unique insight, planning support and advice to help attract further investment.  

Neil Hay, CEO of Space @ The Broomhouse Hub said: “Support for capital projects, and core funding, is critical to our work, yet unfortunately not so prevalent.

“As an organisation, we believe in connections and working together for the benefit of all. The partnership approach from Foundation Scotland has been so refreshing. Both the funding and relational support allowed us to get the build off the ground. 

“Together they helped us to realise our vision, and along with our other funders they have enabled us to develop our spaces, grow our team and ultimately helped us to build the foundations for a brighter future for many.”

Ali Kennedy, Social Investment Executive at Foundation Scotland, said “Space @ Broomhouse is an important and inspiring place for everyone in the local community and we are extremely proud of our involvement in its development. 

“Their fabulous new facilities support significant numbers of people in the area, families have an affordable safe and welcoming place to come to and enjoy, young people are provided with opportunities to develop skills, confidence and self-esteem, and older people and those living with dementia feel part of a connected community.

“We are thrilled to be here with the team today at the Broomhouse Street Party.  We’ve worked together for many years and it’s great to get the chance to see the activities in action. The Hub is a space for the community to come together.   It’s clear how much of a lifeline these services are for local people.  

“We know there are other groups that urgently need support to get started or grow, and this is even more challenging in the current climate. We are encouraging all interested groups to visit our website or contact the Foundation Scotland team directly to discuss eligibility.”

£72 million health hub welcomes Cabinet Secretary

New £72 million Glasgow health and social care hub welcomes Cabinet Secretary Michael Matheson

Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery, Health and Social Care, Michael Matheson MSP has taken part in the ‘Topping Out’ Ceremony for a new £72 million health and care hub in Glasgow.
 
Mr Matheson joined Professor John Brown CBE, Chair of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, at the new North East Hub site on Friday (23rd June).
 
Delivered through a partnership between, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, Glasgow City Health and Social Care Partnership, Glasgow City Council and Hub West Scotland, and built by BAM Construction, the new health and care centre will be a true community asset and has been designed to offer a range of services, providing Community, Clinical, Office and Training accommodation for both NHSGGC and Glasgow City HSCP.

Mr Matheson said: “I am pleased to be able to visit this Hub as an example of the state-of-the-art facilities we are continuing to invest in, with £578 million committed for health infrastructure and assets in 2023/24.
 
“Facilities like this are key to supporting people to access the care they need close to home and to our commitment to building an NHS fit for the future with world class amenities, including the network of National Treatment Centres.
 
“This Hub will also contribute to our mission to be as environmentally sustainable as possible to meet our responsibilities in countering the climate crisis.”
 
The hub, which is set to open in 2024, will improve access to services and better integrate health and social work services and the voluntary and charity sectors.

The facility will host three GP practices, as well as specialist services to support children, adult community care groups, older people, mental health, addictions, criminal justice homelessness services and health improvement activity – all delivered by a range of public and third sector organisations.
 
The North East Hub will be Scotland’s first working net zero carbon health and social care facility and the site will also offer community space, including a café and Parkhead Library.


 
Professor Brown said: “We are delighted to have been joined by Michael Matheson MSP, Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery, Health and Social Care for the official Topping Out ceremony at the North East Hub.
 
“This is a hugely exciting project for the North East of Glasgow and is not only the largest primary care development in NHSGGC, but it is also Scotland’s first net zero carbon health and social care facility, making it a beacon for sustainability while improving public services for those living in the local area.
 
“By bringing services together in one place, alongside so many community projects, people will be able to access the support they need more efficiently, helping to improve population health and tackle the causes of inequality in healthcare.”
 
Councillor Chris Cunningham, City Convener for Health, Care and Caring and Older People, said: “Today marks the next step into the delivery of what will be a fantastic community asset for the north-east of Glasgow, bringing together key services in one location. 
 
“The end result is an ambitious new centre, a hub that will bring services and facilities together to build an incredible asset for the area. Our ambition is to ensure that everyone in Glasgow can lead healthier and more fulfilled lives and the new hub and the services it will provide will help us to achieve that.
 
“This is a great example of co-locating services and partnership working, and will offer a one-stop-shop for a range of services from the city council, Glasgow Life and Health and Social Care Partnership.”

A recent report on design and build of the new hub has revealed the project’s carbon impact rating will come in well under the benchmark target set out in the Net Zero Public Sector Buildings Standard.
 
The findings come following a Zero Waste Scotland Embodied Carbon and Circular Assessment which calculates the embodied carbon emissions in the built environment based on a number of key indicators along the project’s build – from resource extraction through to transport, processing and construction.
 
The report found the North East Hub was particularly strong in areas in relation to waste management, with a concerted focus on recycling at all stages of the project. The project was also praised for building in future flexibility to its design.
 
Iain Marley, Hub West Scotland’s Chief Executive said “We are delighted to see the excellent progress being made on site on this, our tenth project and most ambitious health project so far under the highly valued partnership with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and Glasgow City Council.
 
“Our thanks also go to the professional team across our supply chain and to BAM Construction for all their commitment to quality and value for money.

“The building will be completed on schedule in summer 2024 and the project is already bringing significant value and benefits to local communities: so far over £11M of social value has been delivered through our education; employment; wellbeing; volunteering and SME development programmes and this will be added to over the future months.”