“In Orkney, this funding will allow us to provide 27 families with packs, including food vouchers, to help families through the winter period” Paul Carberry

Staff at Orkney Health and Care have helped leading children’s charity Action for Children distribute grocery vouchers to vulnerable families and young children in the islands ahead of Christmas.

The Action for Children charity contacted the OHAC team last month advising they had received funds from the Scottish Government’s Winter Wellbeing Fund to distribute to vulnerable young people and families on the Scottish Government’s behalf.

This was in the form of vouchers from major supermarkets.

Orkney Health and Care set to work asking all managers to nominate local young people and families they work with.

Overall, 27 applications were received and all 27 received Tesco vouchers totalling £7,940.

Gillian Morrison, Interim Chief Officer for Orkney Health and Care said:

“Huge thanks must go to Action for Children who helped us ensure this support from the Scottish Government could reach local families in time for Christmas.

“Distributing these vouchers certainly put a spring into the step of our social workers and I’d like to thank all staff who helped deliver this boost to our most vulnerable families in what is a tough time in an exceptionally difficult year.”

In December, the Scottish Government announced its plans to distribute £3.3m to children’s charities across Scotland to support families and young people over the winter period. Action for Children received £300k to support its work across Scotland, with £7,940 being distributed to families and children in Orkney.

This work is part of a collaborative approach between Action for Children and Orkney Islands Council and comes ahead of the children’s charity launching a new Emotional Wellbeing service in Orkney in 2021.

Paul Carberry, Action for Children Director for Scotland, added:

 “During the winter months, this investment from the Scottish Government has allowed our staff to engage quickly and effectively to meet needs and provide invaluable, and immediate, support to families.

“In Orkney, this funding will allow us to provide 27 families with packs, including food vouchers, to help families through the winter period. We know that winter can be a difficult time, but we hope these packs will make a big difference to families and young people over the festive period.

“We have been working closely with Orkney Islands Council ahead of the launch of our Emotional Wellbeing project in 2021. That partnership approach is crucial to Action for Children and has been a hallmark of our work in our 65 years working in communities across Scotland. We look forward to launching our new project in Orkney next year and working closely with the local council going forward.”