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Vision unveiled for multimillion pound children’s centre in Inverness

Elsie Normington
Elsie Normington

A multimillion pound vision has been unveiled to build the first facility of its kind in Scotland for children with multiple complex needs in Inverness.

Detailed plans for the proposed new Haven Centre in the Highland capital can be revealed today as a major new fundraising campaign is launched.

Dina McLintock, whose daughter Katie no longer qualifies for respite care because of her age, said the Haven would be a “great idea” for everyone in a similar situation.

The unique facility is proposed for the site of the former Culloden Court Nursing Home, at Murray Road in Smithton.

It has lain derelict since being destroyed by a blaze in October 2010, which was started by an electrical fault in an airing cupboard and led to the safe evacuation of 59 residents and 12 staff.

The new project is being spearheaded by the Elsie Normington Foundation, which is now launching the Haven Project Appeal to raise £3.2million of funds over the next 18 months.

It is envisaged that the construction of the centre will create 40 jobs and its operation will provide jobs for 19 full-time and 11 part-time workers, as well as generating opportunities for volunteering.

Details of the vision will go on display for parents and professionals at a drop-in exhibition at Drummond School on Thursday, with members of the public invited to view the plans at Smithton Free Church on Friday afternoon.

The foundation is working in partnership with Direct Childcare and Key Community Supports to deliver the project, which will be the first of its kind in Scotland to provide an integrated care facility for children and young adults with multiple complex needs on one site.

The main building will feature a specialist play centre, to be run by Direct Childcare, and it will be linked to a community cafe, which will be operated as a community enterprise.

The complex will also feature an outdoor play centre and outdoor garden, office space and meeting rooms which can be used for training and family support, and by local community organisations.

Three respite apartments will be serviced by Key Community Supports.

The facilities will be available to children from birth to 19, as well as young people up to the age of 30 with high support needs that cannot be met within a mainstream environment.

Katie McLintock, 19, lives with quadriplegic cerebral palsy and is registered blind.

She used to attend The Orchard respite centre in Inverness – but now having left school she no longer qualifies.

Her mother has to make her own arrangements with carers, which means having them in the house during respite time.

She said: “Having a place like the Haven in the Highlands would be a great idea for everyone who would need something like it.

“It’s not just the care, it’s the social effect of having somewhere for people with shared experiences to get together and just have a chat about things.”

She said respite was also a welcome time for her daughter, adding: “She used to love going to The Orchard.

“It was like going away to stay with friends like any teenager would, she liked the independence.”

Highland Council has committed £250,000 towards the scheme and given the Elsie Normington Foundation a three year option to purchase the land on Murray Road.

The council has its own plans to build eight council homes for young people within two buildings on the remainder of the site.

Elsie Normington, who is based at the Merkinch Community Centre and is chairman of the foundation, has a 32-year-old son, Andrew, who has multiple complex needs.

She wrote a book entitled “The Silent Door Bell”, an inspirational story about coping with Andrew’s condition, and she has just been given the British Empire Medal in the Queen’s New Year honours list.

She said: “It has long been my dream to deliver a centre that cares for the special needs of those children in the Highlands with multiple complex needs.

“We are providing a wide range of facilities, which will be available to all children and young people in the Highlands.

“For example, if a family from the Highlands is visiting Inverness on business or leisure, they can use the centre for respite care for their child or a young person during the day or overnight.”

Through her work at the Merkinch Centre, Mrs Normington runs two choirs – Singing for Pleasure, an adult choir, and the Rainbow Singers, a choir of young people with additional learning needs.

They will be raising funds specifically for the Haven Project Appeal at “The Big Spring Sing” which is being staged on March 31 at the Smithton and Culloden Free Church Hall.

Foundation director Andy Grzesinski, former group managing director of MacRae & Dick in Inverness, is chairing the Haven Project Appeal Fund, with the support of fellow director, Alistair Dodds, former chief executive of Highland Council.

The chairman of the community fund-raising committee is Gillian Cooper, managing director of Mercury Cleaning Ltd.

Mrs Normington said: “It is really important to have the backing of such an experienced and influential group of committed volunteers to ensure the necessary governance over such a major project.

“I have every confidence that we can deliver this special project and realise our goal of giving those children in our community with multiple complex needs the chances in life that they so richly deserve.”