Charlie House, a local children’s charity today (Thursday 26th November) announces that it has secured planning permission for the Charlie House Specialist Support Centre.
The specialist support centre, which will support babies, children and young people with complex disabilities and life-limiting conditions, will be built in the grounds of Woodend Hospital in Aberdeen. It will be an 8-bedroom centre, with additional family accommodation, set in 4 acres of ground. The state-of-the-art building will feature a sensory room, library, spa pool, craft room, teen den, soft play area, therapy room, star room, for end-of-life care & bereavement, outdoor play area and sensory gardens as well as adaptable meeting space and office space for the Charlie House team and medical staff.
The build will be the first of its kind in the North-east of Scotland with families currently having to travel over 100 miles to Kinross to access planned and emergency short breaks, palliative and end-of-life care.
The charity launched its fundraising campaign to support the build in November 2018 and to date has raised £2.4m of its target of £8m. The receipt of planning permission will now allow the charity to apply for additional grant funding.
Tracy Johnstone, Chair of Charlie House, says, “This is an incredible day for the charity and the team. We are so passionate about bringing this centre to the city and today we came a huge step closer. The state-of-the-art specialist support centre will be the first of its kind in the region to offer these support services to the people of the North-east of Scotland encompassing the Aberdeen City & Shire, Moray, Orkney and Shetland.”
Professor Nick Fluck, Medical Director at NHS Grampian added, "The latest update of the CHISP report shows that there are currently around 1,800 children and young people in the North-east of Scotland who could benefit from the specialist support this facility will offer them close to home."
David MacDonald from Cumming & Co, the project architects, says, “We are delighted to support Charlie House with this inspiring project. We are looking forward to watching the build unfold and this remarkable vision come to life.”
To support the ongoing work of Charlie House including the build project please visit https://www.charliehouse.org.uk/support-us/ways-to-give/donate/ or call 01224 313333.
To find out more about how you can support the Big Build Appeal, please contact bigbuild@charliehouse.org.uk
