Hansard

I thank members from all sides of the chamber for supporting my motion. That is as it should be, because Caring in Craigmillar is an outstanding organisation that acts without fear or favour, political partiality or prejudice, for the welfare of the elderly not simply in Craigmillar but throughout east Edinburgh.

The debate affords me an opportunity not just to praise an outstanding local organisation but to flag up a national issue, and I hope to be able to input some lessons that have been learned that could be emulated elsewhere. Caring in Craigmillar is a truly remarkable organisation, and I will detail some of its work and history. Moreover, care of the elderly is one of the major issues of our time; it is one that is trying local and national Government and testing communities.

Like every member, I am fortunate to have innumerable voluntary organisations in my constituency. There are too many of them to mention individually but, collectively, they make the community a much better place. They do it through the input of time and effort by people who often receive no remuneration, and in some instances they go well beyond contracted hours or job specification. We are blessed with them.

I have a soft spot for Caring in Craigmillar, which I have gotten to know during my nine years as the constituency member for the area. The organisation has come a long way and it operates in a community that has had more than its fair share of challenges. For many years, it was synonymous with poverty and deprivation.

Caring in Craigmillar is the welfare arm of the Craigmillar Festival Society, which itself is now more than 50 years old. That sprang from the community and remains rooted in it. The Craigmillar Festival Society and its constituent organisations provided a template for others to follow and are a testament to what can be done by good people with energy, drive and ideas. They were intent on overcoming the obstacles that were faced by many to provide chances for all. In that, they have succeeded for countless people and are witness to how communities can take control of their own destiny and help to shape their own future. The modern buzzword is social capital, but I prefer to describe it as heart and soul. Craigmillar has that in abundance, and Caring in Craigmillar is the embodiment of it.

The organisation has now run for a generation and has expanded from providing day care to providing a PhoneLink service that proves invaluable to many people scattered across the city who are often isolated in their own homes. Its day care project is one of the longest-serving day care projects in the city. It provides more than 34,000 hours of care to individuals in a group setting annually and is one of only two Saturday day care projects. A Wednesday evening additional needs club is also provided.

The PhoneLink care call service takes place twice daily and makes upwards of 80,000 calls annually. Caring in Craigmillar regularly attracts funding that allows it to top up the work of the council award. It has replaced one community bus and has raised half the funds for a second one. Its work is outstanding, but it is also expanding.

The organisation required to move from its former premises at 63 Niddrie Mains Terrace several years ago, but it is now returning there. As well as being in many ways Caring in Craigmillar’s spiritual home, it provides premises that are far more suitable for current and future needs. It is a place that is known to the community, given its long history, and one that is sited centrally. It was first opened in 1936 by the university settlement and dubbed “Craigmillar College”. It is fitting that Caring in Craigmillar should return there. That will create a new open access community facility to serve the growing regeneration.

Craigmillar has been undergoing redevelopment. Houses were knocked down, and that ripped the very heart out of the community, but thankfully new homes are now appearing. The old community is returning and is being joined by new arrivals from all parts. It is necessary to have the facilities to serve that community, and it is therefore right that Caring in Craigmillar becomes the principal tenant of those centrally situated premises.

Caring in Craigmillar is doing so with a dedicated staff and management board. It would be remiss not to mention the general manager, Midge Lamb, and the day care manager, Peter Calvey, who have been with the organisation for more years collectively than they may care to remember. However, it has been forged by them, often on an anvil of considerable difficulties. Craigmillar is a better place for the work that they have done in it and in the wider community. I record my thanks and appreciation for the excellent work that they and all the staff have done.

I move on to aspects that, although they are replicated elsewhere, are worthy of consideration for wider use. Care of the elderly is one of the major issues of our time. An increasing ageing population is a good thing: gone are the days of deaths within months of retiral and little chance for people to enjoy twilight years at the end of an extensive working life. However, that brings challenges for us as a society. As well as the elderly population extending, the nature of our communities is changing. Families are more likely to be separated from each other, and generations live apart, not just in different households, but in different communities. Sometimes, they live in different countries.

Craigmillar is maybe more fortunate than many, but it still faces challenges. The integration of health and social care is the right thing to do, but the challenges are considerable and are not just financial. Understandably, private sector operations have seen an opportunity to provide a service in care of the elderly, and they are needed. Many do an excellent job, although sadly some do so at the expense of their workforce. Others—thankfully, they are few—can be entirely undesirable and need to be weeded out by statutory agencies.

The benefit and lesson of Caring in Craigmillar is that it is from and for the community. It is a charity that is operated by the community, that is staffed in the main by the community, and that works for the community. That reduces costs, but it brings innumerable intangible benefits.

The PhoneLink service extension is a medium of modern technology that is being used to benefit a community that is often marginalised, if not excluded. Although nothing can compare with face-to-face engagement, that service offers reassurance to family and companionship to many elderly people who are housebound or alone. It can ensure that vulnerable individuals can be monitored, and it affords conversation, which is vital to the human spirit. Its cost is significantly cheaper than that of a personal attendance and, although it should never be a substitute for personal attention, it offers additional benefits.

I thank Caring in Craigmillar for its sterling work and offer its model as a template to the minister for others.

This may well be my final speech in the chamber and the Parliament, in which it has been a privilege to serve. I thank all the staff and colleagues of each and every party. It has been an honour and a privilege. I may not be returning to Holyrood, but I will most certainly return in and around Craigmillar, and I will definitely return to Caring in Craigmillar. [Applause.]