News
Chief Executive debates future of Supporting People Programme
Austen Smyth, Chief Executive of The Richmond Fellowship Scotland, contributed to a debate about the future of the Scottish Executive’s Supporting People programme at this year’s Community Care Live Scotland event.
As one of three keynote speakers, alongside the Scottish Executive’s Alisdair McIntosh and Mike Penny from Edinburgh City Council, Austen delivered a speech which highlighted the benefits of Supporting People funding to Alice, one of the people supported by The Richmond Fellowship Scotland, before outlining his vision for the future of the programme.
Commenting on the event, Austen said:
”Supporting People is enourmously important for vulnerable people and produces significant benefits. The programme is a necessity and continues to be because of its importance in local communities. As an initiative, it offers great potential and needs to be nurtured and valued as a national programme.”
The Supporting People programme offers vulnerable people the opportunity to improve their quality of life by providing a stable environment which enables greater independence.
It delivers high-quality and strategically planned housing-related services which are cost-effective and reliable, and complement existing care services. The programme is a working partnership of local government, vulnerable people and support agencies such as The Richmond Fellowship Scotland.
For more information about the Supporting People programme at The Richmond Fellowship Scotland, please contact:
Austen Smyth
Chief Executive
26 Park Circus
Glasgow, G3 6AP
T: 0141 353 4050
E: asmyth@trfs.org.uk