Brora HomeAid closes
FAR north charity HomeAid has closed its shop in Brora today with the loss of two part-time jobs.
General manager Alison McGowan said the closure after two years in operation, was due to a lack of customers.
HomeAid Caithness and Sutherland was set up in 1996 and has its head office and warehouse in Thurso.
Its aim is to provide furniture and household items to those on a low income, who are homeless, disabled or going through a crisis.
The charity has recycling containers in villages throughout north and north west Sutherland, but the Brora shop was its first outlet in the county.
HomeAid bought the village’s former Red Cross Centre, located next to the Co-op, with the aid of a loan from Social Investment Scotland, and opened the shop in April 2012.
As well as furniture the shop, which operated for 16 hours a week, sold electrical goods and bric-a-brac. Ms McGowan said: “Our customers have been very loyal and donations have been overwhelming, but unfortunately the footfall through the doors has just not been enough to meet the costs of running the building.”
She said a part-time shop supervisor had been made redundant along with a part-time shop assistant.
HomeAid had formed a link with Brora’s Beachview Day Care Centre with centre users undertaking voluntary work at the shop.
Ms McGowan said she was disappointed at the loss of the volunteering opportunity.
Chairman of HomeAid’s board of management, Roger Saxon, said he had broken the news to staff personally last Thursday.
“We very much regret having to close but the shop was just not covering its costs,” he said.
“It was quite worrying for the directors to keep getting reports every month showing that the shop was not covering itself.HomeAid is a small charity and we could not risk one shop sinking the entire organisation.”
East Sutherland and Edderton ward councillor Deirdre Mackay said: “I am really disappointed that HomeAid is closing in Brora.
“It has been a valued organisation in the area from the view point of recycling furniture and household goods. It has also, however, provided much needed work experience for local people and users of Beachview.”
