Failing to win lottery funding could sound death knell for support service

Closure-hit charity Tailor Ed is making an eleventh hour plea for help – supported by Kezia Dugdale.

The former Labour leader has written to Maureen Watt, minister for mental health, asking the Scottish Government to provide the necessary funding and support to secure the future of the foundation.

Last month TFN reported that the Edinburgh-based charity for autistic children and their families would close in March after it failed to secure lottery funding of £400,000.

Tailor Ed supports over 200 families across the city and has provided crucial care to parents with nowhere else to turn.

Dugdale said its closure would have a “significant impact” on families.

She explained: “The Tailor Ed Foundation has made a life-changing difference to hundreds of families across Edinburgh for nearly a decade, supporting parents who are raising a child with autism with day-to-day challenges.

“It has helped children learn skills that most us of take for granted, such as being able to put on your shoes and brush your teeth, and being able to wait when you are in a queue.

“Without these skills, daily life can be incredibly difficult, stressful and isolating for children and their families.

“The future of the Tailor Ed Foundation is now at risk, and its closure would have a significant negative impact on families across Edinburgh.

“That’s why I’ve asked ministers to step in and provide the necessary funding to rescue the charity.”

Service user Elizabeth Anderton said: “As a parent, a member of the public and a taxpayer it is devastating that something so successful and so special is going to be lost.

“In this day and age of austerity I would love for somebody to compare their costs versus other city council services.”