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The voice of Scotland’s vibrant voluntary sector

Published by Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations

TFN is published by the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations, Mansfield Traquair Centre, 15 Mansfield Place, Edinburgh, EH3 6BB. The Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) is a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation. Registration number SC003558.

Uniform look for Edinburgh night time volunteers

This news post is over 7 years old
 

​A project which helps vulnerable adults around Edinburgh's popular nightspots have been given new uniform jackets by a local hotel

Street Assist Edinburgh, a project whose volunteers support vulnerable members of the public in the capital has been given a boost by a local hotel.

Radisson Blu Edinburgh has donated 40 soft-shell jackets for its team of volunteers, who work between 10pm and 4am on Friday and Saturday nights, to wear to keep warm.

The project started in April this year and bids to relieve the pressure from the emergency services by providing a first-aid and welfare service around Edinburgh’s popular nightspots.

Our volunteers would have needed to use their own money to purchase the jackets, which for some of our volunteers simply isn’t possible

Self-funded, it relies on the generosity of donations and the goodwill of 61 volunteers, made up of volunteer nurses, first-aiders and welfare staff.

The team use a decommissioned ambulance donated by South Central Ambulance Service and a mobile treatment bus to aid individuals on the streets, referred by taxi marshals, nightclubs, the Scottish Ambulance Service or anyone who feels the project can assist.

Emma Finch, one of the volunteers, says having the new jackets will make them more identifiable as well as keeping them warm.

“Without the kind contribution of these jackets, our volunteers would have needed to use their own money to purchase the jackets, which for some of our volunteers simply isn’t possible,” she said.

“These jackets will help to keep our volunteer team warm over the cold winter months and allow us to provide more of a visible presence to the public.”

Richard Mayne, general manager of the Radisson Blu Edinburgh on the city’s historic Royal Mile, added: “Hopefully, our contribution of the jackets will help keep the volunteers at Street Assist Edinburgh warm during the night as they focus on helping those in need.”