The Merchants House OF GLASGOW

Funding Stories

PLAY THERAPY WITH KIDS

Thanks to the Merchant House more children like Ella will be provided Play Therapy by With Kids…

Ella, age 4, was referred rom her nursery because she was withdrawn and struggled to interact with her peers/nursery workers. Over her Play Therapy sessions she played the part of a dog looking for its owner. She would go from house to house, knocking on doors, but the wee dog could not find its owner. Ella had been taken into care at 2 and her mum had died while she was there. She was never going to get a reunion with her mum and this play helped her communicate her feelings surrounding the permanence of this loss. After 12 sessions of enacting the same scenario over and over, nursery workers and her carers began to see positive changes in Ella. She was more able to engage with other children and could join in with activities while at nursery. Through Play Therapy she was no longer overwhelmed by her emotions and could engage in her life again. Research suggests that these positive changes will improve Ella’s life chances both now and into her adulthood.

Monies awarded from Merchant’s House will enable us to provide Play Therapy to more children in Glasgow’s East End who are struggling to concentrate at school/nursery due to trauma//adverse experiences. Play Therapy is based on the theory that play is the primary language of the child where toys are the words the child uses to express their inner emotional experiences and how they experience the world. It offers a way of working that is minimally intrusive and allows the possibility of exploring issues and concerns important to the child.

Typically following Play Therapy children are reported to be more able to make friends, concentrate at school/nursery and regulate their emotions, such as anger. Research suggests that these small changes can make a radical difference in a child’s future prospects.

This grant is fantastic news for Time and Space.

Before now we’ve never been able to offer our members any kind of art therapy so to be able to offer this puppet class is going to be a great addition to the therapeutic support we already offer.

Many of our members have had experiences that can be very difficult to talk about, being able to express these difficult experiences in a different way will make a huge difference to them.

TIME AND SPACE

At Kibble we care for some of the most vulnerable young people in the country. This support allows us to teach new skills, offer a wider range of subjects, and work towards qualifications that will lead to employment opportunities. We also want to try and encourage more girls to take up design and technology subjects.

“I would like to thank the Members of Merchants House Glasgow for their support. Their contribution will make a massive difference to the opportunities available to the young people in our care.”

KIBBLE

We are extremely grateful to The Merchants House of Glasgow for their generous grant of £28,000 for the purchase of this mini bus.

Their long term support of our veterans is so much appreciated. The bus, which was donated in recognition of our centenary year, will be well used by our residents for outings and days out.

ERSKINE HOME

People with lived experience of mental health find it harder to access services, face greater levels of discrimination and self-stigma. The grant from Merchants House will enable us to continue delivering our core service and help us grow our network of self-help groups and self-management training. The groups provide community and friendship for people who are isolated and excluded. It empowers people who feel powerless and acts as a forum to exchange insights, views and experience of Bipolar. This is an essential part of self-management, helping people keep well and thus reducing hospital admissions.

BIPOLAR SCOTLAND

As a leading social care charity, CrossReach provides care and support to the most vulnerable people in Scotland and it is the support from others, like the Merchants House of Glasgow, which allows us to continue this very valuable work.

The statistics around mental health are stark – every year, 1 in 4 people will experience a mental health problem. Many find it difficult to get the help they need.

The Tom Allan Centre, based in Glasgow, is a counselling service run by CrossReach. We work with over 1,000 clients per year, helping to improve the mental well being of these individuals, thanks to our generous supporters, like the Merchants House of Glasgow.

CROSSREACH

The grant provided by the Merchants House of Glasgow will help us to run our integrated dance group Horizons for around twenty young disabled and able-bodied people aged 14 – 25. The project helps improve confidence, creativity and mental health and physical well being. The money will help to pay for the project to continue for another year.

YDANCE

We are Healthy n Happy, a charity and community owned organisation, governed by the local people of Cambuslang and Rutherglen and all of our work is directed by local priorities. We are delighted to have been awarded £3000 from Merchants House to support children and young people to get the best start in their community through the delivery of our Parent Cafes and The Wee Adventure Club. Our Parent Cafes have a direct focus on supporting families with young babies/toddlers (0-5) who are affected by hardship and disadvantage and other challenging circumstances. Following on from the Parent Cafes is The Wee Adventure Club - a weekly meet-up for “wee people from Burnhill“ (5-12) who are looking for BIG adventures in their community, making use of local community assets through play, exploration and nature based activities.

This funding will:

Support parents to have enhanced relationships and bonding with their baby/child
Build lasting resilience in children - which is a key indicator of for future development, attainment and other positive life outcomes
Increase confidence, self-esteem, social skills and social networks for all participants
Develop a strong connection to community for all participants so they actively appreciate and enjoy their local neighbourhood

HEALTHY N HAPPY

Thank you so much for helping to ease the many practical and financial difficulties families face throughout their child's treatment.

The support from The Merchants House of Glasgow has been instrumental in the delivery of complementary therapies at the Royal Alexandria Hospital and has become an important part of the charity's work to support cancer patients. This has also formed the model for other complementary therapy projects at a number of NHS facilities across the West of Scotland.

BEATSON CANCER CHARITY

Your generosity will help to support our Home from Home service in Glasgow, Marion's House.

Our home helps families to stay close to their child throughout treatment; as one parent explains, "It has made a difficult and scary situation less stressful by having a base close to hospital, leaving us to not have to worry about travel costs and long journeys."

CLIC SARGENT

"Glasgow East End Community Carers has been providing support to carers in the east end of the city since 1991. Our new project, the Carers Hub, was launched in May 2016 and aims to provide ongoing preventative support to carers within our local community. It does this by providing carers with a range of services, support groups and activities aimed at improving health and well-being, reducing isolation and stress and increasing capacity and resilience to help carers continue in their caring role. This funding from the Merchants House of Glasgow will allow us to continue to provide this much needed support."

GLASGOW EAST END COMMUNITY CARERS