Established 2005 Registered Charity No. 1110656

Scottish Charity Register No. SC043760

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Fire destroys Shelter?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s Edinburgh headquarters

June 08 2011
Helpline and frontline services still in operation

 

Leading housing charity Shelter Scotland became a victim of homelessness itself after a fire broke out destroying its Edinburgh offices at Scotiabank House.

The blaze, which resulted in significant damage to the premises, flared up in the early hours of Monday 2nd May. Despite the destruction of the five-storey building, thankfully no one was harmed in the incident. In the aftermath, staff from the charity moved across the street and have temporarily set up office in a room at the Roxburghe Hotel.

Although Shelter’s helpline and other frontline services were still operational at the time, the drop-in service and other backroom services had to be abandoned indefinitely.

Since the blaze, the housing and homelessness organisation has seen a huge amount of support with countless offers and messages of consolation received through social networking site, Twitter. Neil Baldwin, Shelter’s Media Manager, said: “We were very suddenly homeless. We have been overwhelmed by the messages of support and help and are thankful to everyone.”

The root cause of the fire is currently under investigation. Meanwhile, the hefty task of finding a new location for Shelter’s employees is underway. Baldwin explained: “We need to house 40 people in the short term for as much as three to six months.”

For further information about Shelter Scotland, please visit their website at www.scotland.shelter.org.uk. For advice from the charity, you can call the helpline on 0808 800 4444.

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