In Aid of
Richmond's Hope
Amount donated: £41,000
Richmond’s Hope is an amazing charity started by the Rev. Liz Henderson which provides child bereavement support in Glasgow and Edinburgh. One child in every class at school will lose a significant member of their family and without the right support the chances of this clouding their adult life is immense. Young, bereaved people have statistically been shown to be more likely to self-harm, suffer from depression or contemplate suicide. Richmond’s Hope works to help children and young people to work though their grief and develop coping strategies for the future.
Thanks to the generosity of our network of ladies, sponsors and advertisers we raised £40,000 for Richmond’s Hope.
A Thank You from Richmond's Hope:
The work of Richmond's Hope, which offers bereavement support to children and young people aged 4 to 18, has benefitted hugely from the encouragement and backing of the WoA Lunch in 2019. This has taken the form of both significant financial support and has helped raise our profile, leading to further sponsorship, including being selected as Charity of the Year by Baillie Gifford.
One of the challenges facing Richmond's Hope is how best to take the service to places in Scotland where no such provision is otherwise available. The money raised by WoA has been earmarked to fund some of this outreach work, particularly in East Lothian and potentially also in Fife.
Chair
The Duchess of Argyll
Eleanor runs Inveraray Castle and Gardens in Argyll with her husband Torquhil. The castle is (usually) open to the public from Easter to October and is one of Scotland’s most popular attractions as well as being used for various films and television programmes including Downton Abbey and Landscape Painter Of The Year.
Eleanor is also Chairman of the Historic Houses Tourism Committee, on the board of the Historic Houses, President of the Georgian Group, Patron of Richmond’s Hope and Prior-elect of the Order of St. John in Scotland.
They have three children, Archie, Rory & Charlotte.
Previously Eleanor worked for Charles Barker Public Relations and Weber Shandwick.
“This is the twelfth Women of Achievement Lunch in London and I am delighted to welcome you all here today. The lunch was established to celebrate the achievements and contribution made in many fields by women who have Scottish connections and to support small, but vital Scottish charities. Thank you to all of you who have supported the lunch over the years and welcome to those joining us for the first time.
Last year we supported Smart Works in Edinburgh and thanks to you all, we raised over £20,000 which went directly to the charity enabling them to support women on low incomes to get back into employment, empowering them to succeed at their job interview and change the direction of their lives.
This year's charity is Richmond's Hope. A tiny, but amazing charity, which I have been privileged to have got to know over the last couple of years. Started by the Rev. Liz Henderson, the charity is the leading provider of child bereavement support in Glasgow and Edinburgh and, with our help. will be able to extend the reach to further parts of Scotland.
One child in every class at school will lose a significant member of their family and without the right support the chances of this clouding their adult life is immense. Young bereaved people have statistically been shown to be more likely to self-harm, suffer from depression or contemplate suicide. The percentage of prisoners who have suffered a major bereavement in childhood at Polmont Young Offenders is 90% and Richmond's Hope works to help children and young people to work through their grief and develop coping strategies for the future.
I have visited both centres and the work that Richmond's Hope does is truly wonderful, working both with children and Teenagers, as well as working with the families affected. The counselling rooms are well thought out, the staff inspirational and where the children are allowed to be children despite all that they might be going through Our speakers this year are Rev. Liz Henderson (Founder of Richmond's Hope), Dame Penelope Keith and Cath Kidston.
My particular thanks go to the Committee who have worked so hard and given willingly of their time and talents to make this lunch a success. Thank you all so much for joining us and for giving so generously to this very worthwhile cause.”
Sponsors
Speakers
Rev. Liz Henderson – Church of Scotland Minister, Founder of Richmond’s Hope, Scotland
Rev. Liz Henderson is currently the minister of Richmond Craigmillar Church, which is situated in a deprived area of Edinburgh. Educated at Laurel Bank School in Glasgow she went on to study Mathematics in Aberdeen University and then Theology at Edinburgh University.
From 2005 until 2014 Liz was a presenter of Radio Scotland's "Thought for the Day" programme. She was moderator of Edinburgh Presbytery in 2012 and appointed as a chaplain-in-ordinary to her Majesty the Queen in April 2018.
Liz is married to the Rev. Dr. Jim Jack and they live in Duddingston.
Cath Kidston MBE – Designer, Businesswoman and Entrepreneur, Fine Cell Work Charity Trustee
Cath founded Cath Kidston Ltd in 1993 in a small store in London's Notting Hill with a start-up budget of just £15,000. From her original 'home store' concept she built and developed the business into the influential and highly recognisable global brand it is today, with more than 220 stores worldwide and a global ecommerce business.
Prior to starting Cath Kidston, Cath co-founded the interior design and 'curtinalia company McKinney Kidston in a store off the King's Road in Chelsea (19881993) having previously trained in interior design under the celebrated decorator Nicholas Haslam (1985-1988).
Cath remained Creative Director of Cath Kidston Ltd until December 2014, when she moved to a non-executive board role; a role she left in February 2016 when the business was valued at £250m.
In 2010 Cath was awarded an MBE for series to Business: she is now a trustee of the charity Fine Cell Work, mentors start-ups and runs a new independent design studio, Joy of Print.
Dame Penelope Keith DBE, DL – Actress and Gardener
Penelope Keith trained for the stage at the Weber Douglas Academy, then worked in repertory at Chesterfield, Lincoln, Manchester & Salisbury.
She joined the Royal Shakespeare Company for seasons at Stratford-uponAvon and the Aldwych Theatre, London. She has appeared in many plays in the West End and throughout the United Kingdom.
Her television appearances include The Good Life, To the Manor Born and more recently Hidden Villages and Coastal Villages.
She is President of the Actors' Benevolent Fund and was High Sheriff of Surrey in 2002-2003.
She was appointed Dame Commander of the British Empire in the New Year Honours in 2014.