We are local people with experience of addiction and mental health problems. We also have family and friends who are, or have been, recovering, and we have seen how isolated they can be and how hard it is to access support. We wanted to do something about that.
We applied for start-up money from Fife Council’s Participatory Budgeting exercise in the East Neuk, which allows the community to select what projects should receive funding. We were blown away to be awarded the full funding we applied for. It shows that local people recognise that those with addiction or mental problems should not be shunned or “left to get on with it”, and that the community would like a role in supporting them.
We also found other groups and services in Fife working in this field were very positive about Oor Space and the need for it in the Neuk. We thank them all for their support and look forward to working with them.