Erskine (charity)

Erskine (charity) is an Erskine-based facility that provides long-term medical care for veterans of the British Armed Forces. The charity opened and established themselves as Princess Louise Scottish Hospital for Limbless Sailors and Soldiers in 1916, the name was then shortened to Erskine Hospital and Erskine in later years. It was opened due to the need to treat the thousands of military personnel who lost their limbs in the First World War. The charity has gone on to offer help to British veterans of the First World War and every subsequent war. It has gone on to become the biggest ex-services facility in the country.

History
A need for a dedicated war hospital was apparent during the First World War as hospitals were struggling to keep up with the demands of the many limbless soldiers and sailors returning from war. It was then thought that Scotland should have a large, modern war hospital to cope with these type of injuries. A charitable committee was formed after a meeting in Glasgow. Sir William MacEwen a chief surgeon, was at the forefront of pushing through the need for such a facility. He met with Sir Thomas Dunlop the Lord Provost of Glasgow who was enthusiastic. The next stage was to find a location for the hospital in the west of Scotland. After reviewing several sites it was decided that Erskine would be the location. The owner of Erskine House (Thomas Aikman) which is a mansion on the banks of the River Clyde offered free use of his mansion and gardens for the period of the war and for 12 years after it was declared over. Then Sir John Reid, a charity committee member bought the mansion house and gardens and gifted them to the charity. Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll agreed to become the patron of the hospital and within a few weeks the Scottish public had donated £100,000 towards the facility. The hospital was opened on 10 October 1916 and had an official opening on 6 June 1917 with Princess Louise making an appearance.

Expansion
About fifty years since opening Erskine’s role had expanded to meet the changing needs of war veterans. It now cares for all disabled ex-service people if their injuries were sustained during war. It also provides convalescent care for those recovering from illness. The Red Cross Convalescent Block was constructed in 1950 and by 1963 there were four new wards and a modern operating theatre known as Ross Wing. It was named in honour of Herbert M. Ross, who lost a leg while serving in the First World War.

By 1980 there were new departments available for ex-service people. These included a social work and speech therapy department. Erskine House, which was the original hospital building, needed extensive work to continue as a working hospital. The building was sold as part of the vision to modernize Erskine. It was then turned into a 5-star hotel called the Earl of Mar, later known as Mar Hall. It opened in 2004.

Colonel Martin Gibson, OBE, was the CEO between 1995 and 2009. He oversaw the biggest changes to Erskine as the charity had to modernize. The modernization program cost in the region of £20m.

Erskine Home
In 2000-01, the charity moved to two new purpose built sites in the town of Erskine. The Erskine Home was opened in 2000. The new flagship building replaced the original hospital building and is situated on grounds by the Erskine Bridge. This centre cost £16m and provides nursing and dementia care on a long term and respite basis. It has 180 beds available and is the biggest unit the charity has. Prince Charles, the charity's patron, opened the unit and unveiled a stone plaque to commemorate the opening.

Erskine Mains Home
The Erskine Mains Home opened in 2001. The Princess Royal officially opened the unit which is situated in the heart of Erskine town in Meadows Drive. With 34 beds, it heralded the completion of the first phase of Erskine 2000, a strategy to replace the existing building and take Erskine care Scotland-wide. This unit also provides nursing and dementia care on a 24-hour basis.

Erskine Park Home
The Erskine Park Home opened in 2006. It offers care for 40 residents and specializes in dementia care. It is situated again within rural parkland by the Erskine Bridge. The Princess Royal has maintained her strong links with the charity and once again opened this Erskine based unit.

Erskine Edinburgh Home
The Erskine Edinburgh Home was opened in 2001. It is situated in Gilmerton and has capacity for 88 residents. This was the charity's first unit outside the Erskine area. This was also opened by the Princess Royal.

Erskine Glasgow Home
The Erskine Glasgow Home was opened by the Princess Royal in 2007. It is situated in Anniesland and has space for 46 residents. It also has partnership arrangements with care homes in Aberdeen, Dundee and Inverness.

Veterans Cottages
Erskine has also rebuilt 50 veterans' cottages within the old hospital grounds at Erskine – suitable for ex-service people and their families.

Reid MacEwen Centre
This unit was opened as a training and conference facility. It is housed within the historic stable building at the hospital. It is named after Sir John Reid who gifted the mansion and gardens to the charity and also Sir William MacEwen who was the surgeon that pushed through the need for the hospital. As the building is Category B listed the charity collaborated with Historic Scotland and the Heritage Lottery Fund on the renovation. It was officially opened in June 2001 by Wendy Alexander MSP.

Funding
As Erskine is a charity it receives no government funding. Fundraising schemes are active throughout the year. The charity host an annual motorbike meet and classic car show. There is also an annual dog show. Within the hospital grounds there is a garden centre where profits go to the charity. Veterans also partake in various woodwork and craft activities. Items built are then sold and the profits released back into the charity. There is also an annual Erskine Week. The fundraising event is to celebrate the official opening of the hospital in 1916. The charity will accept the help of volunteers from the public.

Artificial limbs
There was a huge influx of injured military personnel returning from the First World War with missing limbs due to the fighting. Britain at this time was wholly dependent on foreign imports of artificial limbs. Sir William MacEwan, the chief surgeon at the hospital, thought that this was intolerable. A dispensary and operating theatre were fitted out as workshops making artificial limbs. McEwan also enlisted the help of a local shipbuilding company called Yarrow Shipbuilders. The company not only lent their yard but chose to have some of their best craftsmen working on the design and construction of the limbs. McEwan and Yarrows subsequently designed a new concept artificial limb known as the Erskine Artificial Limb. By December 1917 the hospital had treated 1,613 patients and of that number 1,126 required a new limb. And by 1920, there had been 9,500 artificial limbs fitted. Most of these were manufactured at the hospital’s workshops.

Listed buildings
The original hospital building is called Erskine House and is a Category A listed building. It is now the Mar Hall Hotel. There is a piggery, a stables yard and some other small buildings which also have listed status.