Hunterston B gives funding boost to local women’s charity
A North Ayrshire charity which offers emotional and practical support for women and children affected by domestic abuse has become the latest beneficiary of EDF Energy’s Scottish Charity Fund.
The owner of Hunterston B power station has donated £8,000 from the fund to North Ayrshire Women’s Aid.
One in five women experience domestic abuse and it affects 100,000 children in Scotland. North Ayrshire Women’s Aid offers a range of services from group support and counselling to help with form filling and refuge services.
Over the past year EDF Energy has donated more than £100,000 to Scottish charities. Most of that money has benefitted groups near to its bases at Hunterston B, East Kilbride and Torness.
Hunterston B Station Director, Colin Weir said: “Figures from the Scottish Government show that the levels of domestic abuse reported to Police Scotland have dropped but there are still too many women experiencing abuse in the home. The support North Ayrshire Women’s Aid provides offers them a vital lifeline. I’m delighted that I was able to hand over a cheque for £8000 to help them carry out their work in area.”
Mary Beglan Chief Officer from North Ayrshire Women’s Aid said: “The generous donation from EDF Energy has allowed us to spread word of our service to women experiencing or at risk of experiencing domestic violence. We purchased lip balm with our telephone number on it and promotional leaflets which will be distributed across North Ayrshire. Through this gift EDF Energy has enabled us to get our message to thousands of women and children at risk and in doing so may have saved some lives. We have also purchased new garden furniture for women and children to enjoy in our accommodation.”
For more information contact:
Fiona McCallExternal Communications Manager (Scotland)
01355 846281
07813 232347
Fiona.McCall@edf-energy.com
EDF Energy in Scotland
In Scotland EDF Energy operates Hunterston B in North Ayrshire and Torness in East Lothian which employ over 1,000 staff and around 500 contracting partners across the two power stations. EDF Energy employs a further 200 office based staff in East Kilbride. As well as generating enough power to serve some 4 million homes the company also provides gas and electricity to over 80,000 Scottish customers with around half of those opting for one of the company’s Blue+ products which are backed by low-carbon generation. We operate two windfarms in the Scottish Borders and make sure we buy enough electricity generated from a low-carbon nuclear source to match every unit of electricity we estimate our Blue customers use. EDF Energy is proud to power up some of the largest organisations in the UK, including supplying almost all public sector bodies in Scotland with after being awarded Scotland’s largest electricity supply contract by annual volume from April 2013. Following a landmark agreement with Network Rail the company also provides nuclear-backed Blue energy to power up the UKs electric rail network, covering most of the south east of England and the main lines from London to Edinburgh and Glasgow, as well as the Merseyrail network around Liverpool and the Glasgow suburban network.