ABOUT US: HISTORY
In 1898 our charity (Crieff and District Nursing Association)
was formed by the people of Crieff and District as part of
Queen Victoria’s Jubilee Celebrations. The charity employed
a Jubilee Nurse like other main cities at the time, delivering
nursing care to the most vulnerable people in the Crieff area
and continued to pay the pension of our “community
nurse” after she retired.
Contact us on 01764 653934
When the NHS was formed in 1948, the
Association considered it appropriate to change
to the Crieff and District Auxiliary Organisation
and look at different ways to support the elderly
in the area. In 1951 an Endowment Fund was set
up and the organization started running a care
home for the elderly for the Crieff area in 1955.
The charity was gifted “Benachie” to the in 1951
from a Miss Rule, a wealthy and highly regarded
personality in the town. The building is situated
at the top of the town in a beautiful location
within a conservation area.
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It is a large traditional stone built villa with a range of outbuildings and is set with within substantial gardens. Miss Rule built another house nearby and took the name of “Benachie”
with her, leaving the building to be renamed after the Richmond Family who where instrumental in initiating the charity and donating substantial funds to support the development of the care home.
When “Benachie” was bequeathed to the town via “the Association”, a range of donations and
legacies were invested into an Endowment Fund and in 1955 this allowed the home to be adapted,
altered, furnished and equipped in order to be used as a “Home for old people”. The Endowment
was also used to cover the pension of the retired nurse of the Association, Mrs. Jean McNab.
The care home has continued to be updated and upgraded to meet the increasing care standards
and expectations of residents and their families. An extension was added in 1982 following a large
legacy donated from a Mr. Ferguson, an Aberdeen businessman with family roots in Crieff. The most recent development made to improve the experience and wellbeing of the residents has been the creation of a sensory garden. This is now a feature which is provides a huge benefit to the residents
and differentiates Richmond House from the other large independent care homes who have used
their greenspace to build more rooms.
In 2015 the charity became a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO), and changed its Constitution to ensure its aims and beneficiaries where not restricted to running a carehome for the elderly. Now the charity can expand services to support the needs and wellbeing of all adults
living in the community through a range of activities and support.
The board has always been run by a “Council” of representatives from the community, and today although the membership has reduced representatives from the Rotary Club, British Legion
(Crieff) and the Soroptimists are still trustees.
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