Angus opticians fundraise to the tune of £15,000

Amy McDonald, winner of the Oustanding Contribution to Music Award, is pictured during the ceremony.

Specsavers branches in Forfar, Arbroath and Montrose contributed to the total, which will cover the cost of more than 600 music therapy sessions for both children and adults throughout Scotland.

The donation saw each of the company’s Scottish stores, as well as its audiology and Home Visits services, come together to raise the money. The donation is in addition to more than £180,000 raised during the Scottish Music Awards.

The awards, one of the biggest industry events of the year, returned to Glasgow’s Barrowland Ballroom following last year’s virtual event.

It saw some of Scotland’s top musicians take to the stage to perform, including Wet Wet Wet, Amy Macdonald, Nina Nesbitt, The Fratellis, Nathan Evans, The Bluebells and more.

Laura Stallerbrass, store director at Specsavers in Forfar, said: “While the Scottish Music Awards is a fantastic celebration of Scottish music, it’s important to remember that it also supports a charity that offers a vital service to so many.

“We were proud to join together with our fellow stores and audiology and Home Visits services in Scotland to donate £15,000 collectively and we’re delighted that this will cover the costs of hundreds of music therapy sessions for four projects Nordoff Robbins supports across Scotland.”

Sandra Schembri, CEO of Nordoff Robbins Music Therapy charity, added: “We are so grateful for the continuing support shown through the Scottish music industry.

“The past 18 months have been tough for everyone, but even more so for our clients. The incredible amount raised will allow us to continue to support some of the most vulnerable and isolated members in our communities through our music therapy.”

The overall total will be donated to Sight Scotland, which works with Nordoff Robbins to provide music therapy for children with a sight impairment; St Andrew’s Hospice in North Lanarkshire; Blythswood House in Renfrewshire which supports adults with learning disabilities, autism, cerebral palsy and Down’s Syndrome and Calaiswood After School Club in Fife.