Princess Anne hands charity a royal reason to be cheerful

Published on Monday 19 January 2009 09:07

HER royal engagements will take her to the City Chambers and one of the city's premier cathedrals.

But to the astonishment of workers, a senior member of the Royal Family is also set to pay a visit to a small city charity who invited her on a whim of hope rather than expectation.

As part of an official trip this week, Princess Anne will unveil the new offices of a charity helping people with schizophrenia and their families on Wednesday.

Last year, the National Schizophrenic Fellowship Scotland – which employs six people at its Newington headquarters – wrote to the Princess Royal in the off chance that she may be able to squeeze in an appointment.

But fundraiser Pat Carmichael said the timing of her visit now meant she would be able to officially open the new offices and celebrate the organisation's 25th anniversary.

"We wrote to her some time ago but we really didn't think we would have a hope in hell," she said. "We got a response back asking why we specifically wanted her to open it and sent one back explaining she does a lot of work in Scotland, especially with carers, who we also spend a great deal of time with.

"She's popular and works incredibly hard, she'll be doing her homework about what we do and we can't wait to meet her, there is great excitement in the office."

As part of the royal visit, Princess Anne is also expected to visit the City Chambers, St Mary's Cathedral and some other venues in the Lothians.

NSF has put up a special awning outside its office at the Newington Business Centre off Dalkeith Road and are expecting 40 guests. These will include charity fundraisers and the people the charity helps, along with their families.

And Ms Carmichael said it was a chance for volunteers and carers to be recognised, adding that she hoped the visit of such a high-profile figure would help reduce the number of myths about the illness in society.

"There are so many stigmas attached to schizophrenia," she said. "Some people seem to think it means people go around murdering others but the reality is completely different, in fact they are much more likely to commit suicide.

"I know Princess Anne is extremely busy and we are just grateful she can fit us in at all. We're only a small charity but we want to raise our profile and help more people.

"Schizophrenia is an illness just like cancer or anything else."

Among the visitors will be Aileen Corbett, who suffers from schizophrenia, along with her mother Jenny Robertson and daughter Heather Mann. Heather, 14, will present a bouquet of flowers to the Princess.

They are all heavily involved in the charity and are eagerly anticipating the event, which is expected to last about an hour.

Mrs Robertson said: "I'm certain that having icons like Princess Anne can only be good for the organisation and will help de-stigmatise schizophrenia."