The charity’s CEO left last week, with the board's chair also exiting
A Scottish health charity is in crisis after it was revealed its leadership is leaving, salaries are being cut for all staff, and voluntary redundancies are open to all.
TFN has been made aware of a number of issues facing MND Scotland, including its CEO leaving last week, and the charity’s chair stepping down - neither of which have been reported publicly.
All staff have also been asked to take voluntary redundancy, TFN understands, with the announcement made on Thursday, 2 October.
Staff who remain will have their salaries reduced to 80% of their current levels, with vital services - including advocacy work - having already been cut in recent months.
One staff member told TFN: “This is not because of the funding crisis many Scottish charities are facing, rather a complete failure of leadership and governance over the last four years.
“A new chair and CEO were installed in 2021, and there has been a catalogue of governance failure since.
“There is a real risk that MND Scotland could close, similar to Cancer Support Scotland recently. This will be devastating to the people who need support.”
Since 2021 MND Scotland has run significant deficits, according to official accounts filed with charity regulator OSCR.
In 2021, a deficit of £188,144 was reported, jumping to £781,402 in 2022.
The amount lost in one year had risen again to £1,245,943 in 2023, and £1,368,251 in 2024.
In total, MND Scotland spent £3,583,740 more since 2021 than it had brought in.
Now ex-CEO Rachel Maitland joined MND Scotland in 2021, while the most recent chair listed on the charity’s accounts is Adrian Murphy - who has also left the organisation.
In their 2024 submission of accounts, the charity’s trustees wrote in a section titled “risk management” that “the Trustees are satisfied that systems are in place to mitigate exposure to the major risks and have a risk management strategy that involves reviewing the financial, operational and management performance of the charity annually”.
The report added that “there was an expected deficit in the year (2024)”. However, reserves had dropped to £1,441,498 by March 2024, down from £2,831,146, a year earlier.
Dr Jane Haley, MND Scotland’s director of research, has been appointed interim CEO of the charity.
She will report to the board of trustees, interim co-chaired by Liz McRobb from Shepherd and Wedderburn and Callum Paterson from the University of Edinburgh.
Over the past decade or so, MND Scotland has risen to become one of the country's best known charities, and it was associated with 2014's ice bucket challenge fundraising craze.
A spokesperson for the charity told TFN: “Like many charities, we are navigating an extremely challenging financial environment and it has become clear that immediate action is required to ensure the long-term stability of the charity. The wellbeing of our colleagues is our absolute priority and we shared the position with colleagues as soon as we were aware. We are now working closely with colleagues on a range of potential options.”
