Dr Ron Culley pledged to support vulnerable people during the Covid-19 crisis.

Quarriers’ new chief executive officer has taken up his post with a pledge to care for some of society’s most vulnerable people during an “extremely difficult” time.

Dr Ron Culley began working at the care charity today following the departure of Alice Harper, who has helmed Quarriers for the past seven years.

Amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Culley promised that Quarriers would continue to care and support vulnerable children, adults and families facing extremely challenging circumstances.

He said: “Quarriers is focused on providing care for some of society’s most vulnerable people and this is more important than ever during these extremely difficult times.

“The organisation has established a robust emergency planning team to ensure the safety and welfare of the people we support, our staff and our volunteers during the Covid-19 pandemic and I am ready to lead the team and play my part.

“These are unusual and challenging circumstances but I am proud to be joining the team to be able to continue to deliver the highest possible level of service.”

Culley joins the leading social care charity from the Western Isles Health and Social Care Partnership where he was chief officer for four years.

He previously worked in a range of positions including chief officer health and social care at the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (Cosla).

Tom Scholes, chair of Quarriers’ board of trustees said: “Ron brings a wealth of experience and knowledge of the social care sector and we are delighted to welcome him on-board during this difficult time.”

“On behalf of Quarriers’ board of trustees I would like to extend our thanks to Alice Harper for her hard work and commitment over the past seven years.”