History
A group of parents came together in December 1988 to consider what the long-term future was for their sons and daughters with learning disabilities. Our vision was “that there must be something better than institutional care”. Our inspiration was Doreen McFarlane MBE, a leading voice in the provision of education for learning disabled young people.
It took from 1988 to 1995 before we opened the doors of our first home. During those seven long years of struggle many allies were attracted to our cause. We have many people to be grateful to as their patient and supportive assistance was pivotal to the creation of McFarlane Homes.
The early years were not without their difficulties including convincing the relevant authorities that a group of concerned parents did have the relevant skills, expertise and business acumen to manage a new venture. A number of similar projects had already started but unfortunately had fallen by the wayside in the ensuing years. We may have done likewise had one parent, Brendan Somers, not had the foresight and enthusiasm to oversee and effectively manage the organisation in its infancy.
Brendan, a Senior Banking Manager with the Allied Irish Bank in Glasgow, retired from this post and channelled all his energies into McFarlane Homes, supported by his family. With his skills and knowledge of financial matters and his enthusiasm for the cause, the charity opened its first residential facility, Netherlee House in December 1995.
Since then the organisation has developed and matured and at present we have five services within the Renfrewshire and East Renfrewshire area, which are listed below:
- Gartmore Road, Ralston - March 2000
- Craw Road, Paisley - October 2000
- Main Road, Elderslie - April 2004
- Linwood Road Paisley - June 2005
For further details see Service profiles.
