Johnson Carmichael charity work earns visit from man’s best friend

Johnston Carmichael employees from across its 11 Scottish offices nominated Guide Dogs Scotland to benefit from the firm’s annual fundraising campaign, which saw nearly £19,000 raised for the charity in 2014.

The funds allowed Guide Dogs Scotland, which solely relies on donations to operate, to adopt two new puppies and train them from an early age to eventually make the transition into working guide dogs from 12 months of age.

A result of their fundraising efforts, Johnston Carmichael were asked to name the two puppies, with Johnston and Sandy coming out on top following a staff vote. Staff from the firm’s Inverurie office were treated to a visit from one of the puppies this week to witness their progress, before the pair complete their training and are assessed and matched with someone who is visually impaired.

Stuart Blues, head of CSR at Johnston Carmichael, said: “It was a fantastic experience for our team to see the great work that Guide Dogs Scotland carry out on a daily basis across Scotland. As a firm, we support a number of local and national charities across Scotland, which help a wide variety of causes, but it is not often that we get the chance to see for ourselves exactly what our hard work and the money raised has achieved.

“Meeting one of the puppies, Johnston, and hearing about how he will transform the lives of local people who are visually impaired, has given the team a motivational boost and has inspired us to put the same high level of effort into this year’s charity campaign.”

The money raised by the firm will allow Guide Dogs Scotland to put the puppies through basic training and introduce them to new experiences with volunteer walkers. They will then spend 16 weeks at the charity’s Forfar Training School, before they receive further training in one of Guide Dog Scotland’s local offices, which will ensure that they have the skills and experience required to be matched with someone with sight loss.

The trainer will ensure they are socially well-behaved, friendly and responsive to the handler, familiar and relaxed with different environments including busy town or city centre conditions, school areas, travelling on all types of transport and adopt an acceptable standard of behaviour whilst on a lead.

Andrea Williams, community fundraiser with Guide Dogs, said: “Johnston Carmichael appreciate how important it is to bring independence to someone with sight loss. A guide dog brings confidence, mobility and companionship. Johnston and Sandy will go on to be life-changers.”

There are around 530 guide dog owners in Scotland. It costs around £50,000 to train and support each guide dog through its working life. Guide Dogs Scotland receives no government funding for this service, which is supported entirely by public generosity.

Johnston Carmichael has over 600 staff and partners based in 11 strategic locations across Scotland. The company is the largest independent firm of Chartered Accountants and business advisers in Scotland and one of the top 20 firms in the UK.