A CHARITY has donated £450,000 to the appeal to help restore the fire-damaged Glasgow School of Art.
The Wolfson Foundation’s donation to the Mackintosh Campus Appeal brings the total raised to £18.5 million.
The appeal aims to raise £32m to restore the Grade-A listed Mackintosh building which was badly damaged by fire on May 23, 2014.
The money will also help to expand the school’s Garnethill Campus into the former Stow College building.
Founded by Glasgow-born businessman and philanthropist Sir Isaac Wolfson, who owned the mail order business Great Universal Stores, the foundation supports and promotes excellence in the fields of science, health, education and the arts and humanities.
Paul Ramsbottom, Wolfson Foundation chief executive, said: “The Mackintosh building is internationally renowned as a masterpiece of 20th century architecture at the heart of the Glasgow School of Art.
“We were impressed not only by the bravery, ambition and energy with which the school responded to the traumatic events of May 2014, but also by the sensitivity with which this restoration has been conceived – not in isolation, but as part of a wider strategic vision for the school’s future.
“We are delighted to be supporting this important regeneration project, and helping to revitalise an outstanding building in the city of our founder’s birth.”
Glasgow School of Art director Professor Tom Inns said: “We are hugely grateful to the Wolfson Foundation for this generous donation.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here