Deptherapy, the scuba diving rehabilitation charity for wounded ex-service personnel, has announced that it is to close in August 2023 at the end of the charity’s financial year.
The news was announced in a statement published on the Deptherapy website:
‘It is with considerable regret that the Board of Deptherapy … announces that the charity will close with effect from midnight on 31st August 2023. This date marks the end of the charity’s 2022–2023 financial year.
‘Last month, the Board of Trustees of Deptherapy met to discuss the future of the charity and all agreed on the sad but inevitable necessary closure of Deptherapy. We have no further grant applications pending and from the 31st December 2022 we will cease all fundraising activities and operate using our residual funds until closure.
The closure has come about because the charity has not been able to recruit a sufficient number of programme members; partly due to the cessation of activities during the coronavirus pandemic, and other changes which have meant that some of Deptherapy’s current beneficiaries are no longer able to commit time to the programme.
Deptherapy has also announced that its income is ‘no longer sustainable’ due to a downturn in public donations following the pandemic, and grant funding not providing a viable model for the small charity.
Deptherapy has promised to fulfil its existing schedule before the anticipated August 2023 closure, which includes a training expedition to Roots Red Sea in October 2022, and a Deptherapy Retreat to be held in Sheffield in November 2022, where a new Deptherapy Mental Awareness Course is to be launched.
Although fundraising activities will cease on 31 December 2022, the charity is hoping that it will have enough funds remaining to undertake a final trip to the Red Sea in May/June next year, and a liveaboard expedition at some point during the summer.
‘I speak for the Board when I say that we are immensely proud of all that Deptherapy and its beneficiaries have achieved since the charity’s formation in 2014,’ said Deptherapy Chair, Richard Cullen. ‘As an organization and individuals, we leave a huge footprint in terms of Adaptive Teaching on the Scuba Diving industry globally.
‘Most importantly, we leave a legacy of lives saved and transformed. Our beneficiaries will remain front and centre of our work over the coming period as they have always been. Deptherapy is also committed to ensuring the benefits of our programmes and experience will remain accessible and sustainable for the future.’
Deptherapy’s Board is actively looking at ways of ensuring that the expertise, experience and resources it has gathered during its lifetime are made available to other charities supporting those in the ‘Blue Light Services’ – such as the police, ambulance and fire services – who have encountered mental and physical injuries during their careers.
To read the full statement about the closure or for more information, visit www.deptherapy.co.uk.
