PD&MS Group, an Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning (EPCC) company, shows support for local charity and social care services provider Aberdeen Cyrenians as it commits to partnership to provide fundraising and volunteering support.
The move comes at a time of growing concern across the region where rising living costs and increased job losses – particularly in the energy sector – are placing greater pressure on local support services.
Aberdeen Cyrenians has supported vulnerable people struggling with issues relating to homelessness and poverty within the region for over 55 years.
According to CEO Donna Hutchison, the organisation is currently experiencing an increase in demand. She said: “We’re facing a challenging time as a region with a 20% increase in those seeking supporting in April 2025, compared to January this year.
"This surge is directly due to the ongoing impact of increased cost-of-living pressures, such as council tax and energy price rises, as we as recent rises in redundancies, which has the ability to affect anyone.”
Donna said: “There is an extreme and growing wealth gap within the city where we have 1/3 of the most deprived areas and 1/3 of the least deprived areas in the country, and one of our greatest challenges relates to a lack of awareness that poverty exists and is a growing issue.
"We all know the handful of areas in the city that have seen high levels of poverty for many years, but recently our experience tells us that sadly we’re seeing signs of poverty in new areas that up until now were thought to be secure and thriving. With one in five households in Scotland having no savings, a change in circumstance can quickly become a crisis.”
The charity that was started in 1968 by Aberdeen University students as a soup kitchen provides a wide range of services for people in the city, whether they are homeless or at risk of homelessness, experiencing financial instability, in an abusive living situation, struggling with mental health issues, experiencing substance related harm, involved in the justice system or generally feeling overwhelmed or isolated
PD&MS Group CEO, Simon Rio has been aware of the work of Aberdeen Cyrenians for some time and felt compelled to support the organisation recognising the growing need for its services within the city.
He said: “I’m lucky to have worked in the oil and gas industry for most of my career and during that time, we’ve seen both peaks and tough downturns. Whilst the industry is focussed on working towards net zero and a sustainable future, we must also consider the human side - energy security, yes but a security for the people in our region. This is certainly a challenging time for the industry and in turn, the north-east, and we want to do what we can to support those most affected.”
In 2023 PD&MS was acquired by RSK Group, a global leader in sustainable solutions and home to a diverse portfolio of over 200 environmental, engineering and technical services businesses. The sustainability focus of the group extends to the communities in which it operates, with a strategy informed by the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.
Simon explained “We have core values defining who we are and what we stand for, known as our GENES, and these can be seen not only in how we work with our customers and partners but also in how we support the communities that we work in.”
PD&MS recently put a team forward to take part in CEO Sleepout Aberdeen at Balmoral Stadium to raise funds for three local charities, Aberdeen Cyrenians, Aberdeen Foyer and Cove Rangers Community Foundation.
This was the first CEO Sleepout to take place in Scotland, and an event initiated by Donna. She said: “I’ve followed the progress of CEO Sleepout over the past few years which has now held over 50 events across the UK, but until April, they hadn’t crossed the border.
"I got in touch with Henrietta MacEwan (Hen) and suggested we hold the first Scottish event here in Aberdeen. The timing just felt right; the need for our services is greater than ever so the opportunity to raise both funds but also vital awareness was perfect timing for us and we were delighted to partner with two other local charities with a similar ethos as our own. Also, from working in the region and in the energy sector for a number of years, I knew there would be an appetite amongst local businesses to support the event.”
Mike Forbes Aberdeen Cyrenians volunteering
Despite consistent rain in the early hours of the morning, the weather wasn’t enough to dampen the spirits of over 60 attendees who all slept out under the stars. Incredibly, over £60,000 has been raised to date, making the event the second highest in terms of its fundraising in the UK, only behind London.
Simon Rio was part of the PD&MS team that took part and said: “When the team suggested we sign up I knew I had to be there. Spending one night out in the cold, albeit in safe surroundings, is a very small part to play. It wasn’t meant to emulate what real homeless people experience but to raise awareness and essential funds to support three fantastic charities who are making a difference in our city. We were delighted to raise over £4,000 as a team and are grateful to everyone who supported us.”
Since the Sleepout, PD&MS has also spent some time volunteering with Aberdeen Cyrenians, having sent a team to help re-locate and organise a storeroom with essential clothing at the Summer Street facility.
Ron Strachan, Aberdeen Cyrenians’ Volunteering & Education Co-ordinator explained more about the volunteering opportunities available:
He said: “We started life as a soup kitchen run by student volunteers and this ethos of volunteering and direct community support remains at the heart of what we do.
"We’re a small core team delivering a wide range of services so we’re dependent on volunteers to help us reach as many service users as possible.
"Our volunteering roles are varied and very flexible, we have some volunteers that come and help at the same time every week but there are also adhoc opportunities and projects which require teams.
"We were very grateful to have a team from PD&MS help us to transport some of our donated clothes from our warehouse and to help us in setting up a store room at our drop in facility on Summer Street.
"We’re in the process of booking in their next volunteering sessions and we’re looking forward to working together.”
Mike Forbes, part of the PD&MS leadership team, attended the first volunteering session and commented: “We’re really keen to play our part and help where we can to support Aberdeen Cyrenians as they provide essential support to vulnerable people in our communities.
"Their warehouse facility is just across the river from our office, so it’s easy for us to drop in for a few hours to help and it’s great to feel like we’re making a difference.
"We’re hoping that we’ll also be able to support with some of our specialist teams and skills, not just moving boxes next time!”
You can find out more about Aberdeen Cyrenians and the services it offers, along with fundraising and volunteering opportunities: www.weareac.org