£850,000 left to Salvation Army

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A pensioner has left more than £800,000 to a Salvation Army service, it has been revealed.

Robert Saddler, a retired architect who lived in Forfar, Angus, had been helped by Salvation Army staff before he died in 2008.

Major Jim McCluskey, team leader for the Salvation Army Angus community care service, said a total of £850,000 had been received from Mr Saddler's will.

Mr McCluskey described the donation as a "lifeline legacy".

He added: "We were extremely surprised.

"The reality is we were down to our last penny and on the same day we were going to discuss what to do about the situation we were informed about this legacy.

"It would have been very, very difficult to go on without it."

Service user

The Salvation Army is a Christian organisation which provides social welfare.

Mr McCluskey said the Angus community care service, which helps elderly people maintain their independence, was set up 13 years ago following a £1m bequest.

He said: "This is the second legacy of a similar amount.

"It was confirmed in December but we were waiting for everything to be pulled together to find out how much it was. We knew he had left us something but we had no idea how much.

"He was a service user of ours in his 80s. We knew him through that.

"We did his shopping and collected medication. We have a service to provide that for older people.

"I had contact with him, popping in to see him. He was very nice, a nice elderly gentleman. He was a very intelligent man."

A 12-strong staff provides the service to more than 200 elderly people across Angus.