New guide launched on innovative projects for veterans

The Veterans’ Places People and Pathways programme is creating better, more sustainable support for veterans in the communities where they live. It is supporting major projects to enable veterans to access support that meets their needs. 14 major projects will encourage the development of safe, welcoming places for veterans to go in their local area, support for the people (staff and volunteers in organisations that support veterans) to be able to have access to good quality training and will connect veterans into wider pathways including for mental health support and treatment.

With funding from HM Treasury; the Veterans Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund awarded £9M in the 2021/22 to 14 major projects through the Veterans’ Places, Pathways and People programme, including the Invictus Games Foundation.

10 grants have been awarded in the countries and regions of the UK, to develop better, more joined up lasting support for local veterans with mental health needs. 4 grants have been awarded for national strategic projects. The Invictus Games Foundation is overseeing the delivery of the programme within the South West of the UK.

There is strong potential that the veteran led projects will be able to support long term change and improvements for veterans. A new guide has been launched to raise awareness of the 10 portfolios and their work; which will take place over the next two years.

The Portfolios are at an early stage of their delivery; and have all developed their delivery plans through extensive regional consultations. The Portfolios actively encourage organisations in Statutory or Voluntary sectors to engage in their work, and contact details for all of the Portfolio projects can be found within each profile contained later in this document.

Anna Wright, Chief Executive of the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust said

“The Trust is excited about the potential that these grants can have to deliver real and lasting change. Through these grants veterans with mental health needs can have better access to effective pathways of care and support in their region; and have safe places to go to access support, reduce isolation and support positive mental health. We hope that this guide gives a useful introduction to their work; and encourage voluntary and statutory organisations to work with the Portfolios to deliver lasting change for our veterans”

Find out more and read the guide here.

The Veterans Places, Pathways and People programme has awarded significant grants to make sustained improvements to veterans mental health

10 Portfolio grants have been awarded; with one each in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland with seven regional grants awarded in the UK. Across all of the portfolios; 170 individual projects will be supported.

Each grant has been made to a lead organisation that will co-ordinate a dynamic and co-ordinated portfolio of projects that will take an informed approach across their country or region. They will ensure that there are connected pathways which work well for veterans; that there are safe places for veterans to go which connect into these pathways; and that volunteers and staff who support veterans have access to training and work closely with other organisations within veterans’ mental health pathways.

An additional four grants have been awarded to Cobseo (the Confederation of Service Charities); the Association of Service Drop-In Centres (ASDIC); SSAFA and Combat Stress. These Strategic Leads will work within the wider Veterans Places, Pathways and People programme, and with a cross-sector Oversight Group to encourage the integration of existing clinical mental health provision with the broader non-clinical services for veterans needing general wellbeing support as well as those on the mental health recovery pathway across the sector. Their work will strengthen the development of more joined-up local provision for veterans.

These specialist organisations will work with the 10 Country and Regional portfolios that will be supported through the wider programme; with the wider Armed Forces charitable sector; and with organisations that support veterans. A full list of grants can be found here

The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust is a charity and a MOD sponsored NDPB that manages the grant programmes funded by the Covenant Fund. They also run wider funding programmes that support the Armed Forces community.

The Trust makes grants that have an impact on the lives of Armed Forces communities, including serving personnel, Armed Forces families, veterans, and their families.

The Armed Forces Covenant is a promise by the nation ensuring that those who serve or who have served in the Armed Forces, and their families, are treated fairly.

All the grants awarded support the values of the Covenant.

For more information on the Armed Forces Covenant, visit the Covenant website www.armedforcescovenant.gov.uk