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MoD grant to help army veterans

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Veterans can often feel it is a weakness to ask for help, Lynne Gladwin said.

A new hub is being developed to provide help and support to army veterans.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has given £246,820 to Herefordshire Council so services can be improved across the county, Worcestershire and Shropshire.

It will also pay for two people to co-ordinate the services.

Lynne Gladwin, who runs groups for veterans, said it will be a "fantastic" resource for a group that can struggle to seek help.

Mrs Gladwin, who is married to a soldier and is formerly of the Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps, set up Armed Forces and Veterans Breakfast Clubs in Hereford and Leominster.

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Herefordshire Council led the grant bid and said it hopes the money will provide a range of support under one roof

The club has a total of about 80 members, ranging in age from their 30s up to 70s, with about 20 people attending the Hereford group each week.

She said Hereford has a large community of veterans from all forces and said it will be "brilliant" to have services under one roof.

"They don't know who to turn to and they can find it difficult to ask for help.

"Even with things like mental health, they can often feel it is a weakness to ask for help but when they do they find services they didn't know where there or someone who might have been suffering in the same way.

"It will be great to have something visual, like this hub, in Hereford, so they know where to go."

The dedicated hub, to be set up in Hereford city centre, will provide support on things like employment, benefits, housing, health and access to military community networks and will build on existing work by the city's military helpdesk, currently manned by the Royal British Legion and SSAFA at Blueschool House Customer Service Centre.