Honouring the fallen

Fromelles the search continues . . .

The Service Personnel and Veterans Agency (SPVA) has launched a number of social media products which aim to keep Service personnel and veterans up-to-date with items of interest or news from within the Agency and the Armed Forces Community.

The Agency’s latest podcast explores the work of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) and the continuing search for relatives of those who died at Fromelles during the First World War.

Fromelles (Pheasant Wood) Military Cemetery is the newest cemetery constructed by the CWGC and is the final resting place for 250 soldiers who died at the Battle of Fromelles in 1916.  These soldiers were recently discovered in a series of communal graves in northern France . The search still continues to find relatives of those soldiers.

The Commission is a not-for-profit organisation established in 1917 and is responsible for marking and maintaining the graves of those members of the Commonwealth Forces who died during the two World Wars.

Ranald Leask, CWGC said, “The podcast is a great way to find out about the work of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and our recent work at Fromelles.  It will provide much-needed awareness of our continuing search to find relatives of those soldiers killed at Fromelles.”  

You may also be interested in the latest SPVA video, where presenter Don Goldie looks at the work of the Historic Casualty Casework team, a small dedicated unit working within the MOD’s Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre (JCCC). The team has been heavily involved in the Fromelles Project which called for their expertise in the identification and reburial of 250 British and Australian troops who were killed during the battle.

The podcast and video are available to view on the Veterans-UK website, www.veterans-uk.info , and on various social media sites such as iTunes and YouTube.  

Ends

Notes to Editors:

1. Veterans-UK was launched by the Ministry of Defence in April 2007 to provide a focal point for veterans to access services from the many different sources of help available.  The Veterans-UK helpline, 0800 169 2277 and website www.veterans-uk.info are the main contact points.  
2. The Service Personnel and Veterans Agency is an Agency of the Min istry of Defence and provides essential support functions to the Armed Forces and veterans communities.  These include Forces pay and HR, issue of all medals, casualty repatriation and compassionate services, pensions, injury/bereavement compensation and veterans welfare support.
3. A veteran is anyone who has served in HM Armed Forces, regular or reserve including National Servicemen, former Polish forces under British command and Merchant Mariners who have seen duty in military operations (e.g. the Falklands Conflict). Veterans, who can be aged from 18 to well over 80, along with their families and dependents make up the veterans community and all are entitled to our services.
4. SPVA prides itself on its communication with the Service and Veterans community. By embracing Digital and Social Media, it will be able to reach an even wider audience.  The SPVA podcasts were launched in February 2010 followed by the first SPVA videocast launched on 18th May 2010 .
5. Using Digital and Social media products, SPVA aims to keep service personnel and veterans up to date with the latest happenings within the Agency and how they may impact on the wider Armed Forces community. 
6. SPVA podcasts and videos are now available on the SPVA Social Media Hub that can be accessed via the Veterans-UK website - http://www.veterans-uk.info - and are also syndicated via iTunes, the SPVA channel on YouTube and MOD Social Media Hub http://www.blogs.mod.uk/homepage.html  

 For Further Information

Please contact Laurie Manton Service Personnel and Veterans Agency, on 07795 970407