Veterans WORLD 8 - Features

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A national housing charity has a unique relationship with an SPVA Veterans Welfare Manager enabling disabled veterans to find a home in the London area.

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Patricia Rogers (Veterans Welfare Manager for Balham) has worked closely with the E. Hayes Dashwood Foundation since the early nineties. Thishas enabled them to find veterans a suitable home and secured much needed funding for property repairs.

Patricia explains: “Since my first referral, I’ve been happy to make clients aware of the accommodation provided by the Foundation. Many live in flats and impersonal housing estates, sometimes squalid housing or hostels. If they are successful in securing accommodation with the Foundation they soon realise they are treated with respect, dignity and share an ex-Service background with the other guests.”

The Foundation provides homes for disabled veterans and those who served in the Merchant Navy. It advocates independent living with tenants referred to as guests. The criteria for guests are that they must be disabled, ex-Service, and capable independent living. Their families and dependant children are welcome and widow(er)s are normally allowed to remain in the property after the death of the qualifying ex-Service person. 93 flats are currently available to disabled ex-Service personnel including Merchant Mariners. The remaining 55 flats are let on the open market for assured shorthold tenancies. Priority is given to the ex- Service community for 12 weeks on new lettings before being advertised more widely.

Whilst the average guests are mainly those from WWII, younger applicants from more recent conflicts are now applying and the age range is widening.

A spokesman for the Foundation, Richard Dobb, said “The Charity greatly values the close cooperation and support from SPVA, The Royal British Legion, Veterans Aid and SSAFA for their referrals of prospective new guests. This relationship extends also to advice and assistance to individual residents, where necessary, to help them fully resettle into independent living and for this important work, the Foundation is most grateful."

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Organisations Join Forces To Support Veterans
The Royal British Legion and supported housing provider Stonham have teamed up to help a veteran turn his life around.

In 2007 former Paratrooper Andrew Charles was living rough in a Cumbrian woodland when he was referred by The Royal British Legion(TRBL) to Stonham. He now hosts his own art exhibitions and will be moving in to his own property in the very near future.

Andrew, 51, said: “Stonham and the Royal British Legion have both been incredibly supportive and helped change my life for the better.”

Stonham Service Manager Andrea Lockett who runs the River View Project in Kendal said: “Andrew has really come on leaps and bounds and is a fantastic example of the good work organisations can do for people when they work together. We are seeing an increasing number of veterans using our services in Cumbria. This is because of our good working relationship with the Legion.

We offer accommodation, support and a wide range of services to veterans who have been referred by the Legion to us. In turn it has been very generous in helping veterans in a number of ways including financial help to furnish their properties and adapt rooms if necessary.”

TRBL commented: “We are always delighted to work with Stonham to the benefit of our mutual clients.

Andrew’s case is commendable in that he has made great efforts to help himself.” The Stonham River View project provides a safe and supportive home
for up to 12 people.

HOLIDAY FOR A HERO
The SPVA Veterans Welfare Service helps a Jersey charity give a veteran a much needed break.

joyce Holidays for Heroes Jersey provides free holidays, on the Island, for ex-Service Personnel injured through
active service. The charity contacted the SPVA Welfare Service to identify clients who might benefit from holiday. At the time, Joyce Palin, Welfare Adviser based in Preston, was providing support to a local veteran David* and his wife. The couple were dealing with PTSD well as caring for their young granddaughter.

After several phonecalls with the charity, Joyce was finally able to tell David that he and his wife had been chosen and would be enjoying a week’s holiday in just over two weeks time! To say he was speechless was an understatement, overwhelmed yet excited at the opportunity for both him and his wife to relax in beautiful surroundings.

Joyce liaised with the charity to provide necessary paperwork including service details, flight information and costs prior to the holiday. This enabled David and his wife to enjoy a relaxing week long break.

Joyce said: “Working together with Holidays for Heroes allows the Welfare Service to bring a ray of sunshine into the lives of our clients
Because of the close association, we can identify the clients who are most in need of a holiday and are able to cope with the travel. This enables the charity to concentrate on the practicalities of the event and saves some of their funds for other activities.

David and his wife have already benefited greatly from the holiday the way that their problems were not an issue and they were allowed to be normal and trouble free for week. The whole experience was energising and cathartic for them and David was even inspired to write a poem about his holiday which is one positive way he deals with PTSD.”

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