Forgotten Society

Forgotten Society is a short film made by a member of Veterans Aid as part of a university project. It's not about Veterans, but it is a poignant reminder that, for many people, life in Britain is hard.

Sadly many of these people are 'invisible' - a few of them have, at some stage, served in the Armed Forces. Thankfully for them there are organisations like Veterans Aid where help is always available.

Remembrance Concert is highlight of VA's year

Veterans Aid has come a long  way since Mrs Gwen Huggins decided to 'do something' for homeless ex Servicemen in the 1930s. The charity's fortunes and profile have fluctuated significantly over the decades but never, in its 82-years of operation, has it featured centre-stage at London's Royal Albert Hall - on what is the undisputed  red letter date in the veterans calendar.

This year has particular resonance because 2014 marks the passing of 100 years since the start of the First World War. Veterans Aid was born in the aftermath of that war, when poverty and unemployment left many ex-servicemen homeless and sleeping on London’s Embankment. It has worked quietly and effectively ever since to help ex-servicemen and women or all ages through every kind of crisis. 

On Sunday, 9th November a WW1 Centenary performance of Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem will be performed by The Royal Choral Society,  at The Royal Albert Hall. 

Proceeds of the  event will go exclusively to Veterans Aid.

Last year we provided more than 21,300 nights of accommodation, dealt with 3,400 calls for help, put an average of four people a month through detox programmes - and so much more! ( For details see the latest Annual Review.)

We've been supported by a wonderful patron, had our hostel 'transformed' by the generosity of a team of top designers - but most of all we've been given the funding  to provide continuing support to those who need us. 

Our CEO described the Remembrance Sunday event as the high point of VA’s year: 

“We were stunned when The Royal Choral Society approached us with their proposal and I am still humbled by the efforts of all involved in making this happen – The Lady R Foundation, The Royal Albert Hall and all the individuals unable to attend who have ‘donated’ their seats. This event marks not only a milestone in world history but acts also as a poignant reminder to all associated with our charity of how faithful to its core values it has been over the decades.”

There are still seven months in which to sell tickets, raise the event's profile and prepare for what will hopefully be one of the proudest moments in VA's history. We would love to see you there, to share what will be an unforgettable and deeply moving commemorative event.

TICKETS

Tickets start at £16.79 (including all booking fees) and are available from:

Royal Albert Hall Box office: 0845 401 5045

www.royalalberthall.com

NEWS RELEASE

A landmark event amongst the 2014 First World War centenary commemorations is the Royal Choral Society’s performance of Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem on Remembrance Sunday, 9 November, at London’s Royal Albert Hall. 

Bringing together top-flight soloists, including star bass-baritone Bryn Terfel, and the internationally-renowned London Philharmonic Orchestra, the concert will undoubtedly be poignant and powerful. While remembering those who sacrificed their lives one hundred years ago, funds raised from the concert will go to Veterans Aid, a remarkable charity providing today’s ex-servicemen and women in crisis with immediate support and with extraordinary effectiveness. The concert, organised in collaboration with The Lady R Foundation, matches music, occasion and charitable cause, making it a unique event in this centenary year.

Britten’s War Requiem, one of the most masterful artistic responses to the tragedy of war, profoundly weaves together the Latin Mass for the Dead with the poetry of Wilfred Owen, the young English war poet killed in action in the final days of the First World War. It is a work steeped with themes of the pity of war, sacrifice and remembrance, yet also an expression of hope and reconciliation. Britten, a pacifist, intended that the vocal soloists for the premiere of the work should represent the former warring countries – Russia, Germany and Great Britain. The performance on Remembrance Sunday 2014, conducted by Richard Cooke, once again brings together these three nations, represented by international soloists: British bass-baritone Bryn Terfel, German tenor Stephan Rügamer and Russian soprano (and 2009 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World) Ekaterina Scherbachenko. 

Bryn Terfel said:  “I’m delighted to be singing in Britten’s War Requiem to mark such a unique occasion. To sing this piece on the Remembrance Sunday of the Centenary year of the outbreak of the First World War will be an historic commemoration. The First World War affected every family in the country and heralded a century of bloodshed and destruction like no other. The Royal Albert Hall is the concert venue for marking Remembrance Sunday and I’m sure that the Royal Choral Society, the London Philharmonic Orchestra and my fellow soloists will give their all to ensure that the centenary is properly marked.”

The Royal Choral Society is one of the UK’s premier choirs and has a long history with the Royal Albert Hall. Formed in 1871 for the Hall’s opening, the choir has performed continually at its ‘spiritual home’, even throughout the First World War, when the choir was a pivotal force in preserving music-making in London, introducing a Sunday afternoon concert series at the Royal Albert Hall in 1915.

The event is presented in association with The Lady R Foundation, a UK registered charity founded by The Dowager Viscountess Rothermere, to bring comfort and relief to the forgotten, the overlooked and the stigmatised in today’s society. 

BACKGROUND

About the Royal Choral Society

The Royal Choral Society was formed for the opening of the Royal Albert Hall in 1871. The choir’s history reads like a 'Who’s Who' of the musical world. Former RCS conductors include Charles Gounod and Malcolm Sargent – the latter, described as ‘the finest British choral conductor of his generation’, had a 40-year association with the choir. Current Musical Director Richard Cooke took over the baton from his distinguished predecessors in 1995.

The RCS has always had a wide repertoire; their performance of new works has been a feature, with Verdi and Dvorák conducting the choir in premières of their own works. Today, the RCS enjoys maintaining a balance between performances of traditional repertoire and the opportunities to perform in unusual and contrasting events including leading the singing in Hyde Park at the annual BBC Proms in the Park concert. Other unique events include singing at the launch of the Queen Mary 2, participating in the 25th anniversary for the Falklands conflict, the 70th anniversary of the Dunkirk evacuation and performing at the Royal Festival Hall re-opening in 2007. The choir recently recorded the Sky Sports ‘idents’ vocals, and provided vocals for the specially-composed soundtrack to Channel 5’s fly-on the-wall documentary Royal Marines: Mission Afghanistan.
http://www.royalchoralsociety.co.uk/



About Veterans Aid

Veterans Aid is the major charity for UK veterans in crisis. It was born in 1932, in the aftermath of the First World War, when the legacy of that conflict left many former servicemen unemployed, homeless and destitute. The compassion and immediate practical aid it offered then has been its hallmark ever since. Last year it received around 3,000 calls for help, provided more than 20,000 nights of accommodation and put an average of four people a month through successful detox.

CEO Dr Hugh Milroy said, “The nature of our work has not changed; we are the Accident and Emergency unit of the Veterans world and those who come to us are in crisis. But although the problems have not changed, the solutions have. This charity has gone far beyond the concept of handouts and welfare to create an operational model based on the addressing of individual needs. The variety of support we offer is limited only by imagination and resources and, thanks to the help of our supporters and wonderful patron Lady Rothermere, we are able to do more and more. Every day we transform lives by providing people with the tools to rebuild old lives and sustain new ones.

This concert resonates poignantly with who we are and what we have been doing for veterans of all ages for 82 years. It is heart-warming to be the beneficiary of such generosity.”
http://www.veterans-aid.net/



About The Lady R Foundation

The Lady R Foundation was founded in 2009 by The Dowager Viscountess Rothermere to give a voice to those who have no voice, through lack of education, opportunity, illness or having been ostracised in their community.

Since its inception, the Foundation has managed a number of high profile events for the causes it supports. In May 2010, The Lady R Foundation took the Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Vladimir Ashkenazy, to Sorokdo Island, Korea, where they performed for the Hansen’s patients and staff at the National Sorokdo Hospital. The event was attended by a number of Korean and foreign dignitaries, including the then Prime Minister of The Republic of Korea, HE Dr Chung Un-Chan and it received substantial media attention. In January 2013, a concert and dinner was held in London by The Lady R Foundation at St John’s Smith Square to raise awareness of, and support for, Veterans Aid and in spring 2013 Lady Rothermere became the patron of Veterans Aid.

As well as organising various fundraising events, the Foundation has been responsible for gaining planning permission for a memorial to the Korean War to be built in central London and on 5th November 2013, South Korea’s President Park Geun-hye was joined by HRH The Duke of Cambridge at a ceremony to break ground for the memorial as part of her State Visit. Often called the ‘Forgotten War’ the memorial was long overdue and greatly desired by the Korean veterans, to serve as a permanent reminder of the sacrifices made by British troops during the war and, importantly, as a place for Korean veterans and future generations to go to remember.
http://www.theladyrfoundation.org

Veterans Aid welcomes Ashcroft Transition Report

BFBS interview

Veterans Aid welcomes the publication of the Ashcroft Report today and its conclusion that members of the Armed Forces generally make a good transition to civilian life.

CEO Dr hugh Milroy said,"We are utterly fed up of seeing ex-Servicemen and women portrayed as inflexible, institutionalised individuals who are unable to cope with the demands of ordinary life.

"Adapting to change is something the military are particularly adept at and the myth that they 'return' to the 'real world', unable to function or integrate, has done them no favours.

"Certainly there are individuals who have benefited hugely from the structure of military life, especially younger people with no strong domestic support base or educational qualifications, but to make a causal between service and post discharge foundering is illogical."

Lord Ashcroft’s principal recommendations are as follows:

• The MOD and the Armed Forces should be more proactive in changing perceptions of Service Leavers. Lord Ashcroft’s research has found that most people think it is common for those leaving the Forces to have been physically, mentally or emotionally damaged by their Service career. This view is mistaken and has the effect of restricting Service Leavers’ prospects in civilian life.

• A new work placement scheme should be created in partnership with industry, to give Service Leavers practical experience of civilian work. This would replace the current system of resettlement training courses. The Career Transition Partnership should also be given a direct incentive for job finding, such as payment by results, which ensures sufficient attention is paid to the more junior and less qualified, of whom there will be larger numbers once the full resettlement package is made available to all Service Leavers. New structures in the MOD and an employers’ Council will greatly improve employment prospects.

• Early Service Leavers should get the same transition support as longer serving personnel, including a personal career consultant and advice on CV preparation provided by the Career Transition Partnership. Those leaving with less than four years service – who may have completed tours in places like Afghanistan – are the most likely to be unemployed and to have a range of other problems, but the full resettlement service is currently available only to those who have served six years or more (plus those being made redundant and the Wounded, Injured and Sick). All Service Leavers who have completed basic training should receive the full resettlement package.

• A new Veterans’ Card should be given to all Service Leavers with the number and web address of a singe 24/7 contact centre for Forces charities. This would replace the confusing array of information that currently exists, and ensure that those who need help can find it straight away without having to make several calls or being passed from one organisation to another. The Veterans’ Card could also be the basis of a discount or loyalty scheme in partnership with business.

• All personnel should complete an online Personal Development Plan, beginning at the end of basic training, detailing the individual’s education, skills and achievements, a plan to achieve long term career aspirations, and education on life skills including housing and financial management. This would promote take-up of the many educational opportunities available in the Forces and ultimately make for a smoother and more successful transition.

Veterans Aid receives more than 3,000 calls for help each year from veterans of all ages with periods of service ranging from a few days to many years. 

Many have never been deployed operationally or served overseas and almost all who seek the charity's help attribute their problems to financial, domestic or personal problems.

When these lead to crisis - alcoholism, substance abuse, unemployment or homelessness - they find their way to Veterans Aid. "Thankfully while their problems are acute, their numbers as small" insists Dr Milroy. "Most veterans are robust, reliable individuals whose lives have been enhanced by the experience of military life."

See THE TIMES

Lord Ashcroft

Deborah Haynes Defence Editor

Published at 6:00AM, February 11 2014

COMMENT: Lies, damned lies & homelessness statistics.

 The Bullshit Detector - CLICK TO READ REPORT

It's not often that we showcase a report about the numbers of homeless veterans in Britain without a collective sigh of despair, but this is that rare exception. It first appeared on July 2013 in The Bullshit Detector and is resurrected here now because Veterans Aid is still regularly fielding calls from individuals who believe that 'nothing is done for veterans' and that vast numbers of them (as a result of their military service!) are being forced into homelessness.

Our archive of published  reports and reportage - based often on tales told to gullible journalists, those driving campaigns or just the well-meaning uninformed - reveals a catalogue of inconsistency, exaggeration and nonsense. 

No wonder then that the response of everyone from members of the public to senior politicians is one of outrage, that  new charities are proliferating and that misplaced passion about scare stories is deflecting people from the real issues.

So thank you, Jeremy Swain, for using the platform of The Bullshit Detector to  echo our frustration.

COMMENTS: VA support for Foreign & Commonwealth service personnel acknowledged as Bill gets Third Reading

House of Commons debates - Friday 17 January 2014

VA's work in championing the cause of Foreign & Commonwealth service and ex-service personnel often appears to take place below the radar but today, at the Third Reading of Jonathan Lord's Private Members Bill calling for anomalies to be addressed, it was clearly acknowledged.

Citizenship (Armed Forces) Bill - Third Reading

"The Bill enables us to remove the disadvantage faced by those forces and ex-forces personnel who happened to be outside the United Kingdom serving their country on day one of the five-year qualifying period for naturalisation. The Bill gives the Home Secretary the necessary discretion to overlook the current requirement in schedule 1 to the British Nationality Act 1981. The hon. Member for Croydon North (Mr Reed) asked whether the Bill is retrospective, and it is to that extent. Once the Bill is enacted, for anyone applying for naturalisation we will look back five years to what they were doing at that time, and the Bill will enable the Home Secretary to use her discretion, where appropriate, to overlook absences for service. The Bill will benefit people as soon as it gets on to the statute book. We will not have to wait five years for it to kick in, which is very helpful."  - The Minister for Immigration (Mr Mark Harper):

For full text see: Citizenship (Armed Forces) Bill




Extracts:

Guy Opperman:

Anything that implements the military covenant, as this Bill does in a small but significant way, is a very good thing. What is the attitude of the various armed forces charities, which we all support, be it the Royal British Legion, Help for Heroes or Veterans Aid? What is their approach to the Bill?

The Minister for Immigration (Mr Mark Harper): 
The other organisation, already mentioned by my hon. Friend the Member for Hexham, is Veterans Aid, which warmly welcomes the change. Veterans Aid works for a range of former service personnel, and it works very hard for those who have had mental illness. I worked closely with the organisation when I was a shadow Defence Minister, and it works closely with foreign and Commonwealth personnel who have fallen foul of the system. Indeed, I met Dr Hugh Milroy, the organisation’s excellent chief executive, just yesterday to talk through some of the issues, and he has a very close working relationship both with my officials and with officials in the Ministry of Defence. Veterans Aid does excellent casework to support former members of our armed forces, both British citizens and foreign and Commonwealth personnel.

COMMENT: In caring for our veterans, where does the buck stop?

While most of the nation was literally doing 'cold turkey and chocolate overload' two thought-provoking items appeared in The Times.

From the illustrious Thunderer column CEO of Veterans Aid Dr Hugh Milroy once again called for the creation of a Department of Veterans Affairs and  Military Covenant with effective 'teeth'!

THE TIMES: Thursday, December 26th, 2013.

THUNDERER: Dr Hugh Milroy

See link.

THE TIMES: Thursday, December 26th, 2013.

Deborah Haynes, Defence Editor

See link.

COMMENT: Hostel of Hope

Never are the 'haves' and 'have nots' more polarised than at Christmas. Those lucky enough to have  warm homes and large TVs are reminded, relentlessly, over the holiday period how many charities are out there, seeking support, donations and help to raise awareness of their work. Images of starvation, privation and deprivation punctuate feelgood festive viewing, reminding everyone how lucky they are.

Veterans Aid doesn't advertise much - but it's happy to share the news that Christmas Day at its own East London hostel, New Belvedere House,  was a warm and happy event. An eye-wateringly lavish feast of turkey, ham, pork, puddings, fruit and sweets was served up on  former Beatle Ringo Starr's old snooker table, Santa stopped off at every room and gifts from friends and supporters piled up high. Many of the men for whom this place is a temporary home once slept on the streets. Hopefully none of them will ever need to again.Never moreso than at Christmas is there evidence that Veterans Aid is a place of hope.