VETERANS across Worcestershire are set to benefit from a £300,000 grant as part of a new employment support project.
The ‘Remember Veterans’ scheme will provide veterans with a new referral and helpline service, peer support, help to access training, employment support and more.
West Mercia Police and Crime Commissioner John Campion has been awarded £299,840 from the Armed Forces Covenant for the project, which will be delivered across West Mercia, and also in partnership with the Warwickshire PCC Philip Seccombe over the next two years.
Mr Campion said: “Military personnel dedicate their careers to protecting our country, so it is absolutely right that we show the same dedication to them once they leave the forces.
“This funding from the Armed Forces Covenant will help ensure that veterans across West Mercia get better help to reintegrate into civilian society and avoid the potential for repeat offending and a life spent inside the criminal justice system.”
As the current chairman of the Warwickshire Army Benevolent Fund and having spent 25 years with the Territorial Army, Warwickshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Philip Seccombe is all too aware of the difficulties servicemen and women can experience in adjusting to civilian life once their military career has ended.
He said: “For some it can be a downwards spiral, leaving them both vulnerable to becoming victims of crime and also to becoming an offender. I am delighted therefore that the Remember Veterans initiative has been awarded this funding and that the scheme will be operating in Warwickshire as well as West Mercia.
“It has the potential to make a very real difference to the lives of our veterans, reducing reoffending and making our communities safer.”
The project will be officially launched at Hindlip on Friday (July 22).
