Organisations and programmes awarded the Aged Veterans Fund (AVF)
| Organisation | Project name | Description | £ Grant awarded (total value: £29 400 761) |
| Grants awarded in 2016 | |||
| The Royal British Legion | Aged Veterans Healthy Living Programme | Eleven projects to increase understanding of the impact of ageing on veterans and their families. They used the AVF to seed fund developing projects with the potential for contributing to better outcomes for older veterans, and help projects with proven effectiveness to be extended and operate at greater scale. | £1 million |
| Somme Nursing Home, Northern Ireland | The Centenary Wing | The AVF grant contributed towards the development of the Centenary Wing in Belfast to develop capacity for veterans in Northern Ireland. It will support aged veterans to continue living at home as long as possible, and to provide permanent care when this is no longer possible including palliative end of life care where appropriate. | £600 000 |
| Blind Veterans UK | Support to those who have lost their sight, hearing or mobility | This portfolio supported aged veterans that have lost their sight and also experiencing the loss of their hearing and mobility. | £709 996 |
| Nuclear Community Charity Fund | Nuclear Community Charity Fund— Making the Difference | Five projects to promote and deliver education, research and support relating to the heritage, health and well-being of atomic veterans, their spouses and offspring of the nuclear survivor community, principally in the UK. The projects include physical and mental health research, welfare and well-being service delivery, evaluation and education. | £999 970 |
| Age UK Support Services (Yorkshire and Humber) | Mission Possible: Active Service in Later Life | Six projects to develop and extend the services and activities. Using a person-centred approach, it developed new activities and forums appropriate to the needs specific to older veterans engaging veterans in their development. The project also funded a two-stage overall evaluation by the KHC Consulting. | £539 980 |
| St John and Red Cross Defence Medical Welfare Service | Greater Manchester Armed Forces Families Integrated Health and Well-being | This project sought to create an integrated care model to provide better customer experience and outcomes, less confusion and cost-savings. Defence Medical Welfare Services worked with the Greater Manchester local authorities, NHS Trusts and Armed Forces charities to promote services and ensure beneficiaries were identified and engaged. | £948 264 |
| Royal Air Force (RAF) Benevolent Fund | Loneliness and Social Isolation Outreach Services for Aged RAF Veterans | Three linked projects based around Princess Marina House, a respite home for aged RAF veterans and their adult dependants on the West Sussex coast, with a vision of maximising the reach and impact of Princess Marina House as the national, focal centre for aged RAF veterans. | £757 480 |
| Music in Hospitals | Heroes in Harmony | This delivered 1200 live music sessions in UK care homes. The outcomes indicated positive social, health and well-being, with musical skills and musical tastes appearing to be present long after the capacity for conversation and aspects of the individual’s personality have faded. For each concert, local elderly veterans and their families were invited. | £402 400 |
| Royal Naval Association | iPad for RNA members | iPads were provided for socially isolated naval veterans. This helped 1500 veterans by providing iPads, broadband for 2 years, training, support and the funds to manage the project. | £650 000 |
| Grants awarded in 2017 | |||
| Age UK | Joining Forces | Age UK, working with Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA) delivered a strategic portfolio of person-centred support in 15 different local and regional settings, which enabled testing, evaluating and sharing effective approaches to improving older veterans’ quality of life and well-being. The project also funded an overall evaluation by the University of Bath. | £4 397 146 |
| PoppyScotland | Unforgotten Forces: Supporting Scotland’s Ageing Troops | This included advice provision, support for those on the NHS pathway with transport being provided to appointments. Loneliness and isolation were tackled through befriending, respite breaks, a newly created day centre and entertainment and therapeutic programmes in care homes. | £3 981 756 |
| The Royal British Legion | Legion Healthy Living Portfolio | This involved researching the cause and consequence of poor health and well-being; exploring what can be done to reduce and prevent problems in later life and providing coordinated, practical advice and support in aged veterans’ homes and communities. The project also funded an independent evaluation. | £4 850 899 |
| The Nuclear Community Charities Fund | Making That Difference | Deliver education, research and support activities to ease suffering, increase well-being and enhance social inclusion of the community of British Atomic Veterans and their families. The project also funded original research on genetic alteration in veterans from historical nuclear weapons testing by Brunel University. | £4 999 229 |
| Cornwall RCC | Cornwall and Plymouth Veterans Combined Support | This partnership offered a holistic service to improve access to health and social care support, improve their IT skills, reduce their energy costs and offer them opportunities to meet new people and learn new skills. The project also funded a formative and summative overall evaluation including Social Return of investments (SROI) by Rose Regeneration. | £574 204 |
| Community First Yorkshire | Veterans Advance North Yorkshire—we have got your back | The project intended to raise the profile of older veterans across North Yorkshire. It offered support for health, well-being and social care needs—responding to their requests for practical help, social activities and friendship on a countywide level. The project including SROI assessment. | £1 004 664 |
| St John and Red Cross Defence Medical Welfare Service | Integrated Health and Well-being: Herefordshire and Nottinghamshire | Health and well-being support and activities to aged veterans, their families and carers. Partnership projects would aimed to increase skills to support those with dementia, reduce social isolation and enable independent living. | £796 284 |
| Age Cymru | Project 360° | Age Cymru worked with Age Alliance Wales and the volunteer group Woody’s Lodge to ensure the right support is given to aged veterans through a 360° provision based on the specific needs of the individual. | £940 082 |
| Seafarers UK | Defining the Needs and Assisting UK Aged Merchant Navy Veterans | An examination of the health and social care needs of UK aged merchant navy veterans through research, community-based case work and the provision of dedicated supported housing. The intent was to produce a definitive profile of the wider welfare needs of Aged Merchant Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary veterans. | £943 930 |
| Hospice UK | Hospice care— improving the well- being and quality of life of aged veterans | This project extended hospice care to aged veterans and their families, and forged new partnerships with organisations serving veterans in three communities in England. Three projects to reducing social isolation and enhancing well-being by assisting veterans to develop new relationships, engage in peer support and share camaraderie with comrades. | £304 467 |
NHS, National Health Service.