The Royal British Legion
Poppy Support Poppy Support is the name for the Legion’s comprehensive range of welfare services for serving and ex-Service people and their families. These services include: Poppy Funds Each year the Legion distributes some £17 million in grants to serving and ex-Service people in need. The Immediate Needs Scheme provides much-needed funds in an emergency. Further grants are made to fund items such as electrically powered wheelchairs, mobility aids, property repairs etc. Small Business Loans are also available to those returning to ‘Civvy Street’ who need help getting a new business off the ground. Poppy Advice In the last year the Legion’s Pensions & Disability Service has advised around 20,000 Armed Forces personnel and veterans on their War Pension claim and given free representation at some 2,000 pension appeal cases. It also helps the disabled and the disadvantaged to fight for what is rightfully theirs. Last year the Legion provided more than 1,000 Service leavers with careers advice too. Poppy Homes The Legion provides full nursing care for some 400 ex-Service people and their dependants in its seven Poppy Homes around the country. Residents are provided with 24-hour care by a dedicated team of registered nurses and care assistants. Two of our homes also offer dementia care and a range of rehabilitative services such as physiotherapy and hydrotherapy. Poppy Travel Remembrance Travel and Travel and Learn give serving and ex-Service people, war widow(er)s, new Army recruits and school children the opportunity to visit war cemeteries, memorials and battlefields worldwide. Destinations range from Belgium to Burma and France to the Falklands. Poppy Breaks We have four Poppy Break Centres for those recovering from an illness or bereavement, located in some of the country’s most popular, traditional seaside resorts. Last year more than 3,700 people benefited from a two-week Poppy Break. Poppy People Volunteers, or Poppy People, are the lifeblood of the Legion. The annual Poppy Appeal is completely reliant on the support of its 300,000 volunteer Poppy Collectors. There are also 4,000 Volunteer Caseworkers who offer support to ex-Service people and their families in the local community. Hospital and Housebound Visitors bring friendship and companionship to those who often have no contact with the rest of the community. New Poppy Support Services The new Poppy Calls service aims to help give veterans and members of the ex-service community the freedom to stay independent in their own homes and is now being piloted in Suffolk and Lincolnshire, with a view to expanding nationally by 2009. Contact www.britishlegion.org.uk
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