Veterans’ charity Launchpad has been awarded the silver award from the Ministry of Defence (MoD) Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) for demonstrating its commitment and support to Defence and the wider Armed Forces community.

Launchpad is one of 56 businesses that has secured the silver award. The scheme encompasses bronze, silver, and gold awards for employer organisations that pledge, demonstrate or advocate support to Defence and the armed forces community, and align their values with the Armed Forces Covenant.

Launchpad was awarded the bronze award in February 2021 and has continued to demonstrate its commitment to the military community. The charity provides accommodation and support, with the help of specialist providers, to support homeless veterans who have fallen on hard times and have found the transition from military to civilian life difficult.

To strive for Silver recognition, Launchpad has:

• Employed 14 Defence people including reservists and veterans.
• Enabled reservists to apply for up to 15 days special leave of absence to attend training and courses with the reserve forces.
• Continued to support resident veterans living in all three houses in Liverpool, Newcastle and Durham with housing, health and wellbeing and employment opportunities as part of their transition to move on and live independently.
• Engaged with other military charities, the Armed Forces and an extensive network of corporate partners to promote and support veterans and reservists.

Nicola Higham, Deputy Manager at Launchpad’s Speke House in Liverpool said;

“Through my five years’ service at the Army Reserves, I have been fully supported by Launchpad and can adjust my working hours if necessary. Each year, I’m granted 15 days paid leave entitlement for my annual camp. Without the support of Launchpad, I would not be able to offer my service in the capacity that I do.”

David Shaw, CEO and Founder of Launchpad, commented:

“This is fantastic news and we are delighted to receive this silver award in recognition for our commitment and support to the Armed Forces and the veterans we have supported since we were founded in 2013. Veterans and reservists are a fundamental part of our expanding workforce and I’m proud this has been recognised.”

Commenting on the announcement of the 2023 Employer Recognition Scheme Silver awards; Assistant Chief of Defence Staff (Reserve & Cadets), Major General Marc Overton said: “I would like to thank and congratulate the recipients of this year’s Employer Recognition Scheme Silver Awards. A Silver award recognises the fantastic efforts of employers throughout the UK who have both elevated their commitments under the Armed Forces Covenant and provided actual benefits to the Armed Forces Community.

“The winners should all be proud of their life-changing impact and fresh opportunities they are providing to our Reservists, veterans and their families. The number of winners this year yet again shows that the Armed Forces family talent pool is also providing tangible business benefit.”

Colonel Mark Underhill OBE DL, Chief Executive at the North West of England and the Isle of Man Reserve Forces’ and Cadets’ Association (NW RFCA) and a Trustee of Launchpad, said:

“On behalf of the Ministry of Defence, we are honoured and delighted to be able to recognise the outstanding support and commitment given to the Armed Forces Covenant by businesses and organisations in the region, through the Employer Recognition Scheme awards. Each recipient has demonstrated their support to the Covenant and the wider Armed Forces community, but also that they are prepared to support their Reservists, Service Leavers, Spouses, Veterans, Cadet Force Adult Volunteers and Cadets in the workplace.”

Launchpad runs three houses in the North of England providing accommodation and support for up to 100 veterans. Since 2013, over 620 veterans have been supported across all three houses in Liverpool, Newcastle and Durham.

The full list of businesses achieving the Silver Award can be viewed here.

For most veterans, the transition from the military to civilian life is smooth, however, some feel strong emotions that might stem from operational experiences or when going through such marked transition. These might include anger, fear, worry, and sadness when they return home.

Anxiety can reveal itself through both physical and emotional symptoms, so it is important to manage and improve feelings of anxiety and prevent them from developing into a more serious mental health problem.

The theme for this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week (15-21 May) is ‘anxiety’ and veterans’ charity Launchpad is backing a campaign by the Mental Health Foundation to raise awareness with its veterans and encourage them to speak out and share their experiences of anxiety.

Launchpad provides an extensive range of accommodation and services, with the help of specialist providers, to support homeless veterans who have fallen on hard times and have found the transition from military to civilian life difficult.

Each year, the charity encourages residents to complete an annual survey which helps to track the progress of support and the services it delivers to veterans across a wide range of measures including skills, employability, self-confidence, and optimism.

In its latest survey (2023), 64 veterans completed the survey with 61% reporting they couldn’t get the help they needed before arriving at Launchpad while 56% said they felt there was nobody or organisation to help them while 35% said they felt abandoned by the country they served. All of these feelings and experiences lead to loneliness and anxiety.

In the same survey, residents are asked how they feel after living in one of Launchpad’s three houses in Newcastle, Liverpool and Durham. 95% agreed they received help they couldn’t get elsewhere, 95% agreed they felt better about themselves and their wellbeing and 90% felt more optimistic about life.

As part of the campaign, experienced staff from Launchpad will be raising awareness to encourage veterans to have confidence in talking about any feelings of anxiety and to understand support is available should they need it.

Kate Riley, Specialist Case Worker at Launchpad’s Speke House in Liverpool, said:

“Many of Launchpad’s residents have mental health issues, ranging from anxiety to service and non-service-related PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder).

“Part of my role is to help residents with their mental health and provide one-to-one support. We always support campaigns such as Mental Health Awareness Week and we encourage residents to talk about problems they are experiencing and to take part in activities that will support and improve their mental health and wellbeing.

 

“It’s important residents feel confident in speaking to me or any other member of staff about how they feel. It’s better to be open and let them get it off their chest rather than just build it up and feeling more anxious.

 

“We’ll be raising awareness of the campaign throughout the week and have organised some activities to encourage the residents to get involved so they feel they can talk to us. This includes breakfast with information on mental health and anxiety, a walk along the beach at Crosby and we’ll be holding a group workshop with therapists to focus on anxiety and mental health and mindfulness.”

Alexa Charnley, Director of Fundraising and Communications at the Mental Health Foundation, said:

“We all experience anxiety but sometimes it can get out of control and become a mental health problem. However, there are things we can do to manage feelings of anxiety and stop them becoming overwhelming. For example, breathing exercises, physical activity, speaking to a trusted friend, or keeping a diary. You can find more information and guidance on our website mentalhealth.org.uk.

 

“This Mental Health Awareness Week we’re encouraging everyone to get involved by sharing their experiences of anxiety and the things that help with the hashtag #ToHelpMyAnxiety. We hope people all over the UK will take part and help us to normalise conversations about anxiety and mental health. We hope the week helps people to feel more confident in talking about anxiety and how it affects them. Most importantly, we hope people understand more about what they can do to manage anxiety and what other support is available.”

For more information about this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week, please visit mentalhealth.org.uk/mhaw or join the conversation on social media using #ToHelpMyAnxiety and #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek

We are looking forward to celebrating the King’s Coronation this weekend. We have activities and events organised in all three houses for our residents to enjoy.

As part of our 10th anniversary celebrations, we’ve organised a celebratory dinner on 27 October to be held in the Great Hall at the Discovery Museum in Newcastle.

Launchpad exists to provide vital accommodation and support to homeless and unemployed people who have served in the UK’s Armed Forces to help them rebuild their lives.

We help veterans to address their challenges and make a successful transition to civilian life. We can accommodate up to 101 veterans across three houses in Newcastle, Liverpool and Durham. In just 10 years, we have supported over 625 homeless veterans and on average, 61% of veterans we support successfully move on to new accommodation and 41% find paid employment.

The dinner will help us to raise money and awareness to support the vital work we provide to support veterans experiencing homelessness.

To book your place or to find out more information, please contact Craig Downs on [email protected] 

Thank you for supporting our veterans!

We are pleased to publish our Impact Report for the financial year ending June 2022. To view a copy, please click here.

During this year, we supported 120 veterans across all three houses. 89% of those from homelessness, 81% with mental health issues and 70% from long-term unemployment.

Our major development this year has been the purchase of Hollyacre House in Sacriston, Durham. This becomes our third house, enabling us to provide 101 flats to veterans and their partners across the North of England.

We’d like to thank the many funding organisations and volunteers that have and continue to support Launchpad. We’d also like to thank our wonderful staff, who, without them, means we couldn’t deliver the fantastic services we do to support our resident veterans.

Veteran residents living at Launchpad’s Avondale House in Newcastle have praised the work of two Occupational Therapy students.

Northumbria University students, Natalie Norman and Georgina Aplin, have been working at the house as part of a 10-week work placement which is a requirement of their degree. Both students are in the final year of a two-year apprenticeship course for a BSc Occupational Therapy degree.

They have been engaging with residents living at the house, which provides accommodation and support to veterans who have found the transition from the military to civilian life difficult.

For most veterans, the transition is smooth but some find it difficult to resettle and have faced challenges such as homelessness, poverty, mental and physical health issues, addictions, broken families and unemployment.

In the first couple of weeks, Natalie and Georgina took time to gain trust and build relationships with the residents and to find out what they wanted. They then developed a programme of activities which would engage and support the veterans with their mental health and wellbeing.

Residents have participated in weekly breakfast clubs, cooking classes where they have been refreshing their maths skills by using slow cookers to learn how to cook, gardening and outdoor walks. These activities have helped to develop their social interaction skills and their ability to function using daily living skills which they will require when they leave the house to move on to live independently.

Paul, one of the residents at Avondale House said he wouldn’t normally engage or interact in these types of activities but gained trust in Natalie and Georgina and is really pleased to have been able to participate in some of the activities, especially the walk around Bolam Lake and the cooking classes with the slow cookers.

Jonathan agrees. He said: “It gets me out of the house. It’s good to have other people come into the house and organise activities for the residents.”

Both Natalie and Georgina work as OT assistants within their jobs but are part of the first cohort of students to complete the course within two years (normally three), which requires them to complete two 10-week work placements – providing them with practical experience in a contemporary health and care environment.

Natalie works within the aids and adaptations team within Adult Social Care at Gateshead Council while Georgina works in the Gateshead Community Team Learning Disability Team, part of Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust.

Commenting on the last 10 weeks, Natalie, said:

“The residents we have met have been really engaging and open with us. Some residents engaged well from the first week and others began joining groups and engaging individually as the placement went on. We have learned so much from the residents and feel really grateful they gave us their time while we have been here.”

Georgina commented:

“We have gained a lot of knowledge and experience of working with the veterans who have complex needs. We are grateful to them and the staff at Launchpad for giving us this opportunity and we hope some of the activities and initiatives we’ve put in place will continue after we have left.”

90% of the veterans who arrive at Launchpad are homeless and are supported for up to two years (longer if necessary). Now in its tenth year of operation, the charity provides accommodation and support, with the help of specialist providers, to support homeless veterans who have fallen on hard times and have found the transition from military to civilian life difficult.

Avondale House provides accommodation for 33 veterans and their partners and since 2013, over 620 veterans have been supported across all three houses in Liverpool, Newcastle and Durham.