Two resident veterans from Launchpad’s Speke House in Liverpool joined fundraiser Gary Perriton on the final few miles of his gruelling 650-mile solo bike ride of the entire Welsh coastline on Friday (29th Oct).

Gary, from Llangollen in Wales, started his journey from Chepstow on Monday 18 October and completed his challenge outside Chester Cathedral on Friday afternoon.

The aim of his challenge was to raise awareness of homeless veterans and funds for his two chosen charities, Launchpad and The Royal British Legion.

Both veterans who joined Gary were previously homeless until they found Launchpad, which provides accommodation and support to veterans to help them stabilise their lives and make a successful transition from military to civilian life. The charity has two houses in Liverpool and Newcastle upon Tyne and have supported over 525 veterans since it opened in 2013.

The veterans, who were accompanied by members of staff from Launchpad, met Gary at Flint Castle and cycled with him on his final few miles into Chester. They cycled on bikes that Launchpad purchased thanks to funding secured by BFBS (British Forces Broadcasting Service), as part of its annual Big Salute campaign.

Gary, a Royal Navy Reservist who served 34 years in the Royal Navy, battled winds of up to 50mph, horizontal rain and hailstones but was pleased to see the finish line and successfully complete his challenge.

Gary who cycled up to 60 miles per day, said:

“The aim of the challenge was to raise vital funds and awareness for two very worthy causes. No veteran should be homeless. For most veterans, leaving the armed forces is smooth but more often than not, those few who can’t resettle easily face challenges such as homelessness, poverty, mental and physical health issues, addictions, broken families and unemployment.

“It was great to join up with some of the residents and staff from Speke House for the last 15 miles or so into Chester and it felt great to see the cathedral as the finish line!

“This challenge has given me a lot of time to think and is really close to me especially with Remembrance Day in two weeks’ time. Thank you to everyone who has donated, their kind words of encouragement and provided their generous hospitality and friendship along the route.”

David Shaw, CEO and co-founder of Launchpad, said:

“This is a fantastic achievement, well done Gary. On behalf of everyone at Launchpad, I’d like to say that we really appreciate his endeavour and to thank donors who have supported him and the charities. I’m sure he has also raised awareness of the difficulties some veterans face when they leave the military. I am sure it was a great experience for our residents to join him on Friday.”

Gary has raised over £2,500 and you can still make a donation via his Just Giving page at: www.justgiving.com/fundraising/garyperritoncycle

To help boost his funds, he is also auctioning a few items including a Liverpool FC shirt signed by Sir Kenny Dalglish, a Cardiff Blues shirt signed by the team, a game of golf for four at Vale of Llangollen golf course and a vintage bottle of port. The auction will close on Sunday 7 November and more information is in the Just Giving link.

We’re delighted to announce a new partnership with Gateshead Football Club Foundation.

The club has very kindly agreed to work with Launchpad to raise awareness of the service we provide to our veterans, in particular at Avondale House in Byker, Newcastle upon Tyne.

Launchpad will be the main sponsors of the match to be played on Saturday 13 November vs Alfreton Town.

Phil Thompson, Manager of Avondale House, said:

“We’re delighted to be working in partnership with Gateshead FC Foundation and would like to take this opportunity to thank them for allowing Launchpad to be the main sponsors of their game against Alfreton Town. The match is also pertinent as it falls on the same weekend as Remembrance Sunday.”

Gateshead Football Club Foundation aims to be a leading community charity building better lives through sport. They use the power of sport to provide meaningful education, employability, health, inclusion, environmental, and sport programmes.

Gary Perriton is now halfway through his gruelling 650-mile solo cycling challenge to help raise funds for Launchpad and raise awareness of homeless veterans.

Gary from Llangollen in Wales, set off from Chepstow in South Wales last Monday (18 October) and has cycled along the Welsh coastline via Brigend, Carmarthen, St Davids via Temby & Pembroke, Aberaeron, Barmouth and Abersoch.

He set off on week two this morning from Abersock and will continue heading northbound to Caernarfon via Aberaeron, Holyhead, Menai, Abergele and is expected to finish in Chester this Friday.

He is also halfway to reaching his fundraising target of £2,000. Thank you to everyone who has donated so far!

You can support Gary’s challenge via his Just Giving page at: www.justgiving.com/fundraising/garyperritoncycle

Launchpad was invited to attend the BITA networking lunch held at Liverpool FC’s Anfield Football stadium on Friday.

The British and Irish Trading Alliance (BITA) is a non-profit professional networking organisation which encourages a vibrant community of businesses to invest in each other’s success.

Numerous events are held nationally and Launchpad was invited to attend and make a presentation in front of an audience at this month’s Liverpool event.

Launchpad’s CEO, David Shaw and Sam Jackson, Manager of Speke House, attended on behalf of the charity and spoke about veterans and Launchpad to over 150 delegates which included representatives from many different industries including construction, tech, professional services and hospitality.

It gave Launchpad a platform to raise awareness of the important work we do to support our veterans by engaging with national and local businesses who may be able to support the charity in future.

Event organisers very kindly arranged for a Liverpool FC football shirt, personally signed by former player and manager Sir Kenny Dalglish, to be auctioned on the day which raised a staggering £1,500 for Launchpad.

David Shaw commented:

“I’d like to thank BITA for inviting Launchpad to their networking lunch and it was a wonderful opportunity to brief a room full of professional organisations in person rather than online! We hope they understand better our work to help those relatively few veterans who need support to get into independent living and employment. It was really encouraging to speak to delegates who also expressed an interest in supporting the work we do.”

BITA host networking, educational and social events online and in venues across the UK and Ireland. For more information, please visit: www.bita.ie

Launchpad was established to support veterans from all British services.

We provide high quality accommodation and targeted support, with the help of specialist partners, to help them stabilise their lives and make a successful transition from military to civilian life.

Around 90% of the veterans who arrive at Launchpad are homeless and we have supported over 525 veterans within our two houses in Newcastle and Liverpool since 2013.

Of course, for most veterans, the transition from the armed forces to civilian life is smooth but, those few who can’t resettle easily, face challenges such as homelessness, poverty, mental and physical health issues, addictions, broken families and unemployment.

Without charities and organisations such as ourselves that provide essential support services to our veterans, where would they turn to to get the vital help they need if funding for these services stopped?

Evidence suggests that veterans are reluctant to engage in mainstream services. But, if Government funding to provide these services is cut, it may put veterans in a difficult position where they will have to choose between engaging in a mainstream homelessness service or not engaging at all.

This is why Launchpad, alongside Riverside, Stoll and Alabaré, have written to Chancellor Rishi Sunak demanding the provision of new funding to the tune of £5.5M over two years to maintain support services to veterans including counselling, training and support for people with PTSD and problems with substance or alcohol misuse.

Although we will all continue to provide essential accommodation for homeless veterans, cuts to Government funding will inevitably mean additional mental health support services provided by Riverside, Stoll and Alabaré may have to stop.

It’s not the first time we’ve campaigned together, we submitted a funding policy paper to Government outlining the social benefit provided by our organisations and the need for Government support in the face of other Government funding pressures that were being applied in the sector.

Launchpad operates a different financial model from the other three organisations. 60% of our income is collected through Housing Benefit and the remaining 40% is raised through grant-funding; this requires us to demonstrate to the funding bodies our effectiveness at helping our veterans. You can read about the impact and positive outcomes our service has on our residents via the following link: https://veteranslaunchpad.org.uk/outcomes/veterans-stories/

We engage fundraising experts to work with us to build relationships with our own contacts, with local authorities and Cobseo (The Confederation of Service Charities) veterans’ housing and support sector. We have secured funding from military charities such as the Veterans’ Foundation, the Royal British Legion, ABF The Soldiers’ Charity and the Armed Forces Covenant Fund. The remaining funds are raised from local fundraising and applying to non-military trusts and foundations.

So, although we are not wholly dependent on Government funding like the other three organisations, we support this campaign as we share similar values of beliefs that no veteran should be homeless and it is vital they are able to access the support they need to help them address their often, complex needs.

David Shaw, CEO and co-founder of Launchpad

A local cyclist is set to embark on a 650-mile solo bike ride to raise funds and awareness of homeless veterans.

Gary Perriton from Llangollen in Wales will set off from Chepstow in South Wales next Monday, 18 October and will cycle the entire Welsh coastline heading northbound to Chester, where he is expected to complete his fundraising challenge on Friday, 29 October.

The aim of the challenge is to raise awareness of homeless veterans and funds for his two chosen charities – Launchpad and the Royal British Legion.

Royal Navy Reservist Gary, served for 34 years in the Royal Navy across a number of military departments both in the support and operational environments. He served on the front line both at sea and on land and has been commended for his commitment throughout a varied and successful military career including appointments within NATO and FCO.

He left the Royal Navy in 2016 and moved into the civil nuclear sector as an engineering and security consultant before becoming a director of his own company, providing technology-based solutions across a range of sectors.

He is aiming to raise awareness of homeless veterans and vital funds for two worthy charities. Veterans’ charity Launchpad provides accommodation and support to veterans to help them stabilise their lives and make a successful transition from military to civilian life. The charity has two houses in Liverpool and Newcastle upon Tyne and Launchpad has supported over 525 veterans since it opened in 2013.

The Royal British Legion (RBL) has been celebrating its 100th Anniversary throughout 2021 with a special programme of activity, paying tribute to those who have contributed to its history and celebrating with the communities across the UK and around the world.

The RBL and Launchpad also work closely in partnership. The RBL refer veterans to Launchpad’s Speke House in Liverpool and have awarded grants to the charity and their residents. They have also contributed funding towards heating costs of the house and towards the salary of one of the support staff.

Keep fit enthusiast Gary who enjoys cycling, running and golf, said:

“I’ll be cycling approximately 60 miles per day on my own which is going to be both mentally and physically tough but, it’s all for a great cause.

 

“No veteran should be homeless. For most veterans, leaving the armed forces is smooth but more often than not, those few who can’t resettle easily face challenges such as homelessness, poverty, mental and physical health issues, addictions, broken families and unemployment.

 

“I hope to raise awareness of these challenges and to raise vital funds for two very worthy causes. It’s going to be a lonely few days but I’ve prepared well and I am looking forward to the road ahead. This challenge is really close to me and will be even more poignant in the lead up to Remembrance Day.”

David Shaw, CEO and co-founder of Launchpad, said:

“Gary has set himself a real challenge, cycling 650 miles of the entire Welsh coastline. We really appreciate his efforts and commitment to raise awareness of homeless veterans and to raise funds for Launchpad.

 

“Some of our resident veterans living at Speke House are hoping to join him on his last day as he sets off from Abergele. On behalf of myself, our Trustees, staff and all our residents, we wish him a safe and successful trip.”

You can support Gary’s challenge via his Just Giving page at: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/garyperritoncycle