Battle Back is a UK military initiative which uses Adventurous Training (AT) and sport in the aftercare of seriously injured Service personnel in order to aid their rehabilitation and return to an active life post rehab.and not a charity.
Launched on 28th July 2008, it is now well into its second year. The project is based on the work of Sir Ludwig Guttmann who back in 1948 created the first Stoke Mandeville Games specifically for WW II veterans with spinal cord injuries. Guttmann believed that sport was a vital part of therapy, a radical concept at the time, that helped individuals develop physical strength and self-respect.

The name "Battle Back" was coined in 2007 by a team looking at whether the British military could once more utilise existing sport programmes as an aid to rehabilitating the wounded. By incorporating the principles of Adventurous Training - the use of challenging outdoor activities and controlled exposure to risk to improve courage, leadership, fitness and team spirit - Battle Back provides a holistic view of rehabilitation through re-integration into a wider range of militarily relevant activities. It is a programme for all injured Service personnel, irrespective of how they were wounded, and complements the work done by the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre (DMRC) at Headley Court, Regional Rehab Units (RRUs) and Units with Platoon- or Company-level Recovery Teams.

Battle Back is important:

• because it provides seriously injured Servicemen the same Adventurous Training and Sport opportunities as their able-bodied colleagues;
• because the Armed Forces have a moral obligation to ensure that the aftercare of their wounded is of the highest possible standard; and
• because when first coming to terms with a life-changing injury, it is essential to understand what can be achieved - by focussing on ability rather than disability - which is vitally important for physical, psychological and social rehabilitation.

MoD: Battle Back

STUBS is a new charity which aims to 'demonstrate care and respect for UK armed services in an innovative way'.
It was set up by Jan and Craig Vassie and secured charitable status in April of this year.

The concept behind STUBS originated from a simple idea: that at most events there are more often than not a number of unsold tickets and that these could be put to a charitable use.......and who better to benefit than Britain's service personnel, especially those injured in the service of their country.

For some time the Vassies had been taking patients from Headley Court as their guests to home matches of the London WASPS rugby club and this lead to the club agreeing to pilot their scheme by donating 20 unsold tickets per home game to STUBS to distribute.

The principle aims of the organisation are:

to provide hospitality facilities at sports and cultural events for injured servicemen and women undergoing rehabilitation at DMRC Headley Court or UHB Selly Oak; and

to acquire and distribute event tickets to armed services veterans who would not otherwise be able to attend the event.

If you would like to support the scheme, visit the STUBS website at www.stubs.org.uk

Well done, Jan and Craig! Well done WASPS!

By this time next year the government intends to bring an end to BFPO operations in Europe.

The British Forces Post Office provides mail and Post Office counter services to Forces personnel and their families whilst serving outside Great Britain.

Using the BFPO means that, when members of Britain's Armed Forces are serving abroad, they have a postal address

which is recognised as being part of their own country - even when they are serving on the frontline. This may sound a small thing but in its way it is a link with the people, something that helps bind together those serving abroad with everybody else back home. It is also a long-established tradition going back over two hundred years to the time of the Peninsular War.

The cutting of this service will be a significant blow to families with loved ones based in Germany, Belgium, Gibraltar and elsewhere on mainland Europe as they will no longer have the same postal rates that apply within the UK and they will no longer have the confidence that their mail will be handled in a safe and secure manner.

A petition has been set up on the No.10 website to get the government to reconsider its decision to remove British Forces Post Offices from mainland Europe. If you would like to add your name to this petition visit:

http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/SaveBFPO

The MoD's Service Personnel Command Paper published in July 2008 expressed a commitment to introduce concessionary bus travel for injured service personnel in Great Britain - it was already operating in N. Ireland.

Having given the highly complex bus pass proposal some serious thought, bureaucrats at the MoD estimated that it would take them nearly three years to get the scheme off the ground. That's right: three years. Unbelievable, isn't it?

12 months down the line and something has started to happen, at least in Wales; the Welsh Assembly has agreed to begin negotiations with the MoD to extend their bus pass scheme to include injured soldiers.

That's the good news. The bad news is that the bureaucrats at the MoD have now to determine what type of injury will qualify for a free bus pass. These deliberations will take them at least another 18 months and therefore the Welsh Assembly is saying: "We hope to be in a position to complete this change by April 2011".

The Royal British Legion, almost with an audible sigh, say ".. it is not anything new as it was a commitment under the command paper issued in July, 2008"

This is the item in the Command Paper:
"2.29 Concessionary Bus Travel. By 1 April 2011, the statutory bus concession in England will be extended to include Service personnel and veterans under the age of 60, who were seriously injured in service and who are resident in England. A similar scheme already exists in Northern Ireland. Scottish Ministers will consider by April 2009 how to take forward this proposal as part of the three year review currently being carried out on the Scotland-wide Free Bus Scheme for Older and Disabled People. The Welsh Assembly Government is also undertaking a review of its concessionary fares scheme and this will include plans to extend eligibility to concessionary bus travel for Service personnel and veterans who were seriously injured in service."

Whenever I go on a bus these days, the only people travelling seem to be ones with bus passes. It surely can't be that difficult to extend this to include all those covered by the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme.

BBC: Free bus passes for forces plan
MoD: Service Personnel Command Paper 2008

The Army's first Recovery Centre for injured soldiers has opened in Edinburgh.

The state-of-the-art Army Recovery Centre, a dedicated 12 bed wing of the £8.6 million Erskine Edinburgh Home, is the result of a partnership between the Army, veterans charity Erskine, and Help for Heroes who together are providing accommodation and support for soldiers wounded or injured during duty.

The £8.6million convalescing centre at Erskine is part of a pilot scheme which, if successful, will be rolled out across the UK. The facility is being seen as a stepping stone where injured soldiers can get treatment, speed re-integration back into army life, work towards getting promotion or move on to civilian life.

The Recovery centre was opened by CGS General Richard Dannett, who said: "This scheme will enable a smooth transition back to duty or to civilian life for those who have suffered appalling injury in service of their country. We look forward to seeing this pathfinder scheme informing the development of this capability across the country." (I hope this dip into nuLabour-speak is part of a subtle plan by The General).

The Centre is named after Corporal Mark Wright GC of 3PARA who was postumously awarded his George Cross for an act of "the greatest gallantry and complete disregard for his own safety in striving to save others."

It must be good that injured soldiers are going to have their own dedicated medical facilities once more and not have to share wards with civilians.

Erskine: The UK's first Army Recovery Centre opens
BBC: Home for injured soldiers opens

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The Richmond Centre, a new combined Junior Ranks club and mess, has just been opened at Catterick Garrison. The complex includes a "super-diner", bar, internet café, shops and lounge and was delivered under Defence Estates' "key workstream", Project Slam (Single Living AccomModation) scheme.

As is customary these days, much of the management of the Richmond Centre and its facilities has been outsourced to number of private companies. In a similar vein, "stakeholders" (i.e. Junior Ranks) will have their meals served up in the Pay-As-You-Dine style.

Project Slam is a 10-year modernisation scheme started in 2001 with a £1billion budget. With 12,516 bedspaces already delivered by April 2009 and a further 6,000 in progress, the Project is proving a remarkable success given the MoD's track record on project management.

The Richmond Centre at Catterick sounds like a fine example of the quality facilities Project Slam aims to provide to UK Armed Forces.

MoD: Soldiers set to dine in style at Catterick Garrison
Defence Estates: Project Slam

Support Our Soldiers, famous for its work in sending thousands of goodie parcels out to the guys on the frontline, says that it is being overwhelmed at the moment by the number of people who want to show their support for the troops.

This is happening to come at a time when the MoD has asked for a temporary hold on the sending of welfare parcels out to the frontline to enable the free flow of essential supplies.

SOS has therefore come up with a new campaign: "9,000 Thanks". The aim is to send a thank-you note to every serviceman and woman currently deployed in Afghanistan and to let them know how proud we are of them.

So if you want to show your support to the 9,000 troops serving in Afghanistan, visit the SOS website on the link below.

Support Our Soldiers: 9,000 Thanks appeal

The MoD yesterday published its green paper "The Nation's Commitment to the Armed Forces Community: Consistent and Enduring Support".

This aims to build on last year's policy document "The Nation's Commitment: Cross-Government Support to our Armed Forces, their Families and Veterans" by

seeking a permanent shift in the way in which public bodies think about the military community, so that its special circumstances are taken into account at all stages, from policy formation to service delivery.

The MoD is therefore seeking to enshrine the principles of no disadvantage and special treatment where appropriate in all official thinking so that members of the Armed Forces and their families receive fair treatment at all times and are not disadvantaged as a consequence of their military service.

As well as explaining the government's vision for the future delivery of services to the military community, this latest green paper also launches a consultation on how Consistent and Enduring Support can be achieved and on the ways in which recourse could be sought, the so-called "Route for Recourse".

Although the green paper is heavily drenched in typical nuLabour-speak and the sort of jargon we have come to expect from all government documents which start off with a "vision", it does contain some promising and challenging ideas.

Information on the consulation, which ends on 31st October, can be found in the green paper on the link below.

MoD: The Nation’s Commitment to the Armed Forces community: a consultation

In England businesses sometimes allow their staff a "dress down day" when uniforms are left at home and suits are swapped for jeans.

In Scotland they do things differently: today is "Uniform to Work Day" north of the border and TA soldiers have been leaving their civvies in the wardrobe and turning up for work in their Army uniforms. Employers across Scotland have supported the initiative which is intended to remind people "that the Territorial Army is 'among us' in society".

It wasn't that long ago that Armed Forces personnel were being actively discouraged from wearing their uniform in public; 10 years ago uniforms were forbidden on the streets because of the IRA threat.

It's good to see that the Honour the Covenant campaign, the initiatives that came out of the National Recognition Study and Ross Kemp have brought about a marked change in attitude both on the part of the public and of the military.

Sadly however this celebration comes on a day when many in Scotland fear that one of their regiments, the Royal Regiment of Scotland, may be about to bear the brunt of the manpower cuts thought to be being considered by the government.

MoD: Scottish TAs thank employers for their support
The Herald: 600-strong Scots battalion faces axe

In recognition of service provided to the country by the men and women of Britain's Armed Forces, Barratt Homes are offering a Forces Discount on houses brought between now and the end of the year.

Timed to coincide with Armed Forces Day, Barratt's announcement will mean that service personnel will enjoy a 2% discount (£3,000 on a £126,000 home).

Barratt's boss, Mark Clare, has also donated £10,000 on behalf of the comapny to Help for Heroes. He said: "We have one of the world's best armed forces. They have had a hell of a challenging period and all business should support those who have given so much."

Nice one, Barratt Homes!

Barratt Homes: Special Discounts For Armed Forces On New Homes
The Sun: Barratt in Homes Help for Heroes

Recruitment is not the only area to be benefiting from the current recession. To boost the construction industry the MoD has announced that it is bringing forward from 2010/12 some £50million of spending on military accommodation which is good news for service personnel and their familes.
Defence Estates will be spending the cash on refurbishment of both Single Living Accommodation and Service Families Accommodation.

Some of the sites that will be seeing the improvements earlier than expected are South Cerney in Gloucestershire, Woolwich in South London, Waddington in Lincolnshire, Lossiemouth in Moray, Condor near Arbroath, and Culdrose in Cornwall. Vice Admiral Tim Laurence, Chief Executive of Defence Estates, said: "More than 1,500 Service personnel will benefit directly from this initiative".

The Admiral also confirmed that customer relations would be another area that would see improvement over the coming months. Communication with families, especially those whose accommodation is in the process of being refurbished, and keeping them informed on progress will be a priority.

Defence Estates also want to cut the number of families living in privately-rented housing by reducing the number of void or empty properties by turning them round more quickly.

All good stuff.

MoD: Forces accommodation to be refurbished sooner than planned
MoD: Colchester Garrison residents get glimpse of future
MoD: Defence Estates Chief sets out housing priorities

The Career Transition Partnership (CTP) is a joint venture between the MoD and Right Management, a career development and employment company. Established in 1998 and with 24 Regional Resettlement Centres around the UK, CTP provides career support and guidance to service personnel from up to two years before until two years after leaving the Services.

The service provided by CTP is free and aims to make the transition from military to civilian life as smooth and successful as possible. With ex-servicemen and women as its consultants, CTP offers everything from advice on CV writing, job application and interview techniques through to employment market research, online vacancy database and job advertising for employers. CTP also provides link-up with ex-Service charities and organisations offering advice and support on housing, health and welfare matters.

With 95% of those who pass through its programme securing appropriate employment within 6 months, CTP is proving to be a very effective bridge from military career to civilian career.

Career Transition Partnership website
Regular Forces Employment Association website

The small number of peope who attended Scotland's first Armed Forces Day event in Kirkcaldy, Fife is as surprising as it is disappointing - surprising because the Scots have always been held to be fiercely proud of their regiments and disappointing because it shows just how wide the gulf may actually be between the people and their Armed Forces.

Around 200 service personnel - soldiers from 7 Scots and their Pipes and Drums, sailors from HMS Caledonia and veterans - took part in a one hour march through Kirkcaldy in Fife on Saturday but less that 50 people turned out to watch them.

The event in Kirkcaldy is just one of many being held across the UK between now and Armed Forces Day itself on June 27th. These events are intended to "reconnect" the Armed Forces with the communities they serve and to celebrate and honour the contribution Forces personnel make to their country.

Someone commented that the event in Kirkcaldy had been poorly advertised; lets hope that's the case otherwise it doesn't bode well for the project.

Sunday Herald: Another soldier dead, but still the military can’t win hearts and minds of British public
MoD: Scotland revs up for Armed Forces Day