Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA) Forces Help

SSAFA Forces Help is a military services charity that supports the Armed Forces, veterans and the families of both. We understand the important role that the family plays not only amongst the Armed Forces community but also the wider society as a whole. National Family Week is a natural fit for us and we see it an opportunity to reach new audiences.
Andrew Cumming, Chief Executive

Website: www.ssafa.org.uk/

The Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA) Forces Help is the national charity for those who serve in our Armed Forces, veterans and the families of both. We provide a lifetime of support to anyone who has ever served in any of the services – Army, Navy and the RAF.  Each year, our trained staff and network of 7,500 volunteers provide practical support and assistance to more that 50,000 people, ranging from D-Day veterans to young soldiers wounded in Afghanistan.  

 

We operate 96 local branches in the UK and across the world and run 60 in-service committees at British Forces military establishments. Additionally, the charity provides a vast number of services including:
 

•    Norton Homes - Short stay supported accommodation for families visiting injured relatives at the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre, Headley Court, and the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine, Selly Oak.  Since opening in 1998 over 1,500 family members and service personnel have stayed at the homes.

•    Forcesline - A confidential helpline offering support and advice for the Armed Forces, veterans and the families of both. The service is for those who wish to talk in confidence and outside the military chain of command. It is open 365 days a year.

•    Stepping Stone Homes - Short stay supported accommodation for separated women, with or without children, who are serving, ex-Service or dependants.  The homes provide a caring, tranquil and secure environment for women who will be homeless, are about to be evicted with nowhere to go, or are in need of emergency accommodation.

•    Support Groups - For bereaved families or those coping with a disability caused through military service.  We organise a number of meetings including the Support Group for Bereaved Families, the Support Group for the Families of Injured Service Personnel, Support Group for Bereaved Siblings and Forces Additional Needs and Disability Forum.

•    Additional Needs & Disability Support – We organise four holidays each year for children of Armed Forces families who have additional needs. The children’s holidays concentrate on offering experiences and activities often unavailable to them.

•    Adoption - SSAFA Forces Help operates a registered adoption agency available to all those in the serving community who are thinking about adopting a child, placing a child for adoption or who are themselves adopted and are looking for advice or support.