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14 articles
With regimental bands thinned by decades of cuts, ex-servicemen and women across Britain are picking up their instruments once more. We follow one Hampshire ensemble from a sparse first rehearsal to a Remembrance Sunday performance that moved a whole village.
Across Britain, a growing number of veterans are trading early civilian retirements for the fluorescent-lit corridors of NHS hospitals, volunteering through the small hours when staff are stretched thinnest. We follow one former soldier whose fortnightly two-hour shift has become a second vocation — and explain how your local trust could benefit from a similar scheme.
Across Britain, a growing number of former service personnel are trading the parade ground for the pager — volunteering as community first responders, flood rescue crews and RNLI lifeguards while their neighbours sleep. We spent time with the veterans on night shift to understand why the emergency services are becoming the natural next posting for those who have hung up their uniform.
Across the UK, former servicemen and women are becoming the quiet backbone of amateur football, rugby and cricket clubs. We visit three communities where military skills are keeping the game — and the volunteers themselves — alive.
In rehearsal rooms above pubs and in village halls across Britain, veterans are discovering that the stage can do what few clinical settings can. As the national veterans' arts festival season begins, we follow one forces-friendly drama company on tour — and the peer support programmes their ticket sales quietly fund.
Across Britain, teams of former service personnel are quietly converting the homes of injured comrades and ageing veterans — one ramp, stairlift and sensory garden at a time. We follow a single project from first survey to final handover, and discover that the biggest transformation happens in the builders themselves.
A week in a static caravan in Skegness might not sound like a lifeline, but for one forces family it marked the first holiday in six years. We follow their journey and ask whether the gift of time away achieves what money alone never can.
Across the UK, an unlikely network of barbershops has become a first port of call for ex-servicemen in difficulty. In the chair, beneath the hum of clippers, conversations are happening that might never reach a GP's surgery. We explore how a haircut is opening the door to recovery.
When the house falls silent and the hours between midnight and dawn stretch long, a growing network of veteran-hosted radio broadcasts and listening clubs offers a voice on the airwaves and a reason to stay connected. We explore how old-fashioned broadcasting is becoming an unlikely lifeline after dark.
Across Britain, former servicemen and women are trading parade squares for school corridors, mentoring pupils who need direction most. We follow one Army veteran through an entire school term to understand what this quiet second service achieves — and why it remains so poorly funded.
A remarkable initiative invites serving personnel and veterans to write the letters they never sent home — shared anonymously to fund counselling services. What these unsent words reveal about the British habit of silence may surprise you.
Across Britain, charities are pairing rescued dogs with veterans rebuilding their lives after service. We follow three remarkable pairings — from a nervy first meeting in Wiltshire to a triumphant trip to the seaside — and ask why a wagging tail can succeed where months of treatment sometimes falls short.
Recovery does not always happen in a hospital ward. We profile seven unconventional programmes — assistance dogs, battlefield archaeology, coastal rowing and more — that are helping UK veterans rebuild their lives through purpose, camaraderie and fresh air.
Recovery rarely ends at discharge. Across the UK, ten veterans have transformed the hardest chapters of their lives into charities, sports clubs and support networks that now lift up thousands of others. Here are their stories — and how you might follow their lead in your own community.