Latest Royal British Legion Pop-In centres launched

A group of five new Pop In centres is being officially launched by the Royal British Legion today (September 2nd).

The locations can be found in Birmingham, Southampton, Cardiff, Manchester and London.

They are among the 16 centres being opened in UK cities and towns. The charity also has a community outreach hub network.

It claims it's the only charity with a presence like the Pop In centres on high streets in the UK.

The idea of the centres is to give Armed Forces members like British soldiers, as well as the public more widely, somewhere to get information and advice about what the charity does.

Research had suggested that members of the Armed Forces, and their wider community, felt it was hard to find the right help – due to lack of knowledge about where to turn and what was being offered, and information being difficult to get at.

This research from The Royal British Legion, and evidence in the Veterans' Transition Review by Lord Ashcroft (published earlier this year), prompted the charity to develop a trio of easy-access contact points: online, via a freephone helpline and via Pop-In centres and outreach bases which feature regular sessions.

"We know the total number of the Armed Forces community is set to decline, yet the demand for Legion support is predicted to increase, as the population ages and our beneficiaries' needs become more complex, especially amongst those leaving the Forces and those who are wounded, injured or sick," commented Chris Simpkins, director general of the Royal British Legion.

The charity used its research to plan modernisation so it could meet people's developing needs and be simpler to find over the internet as well as in person, he added.

"We will be more accessible, quicker to respond and extend our reach in the communities who need us most," Mr Simpkins said.

He also said the charity ought to be the first place service people, veterans and these people's families turn to "in any circumstances".