FORCES PENPALS - MILITARY SUPPORT, DATING & SOCIAL NETWORKING

Plymouth charity gets funding injection thanks to bank fines

A Plymouth charity that supports Armed Forces veterans have been granted more than £500,000 worth of funding to help it continue its good work, reports the Plymouth Herald. The money, which is raised from fines that were levied against banks, has been awarded to seAp Advocacy, which stands for support, empower, advocate and promote.

A total of £558,000 has been given to the charity by the government to put toward expanding its existing military advocacy service. These funds were raised from fines banks had to pay after they were found to be manipulating the inter-bank borrowing rate (LIBOR rate).

seAp Advocacy offers different advocacy support for military veterans who are suffering from ill-health, dealing with family and social problems, as well as housing and financial issues. The charity offers support through advocates, who help veterans to express themselves and their wishes in order to make decisions to improve their situation with an aim to improve and enable independence.

The money that has been granted to the charity means that it will be able to receive referrals from other places beyond Plymouth, where it currently operates. In partnership with the Royal Association for the Deaf (RAD) and Plymouth Highbury Trust, it will be able to operate in Essex, East Cornwall, North Hampshire, Wiltshire and East Berkshire.

These services will be able to operate for three years thanks to the funding injection, meaning it will help a lot of struggling veterans.

Marie Casey, chief executive of seAp Advocacy, told the news provider: "Advocacy support compliments all the great work done by military charities and we look forward to working in partnership with those charities to provide tailored support to those veterans with the greatest need."

A number of other Armed Forces charities across the UK will also be benefitting from funding granted from the money that banks were fined.