Veterans, Serving Armed Forces Personnel, and their Families

‘To those who proudly protect our nation, who do so with honour, courage, and commitment, the Armed Forces Covenant is the nation’s commitment to you.’

The Armed Forces Covenant is a pledge from the nation that together we acknowledge and understand that those who serve or who have served in the armed forces, and their families, should be treated with fairness and respect in the communities, economy and society they serve.

The covenant focuses on helping members of the armed forces community to have the same access to government and commercial services and products as any other citizen.

This support is provided in a number of areas including:

• education and family wellbeing;
• having a home;
• starting a new career;
• access to healthcare;
• financial assistance;
• discounted services.

For further information, see: Armed Forces Covenant

Lincolnshire County Council is committed to ensuring that the pledge is upheld, and ensuring people who are or have served and their families are able to access our services. It is therefore important that as Adult Care practitioners, we are aware of the covenant and mindful of its significance in our practice.

For further information, see: Lincolnshire Armed Forces Covenant.

It is important to establish at the point of contact/referral or during any assessment process whether someone is serving, has served or is related to someone who is serving/has served in any of the three armed forces:

1. British Army
2. Royal Air Force
3. Royal Navy (including Royal Marines)

This is key to understanding the person, their strengths, interests, qualities, and connections. This may lead to support that maintains their independence, builds on what they can do for themselves, and more importantly support that makes sense and works for them.

Support for veterans on GOV.UK

GOV.UK has dedicated support guidance for veterans.

Support for veterans and their families can help veterans find the information they need categorised by life stages - housing, employment, mental and physical health support, illness or injury, bereavement, care needs and more. 

A searchable directory lists both government and charity support available to veterans and their families, allowing veterans to find help locally and nationally. You can search by topic and location for easy access to appropriate support.

Other contact details for organisations that can provide support if a person whom you are supporting indicates they have a personal connection to the Armed Forces are:

• SSAFA Lincolnshire;
• Royal British Legion;
• Armed Forces Veterans Breakfast Club.

There is also an e-learning module available on Lincs2Learn – The Armed Forces Covenant: e-Learning for Front Line Workers.

See: Lincs2Learn

The Care Act does not specify different ordinary residence rules for armed services personnel, therefore normal rules apply.

There is no definition of ordinary residence in the Care Act or any other legislation. The statutory guidance states that the natural meaning of the term should apply, as used in the Shah case 1983:

"ordinary residence refers to a man's abode in a particular place or country which he has adopted voluntarily and for settled purposes as part of the regular order of his life for the time being, whether of short or long duration".