Angus Council has put itself at the vanguard of a push for a greater consistency among Scotland’s councils in helping services personnel and veterans access support in areas including housing, education and mental welfare.
Amidst increasing numbers of veterans falling into homelessness and suffering mental ill-health, cross-council support has been given to a motion to press local authorities body CoSLA to set up a forum specifically related to developing policies and policy adjustments aimed at supporting serving personnel and veterans.
All of Scotland’s councils have signed up to the Armed Forces Covenant, but Forfar councillor and SNP group leader Lynne Devine said more could be done.
“As part of that commitment, all local authorities have appointed Armed Forces and Veterans Champions, like our Provost, who undertake a vital role in acting as a point of contact for issues related to the Armed Forces community.
“We certainly do that in Angus, with some excellent housing for example, and I know that the CAB provides specialised support for veterans,” she said.
“However, there is a distinct lack of a formal mechanism to support the development of policy in a consistent way across the country, presenting challenges for personnel in accessing and understanding provision, particularly in relation to local authority support.
“A one size fits all approach isn’t appropriate, particularly in relation to the serving armed forces community, but the offer from local authorities should and could, where possible, be consistent in terms of access to services such as education, housing, employment and very importantly health.
“It’s reckoned that 6% of the adult homeless are veterans and thousands are suffering from mental ill health, which impacts on their ability to settle into civilian life.
“The power to make change actually lies with local authorities. We have the capability to ensure that we develop practical measures that support veterans and serving members,” she said.
Provost Ronnie Proctor, a retired Black Watch Major said: “As Armed Forces champion, I was very happy to support this and pleased to see the backing within the council chamber.
“There are an estimated 250,000 veterans living in Scotland, with 4-5,000 residing in Angus.
“We also, of course, have the serving personnel at the Royal Marines base at Condor, and hundreds of other personnel and reservists.
“When you take in their wives and families the number is quite significant.
“The Armed Forces Covenant which we signed up to is a key commitment, but I am very happy to see anything brought forward to help provide even greater support to our serving personnel and veterans,” said Mr Proctor.
