Holidays. The Capability seeks and co-ordinates offers of holidays and weekend breaks to allow our casualties respite from the routine of rehabilitation. In the case of Next of Kin, a holiday can offer a break from caring for a badly wounded son or provide an opportunity for families of the fallen to start rebuilding their lives and gain inspiration.
Lochside Cottages - Scotland
Mrs Oldham has two holiday cottages which she would like to offer to soldiers back from active service when they are not booked by paying guests. They are free except for the electricity used and one cottage is designed to take a wheelchair. Both cottages sleep four and they are on a farm in Scotland. Fishing for trout or salmon on our loch is free to guests .
Please see the website www.lochsidecottages.co.uk All the information that you need is there and they can be contacted by phone or email for any other details.Families' Activity Breaks (FAB)
Families' Activity Breaks (FAB) is a non-public funded, tri Service initiative in partnership with the Youth Hostel Association of England and Wales, providing fun and challenging activity holidays around the UK for bereaved military families.
Bunn Leisure - West Sussex
The Regiment has been made a very kind offer by a holiday firm called Bunn Leisure (www.bunnleisure.co.uk) who have a Holiday Park in Selsey, West Sussex. They have a three bed roomed caravan, which is fully adapted for anyone who is disabled, which they have offered to us free of charge and also use of the Camp’s facilities. The offer is directed at our operational casualties and their families and also the families of our fallen. In addition Regimental Headquarters will give a grant of £300 per booking to help defray the cost of travel and food.
The caravan is available from 1 March – 31 October and anyone who is interested should contact me with proposed dates.
Bunn Leisure - West Sussex
The Victory Service Club (VSC) are continuing to offer support to Service personnel and their families through the Welfare and Respite Breaks Scheme. The Scheme offers free accommodation (with breakfast) for two nights to injured soldiers [1] and their families [2]. It also extends the offer to soldiers who, for exceptional welfare reasons [3], the CO believes would benefit by spending a short break in the heart of London. The offer also includes a 50% discount card for many top London attractions. This offer is also extended to widowed Service families and their dependants.
[1] Offer includes soldiers and officers.
[2] Families include spouses, partners, carers and dependants.
[3] This could include bereavement, occupational or operational stress and other conditions which either UWO or MO recommend that a Respite break would be beneficial.
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The Not Forgotten Association
The Not Forgotten Association (NFA) have offered us invitations to two really amazing events to which we can send 4 of our injured Riflemen.
Sun 7 Nov and Mon 8 Nov at Brands Hatch. The offer includes 2 nights accommodation at the Brands Hatch Thistle Hotel including Dinner with an Auction, Entertainment and Disco. Mon 8 Nov is a Track Day at the course. The Rifles have been allocated 4 invitations. Nominations by Mon 27 Sep.
Ascot Race Day 19 Nov. The Trustees of Ascot Racecourse have offered the NFA a number of places and the Rifles have been allocated 4 invitations. Refreshments will be provided throughout the day including a free bar. The outing is suitable for anyone who uses a wheelchair but for walkers there will be some walking required between the entry into Ascot and the Grandstand. Should any nominees require an escort they will be included within our total number. Nominations by Wed 20 Oct.
Yet again the NFA have secured some superb invitations. Nominations to either event should be sent to rco@the-rifles.co.uk.
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR FOOTBALL CLUB
We have been offered two tickets in a private box for every Tottenham Hotspur home match this year. This offer has come through the family of the late LCpl Tom Keogh 4 Rifles and is open to the families of the fallen and our wounded Riflemen. If you are interested please contact the Regimental Casualty Officer at rco@the-rifles.co.uk.
CENTRE PARC HOLIDAYS
A very generous benefactor has given the Rifles a number of 4 day breaks in any one of the 4 Centre Parc holiday locations in England. The offers are open to the families of our fallen, to our wounded Riflemen and their families and to those recommended by Unit Welfare Officers.
Holidays are for 4 people and include £300 of vouchers to be spent during your stay. If you believe you qualify for one of these amazing breaks then please contact the Regimental Casualty Officer at rco@the-rifles.co.uk.
Tuggal Hall – Chathill, Northumberland
Free Self-Catering Accommodation available for Troops and their Families returning from Afghanistan.
Offer by De Vere Hotels
The Keep it hush team in partnership with De Vere Venues are delighted announce the launch of a very exciting new programme – WELCOME HOME FOR HEROES
De Vere Venues to show their appreciation of all military personnel on returning from an operational tour of duty as well as Unit Rear Party personnel, CNOs, VOs and bereaved families & would like to make you a very special offer –
A NIGHT AWAY FOR FOR JUST £1!
Available in 25 beautiful locations across the UK, full details of how to book this amazing offer can be found on
http://www.keepithush.co.uk
a free to join, members only website that will not only give you access to book this amazing offer from De Vere Venues but also give you access to some other amazing offers from 11 great British hospitality & luxury brands.
Log on today to access your fantastic £1 offer plus much, much more -
1. Log onto
http://www.keepithush.co.uk
2. Click on First time user?
3. Enter a few details and your Oracle Employee Invitation Code: WH4H
4. Browse and enjoy!
Please note the invite code & offer is for those specified above only! So keep it hush………
Holiday Apartment in Nerja, Spain
Here is a very generous offer of an appartment in Spain. I have had a look at the website and it looks amazing. Please liaise direct or through me at
rco@the-rifles.co.uk
.
A former Gloster Officer Capt Tim Belson is offering his apartment in Nerja, Costa del Sol free of charge from 1 - 11 June for a soldier who has recently returned from Afghanistan plus wife for a bit of relaxation and recuperation. Full details may be seen on the link below
http://www.ownersdirect.co.uk/spain/s1384.htm
Tim's contact details are as follows:
Office Tel: 02072 - 429933
Mobile: 07836 - 323544
email:
jewellerydirect@btconnect.com
He said he will pay the initial cost of the apartment of £150 so only cost involved will be flights and spending money. He said the apartment sleeps 4 but would rather a couple use it if possible.
For information Tim was an Olympic medalist for fencing at the Montreal Olympics.
Woodland Valley Farm
Here are some details of a farm complex in Cornwall that might appeal to either idividuals or families or even Platoon sized groups that want to get away for a while. If anyone is interested please contact Chris Jones directly.
Chris was a member of the Light Infantry (V) for about 23 years.
He has group accommodation on his farm that can sleep up to 47 people. He would like to donate a period of time (a long weekend perhaps, or a week, initially) to the Regiment during the current intense operations, and high casualties. He was thinking it might perhaps be a good place for families to come, but is open to suggestions. He mostly uses the accommodation for visiting schools and colleges, but has also hosted corporate groups, such as News International, and training organizations.
If this is of interest please let him know,
Chris Jones
Woodland Valley Farm
Ladock
Truro
TR2 4PT
http://www.woodlandvalley.co.uk
07971 436319
01726 884127
Holiday offer in Oxfordshire
Please see below details of a very generous offer for our wounded and their families to use a holiday home in Oxfordshire, which has been passed to me by Bryn Parry the co-founder of Help for Heroes. Bryn tells me that friends of his have used the house and that it is fantastic. If anyone is interested please deal directly with Lady Blank, her details are below.
Sylvia (Lady) Blank is the wife of Sir Victor Blank, philanthropist, ex-Lloyds Chairman etc. She has been renovating the stables and barns at their beautiful Oxfordshire manor house and would like to offer the new accommodation – on an entirely discreet basis – to members of the armed forces and their families for short breaks/respite care.
The stable building is huge and can sleep 3 couples,each with their own bathroom, one of which is a walk in wet room. The open plan area can feed at least 10, which means that if there are 2 couples in the barn, they can get together and eat en famille, or stay in the smaller building and be private.
The buildings are completely new – she has spent 2 years making a cow shed and stable block into something she thought that our lovely young men and women could use as a place which will be treated with respect and give them rest and recouperation after their "institutionalisation". Lady Blank envisaged that they would take that step towards standing on their own feet, with their families around, or even carers, with no thought that if they fall down they can do anything except pick themselves up, brush themselves down and start all over again. The outside of each property is surrounded by paving wide enough for 3 people to walk abreast, or wheel around. At one end of the estate is table tennis, tennis, squash and swimming during the summer.
Lady Blank is an avid gardener and they eat our own produce - at various times, her thoughts are, that maybe those who want to do something normal could join in with any of the gardening fun, including harvesting in the orchard in the autumn.
Lady Blank imagined that she could welcome and give the first cooking lesson and leave them to get on with it.
Lady Blank's e-mail address is sylviablank@hotmail.co.uk, please contact her directly.
Hotel in Phuket
Steve Pearce who was formally a WO1 in the Royal Green Jackets now owns a hotel in Phuket which he is kindly offering to members of the Rifles at reduced rates. Below are his details and I hope that some of you might be able to take advantage of his very generous offer, please deal with him directly.
My name is Steve Pearce, I am a former WO1 with the Royal Green Jackets. I left the regiment nearly 6 years ago. I am currently the Regional Director for Operations for a Private Security company and spend my time in Afghanistan and Iraq. Recently I have had some exposure to the Rifles working near me in Helmand and I have got to say that I am very proud of them.
I own a very nice hotel in Patong Beach, Phuket, Thailand and would like to offer big discounts to colleagues from my former regiment and the Rifles.
Any advice that you can offer me in getting the message to Riflemen and former Riflemen would be greatly appreciated. The hotel is at www.hemingwayshotel.com
Gunsgreen House
As someone who commanded A Company 2LI in Northern Ireland, my heart falls every time I hear 3 Rifles mentioned in the news – sadly all too often.
As a Trustee of a major project to restore Gunsgreen House here in Eyemouth I would like to do what I can to help the bereaved families and the injured. The top two floors are designed to be let as self-catering accommodation, sleeping up to eleven people.
The Trustees would like to offer a free holiday to those who need a break to recover from wounds or bereavement. It is likely that there will be two or three weeks when the flat is not booked.
If you think that this is a good idea we can discuss further details. If you contact me initially, I can put you in touch with the Administrator, Derek Janes, who can be contacted on the above number. You can see details of the House on our website www.gunsgreenhouse.org
Please reply to: Colonel Simon Furness, Garden House, Netherbyres, Eyemouth, TD14 5SE;
Telephone: 018907 50337
