Veterans' Gateway

As part of the Gateway Strategy, the Royal British Legion is working to make it easier for those we support to understand and use our services by working in collaboration and partnership with other organisations.  The Veterans’ Gateway is the first step in this journey.

Veterans’ Gateway aims to be the first point of contact for veterans or their families seeking information, advice and support.

What is the Veterans’ Gateway?
In November 2016 the Ministry of Defence announced £2 million of funding from the Covenant Fund for a one-stop service to better support British Armed Forces veterans in need. The service responds to calls from veterans’ charities and groups for help in navigating the wide range of services and organisations set up to support those who have served in the Forces.
The service will be the first point of contact for veterans and their families to access information, advice and support on a range of issues including healthcare, housing, and employment. It will allow information and services from partners to be accessed from one place and all enquiries will be followed up to ensure that veterans receive the right support.
The Veteran’s Gateway will provide website, online chat, phone line and text message services available to any veteran, from anywhere in the world, 24 hours a day. Veterans can access face-to-face support through the Veterans’ Gateway network of partners and organisations across the UK and overseas.

As the gateway to a network of expert partners – both within and outside of the Armed Forces sector – Veterans’ Gateway will connect users with the right support organisation for their needs, quickly and easily. This simplification of the system has been brought about by a consortium of partners working collaboratively and led by the Legion.

The consortium is made up of the Legion, SSAFA – the Armed Forces charity, Poppyscotland and Combat Stress, with funding from The Covenant Fund. Our connection with referral partners such as Shelter, Mind and other specialists allows us to be the gateway to a range of support that veterans and their families might need but struggle to find.

The website itself covers the complex array of topics that the community faces, providing a self-help functionality where users can search for the matters concerning them. It highlights the partners Veterans’ Gateway can connect users with and the main phone line users can call - 0808 802 1212.

You can also follow their social media channels on Facebook and Twitter for further updates.