The community centre will be named after ABF The Soldiers’ Charity and will sit at the heart of the central green, surrounded by purpose-built accommodation for older residents, disabled veterans and Army families.
At the centre there will be peer support activities, skills and training sessions and employability courses run by RBLI’s LifeWorks team. RBLI has a strong focus on employability which has culminated into Lifeworks, a national programme that helps 83% of unemployed veterans secure work or workplace training. All these training sessions aim to encourage life-changing personal development opportunities to all residents.
Brigadier (Ret’d) Robin Bacon, Chief of Staff at ABF The Soldiers’ Charity, said: “We are honoured to be able to help with this impressive development and expansion of RBLI’s centenary village. The new community centre will provide essential facilities for many members of the Army family and give them a place to truly call home. On behalf of the charity, I give my many thanks to RBLI for naming this incredible community centre after ABF The Soldiers’ Charity.”
In November, Her Majesty the Queen visited RBLI to open the charity’s new luxury care facility, Appleton Lodge, and lay a time capsule to be opened in 100 years, marking the beginning of the next phase of the Centenary Village. Her Majesty was told of the role played by The Soldiers’ Charity in the development when she was formally introduced to Chief Executive Major General Martin Rutledge CB OBE MA.
Source: ABF The Soldiers’ Charity