We are proud to support Scotty’s Little Soldiers and its work helping the youngest members of the Army family. This year, we are thrilled to award a £10,000 grant to develop a ‘resource village’ for bereaved children, young people and parents.
Scotty’s Little Soldiers is dedicated to supporting bereaved British Armed Forces children and young people through difficult times. It achieves this through three programmes. ‘Smiles’ gives children the opportunity to smile again by taking part in a range of activities, holiday breaks and group events throughout the year; ‘Support’ assists with the emotional side of bereavement by offering counselling; and ‘Strides’ helps with personal development by providing educational grants. All these steps enable children and young people to cope with their loss and regain the confidence to adapt to their new circumstances.
Charity Founder, Nikki Scott, commented: “We’re delighted that ABF The Soldiers’ Charity has award Scotty’s Little Soldier this grant to help fund our Christmas event with bereaved British military families.
“As well as highlighting additional resources and support available to bereaved families from within the Armed Forces community, this event helps to create a real sense of belonging for some very brave young people. All of the activities during the weekend, whilst great fun, are geared towards boosting confidence and connecting young people with others who share similar experiences.”
Our grant will go towards funding a Christmas event which was attended by over 140 bereaved service children and young people last year. The grant will help cover the costs for transport and hotel accommodation to ease any financial concerns. During this event, Scotty’s Little Soldiers hopes to have a professionally overseen ‘resource village’, to help attendees understand the support services available to them. With this education and awareness, early intervention will be possible and will lead to greater resilience in the children and families for many years to come.
Major General (Ret’d) Martin Rutledge, Chief Executive at ABF The Soldiers’ Charity, added: “Bereavement is never an easy thing to experience, especially at such a young age. We are delighted to be supporting Scotty’s Little Soldiers and its work helping children and young people through such a delicate stage of their lives.”
To find out more about Scotty’s Little Soldiers, visit: https://www.scottyslittlesoldiers.co.uk