A Bournemouth-based veteran and former Royal Marine faced serious mental and physical health challenges, financial difficulties, and the loss of his care support. The Armed Forces Compensation Scheme Programme (AFCSP) helped him stabilise his finances, access benefits, improve home safety, and reconnect socially. With continued support, he became more confident, engaged with veteran services and activities, and began looking forward to new opportunities.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
MW referred from Medical Centre, Central Bournemouth to a social prescribing link worker who referred him onto the AFCSP (Armed Forces Compensation Scheme Programme).<\/p>\n
MW is a veteran Royal Marine with long term mental and physical issues. His wife passed away 12 months ago. MW is experiencing serious issues with accessing benefits and is currently in debt. Reinstating a care package is the focus for MW right now. No mention of family or relatives to assist him.<\/p>\n
His care package has been removed due to non-payment of fees. MW is a wheelchair bound veteran with spinal deterioration, rheumatoid arthritis and living with diagnosed PTSD. MW experiences constant anxiety and fear over his financial circumstances and needs his financial situation reviewed so that a care package could be reinstated. MW has limited social interaction due to his disability and feels unsafe in his bathroom at home due to repair work not completed by BCP Housing Directorate.<\/p>\n
Social prescribing link worker informed AFCSP (Armed Forces Compensation Scheme Programme) of MW\u2019s situation and asked if any help might be found for him as a veteran. AFCSP\u00a0coordinated and accompanied MW to an appointment with Citizens Advice (CA) in Bournemouth to begin putting his financial situation in order. AFCSP assisted with completion of registration forms and supported MW throughout the interview. A debt assessment was duly completed as well as arrangements for immediate consultations with the Universal Credit and Debt Teams. AFCSP contacted\u00a0The Royal Marines Charity<\/a>\u00a0for assistance and guidance for debt advice and encouraged MW to look at the help and guidance on the\u00a0Mental Health & Money Advice site<\/a>\u00a0AFCSP also asked SSAFA, Age UK, CRUSE, Dorset Help & Kindness and the RBL to determine whether a Bournemouth or Poole based \u2018befriending\u2019 service is available \u2013 partly to assist with the completion of further forms but also to provide MW with practical support after his recent bereavement.<\/p>\n MW is working towards clearing his immediate debts with regular debt repayments and budgeting applications in place.\u00a0 AFCSP encouraged MW to contact the GOV.UK team to gauge the award date of his State Pension (he\u2019d been advised that he was not eligible). AFCSP demonstrated how the Veteran\u2019s Gateways link to financial advice worked, which enabled him to talk to the\u00a0veterans\u2019 pension teams\u00a0and\u00a0Armed Forces Pension Calculator<\/a>\u00a0to identify qualifying dates for his Service pension.\u00a0 MW is using the Veterans Gateway to engage with Service associations for social support and arrangements are in place for him to visit a day centre.\u00a0 The issues around making his bathroom at home safer have now been addressed by Bournemouth Council.<\/p>\n When the AFCSP (Armed Forces Compensation Scheme Programme) rang MW late May 2022, it was a much more confident, upbeat and relaxed MW, who advised he was getting out to join other veterans at local events and activities and was thinking about taking up his interest in sea fishing.<\/p>\nGoals and outcomes<\/h3>\n