Veterans At Ease

Veterans At Ease – a brand new Rangers Charity Foundation mental wellbeing programme for veterans is launching in August. The Foundation was awarded a 3-year grant for £50,788 from The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust under their Reaching and Supporting Armed Forces Communities programme, for our newest community initiative.

The first 14-week mental wellbeing focussed programme will run on Thursday afternoons and is completely free. It aims to support veterans with their mental wellbeing, whether they be from the Army, Navy or RAF. Participants will have the chance to expand their social circle, build confidence and resilience and enhance their support network.

This programme will be delivered by the Foundation’s in-house Trauma Counsellor, Jane McLean, alongside one of our community coaches.

Veterans will also have the chance to increase self-esteem by developing coping mechanisms throughout the sessions. Early on, there will be a focus on team building and forming camaraderie among the group whilst building trust between all parties.

The course is designed in a way that gives the group ownership over the topics they discuss in order to so that it can be tailored towards individual needs of participants and empower them to share challenges and experiences in a safe environment. Throughout the course all participants will go through first aid and mental health first aid qualifications as well as engaging in weekly physical activity sessions.

Rangers Football Club and the Foundation jointly signed the Armed Forces Covenant in 2016, pledging to uphold the key principles of the Covenant and support serving personnel and veterans.

The Covenant is a promise from the nation that those who serve or have served, and their families, are treated fairly.

Since signing the Covenant, the Club and Foundation progressed through the Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) and were officially presented as the first British football club and club charity with the ERS Gold Award from the Ministry of Defence at a special ceremony in London in 2019, recognising the ongoing commitment to serving personnel and veterans.

There are a maximum of 16 places on each course. If you are a veteran looking for support for your mental wellbeing, we would love to hear from you.

For more information , please e-mail rangerscharity@rangers.co.uk or call us on 0141 580 8775.