Are you a current or former member of the Armed Forces and living locally in Fylde and want to meet new likeminded people?

AFC Fylde Community Foundation’s popular Armed Forces Community Programme, jointly-funded by BAE Systems and Veterans’ Foundation, provides support for veterans who have settled in the local area through a variety of different and engaging projects aimed at increasing social participation and mental wellbeing.

The borough of Fylde has a strong connection to, and a high population of the Armed Forces Community, this is due to the location of Weeton Barracks, many ex-service personnel deciding to reside in the borough and BAE Systems being an employer of choice for reservists and ex-service personnel.

Our Armed Forces Community Programme provisions range from weekly football sessions on a Monday, as well as a breakfast club on the last Friday of every month at Mill Farm, home of AFC Fylde, and Toby Carvery Salters Wharf, Lytham St Annes, on the second Thursday of the month, and family support services.

A delicious breakfast, costing just £5, will be served with tea and coffee also available.

The programme is led by an ex-serviceman of 22-years, who left Weeton Barracks and started as a volunteer at the Foundation, gained full-time employment and is now supporting over 250 members of the Armed Forces Community per-year.

In addition to providing funding for the programme, we also work closely with employees from BAE Systems and their employee resource group, VetNet, which supports and connects their ex-service employees with the local community. Members of VetNet regularly attend the Foundation’s programme and we have signposted participants to BAE Systems for suitable job roles from our other provision.

Armed Forces Project Officer, Lee Geraghty, said: “We’re looking forward to our veterans activities returning for 2024 and building on the success that we had last year.

“We have plenty of different events which will suit everyone whatever their age, so it will be great to see returning and new faces come and join us.

“I would like to thank BAE Systems, the Veterans’ Foundation, along with AFC Fylde, Toby Carvery and Mini Links Golf Lytham for their continued support of our programme.”

For more information on AFC Fylde Community Foundation’s Armed Forces projects, please email Lee.Geraghty@afcfylde.co.uk.