Veterans’ Gateway, a 24-hour point of contact for veterans’ support, has launched a new app enabling any ex-Service personnel who are in need to get help from the palm of their hands.
The Veterans’ Gateway app has been funded by the Ministry Of Defence and the Armed Forces Covenant Trust Fund.
Using a smartphone or tablet, the Veterans’ Gateway app helps veterans find organisations within their local area to help with issues such as finances, housing, employment, relationship, physical and mental health.
The directory, which is intuitive and easy to use, groups all NHS facilities across the country, and over 2,000 charitable organisations, allowing veterans and their families to access local support.
Minister for Defence People and Veterans, Johnny Mercer, said:
“I’m delighted this new app is now available to support veterans. It provides helpful location-based signposting to the support and current services that are available. We want to make the UK the best place in the world to be a veteran, and that includes a digital future where every veteran can easily access the support they need at the touch of a button.”
Since being set up in 2017, Veterans’ Gateway has received over 47,000 contacts to the service, signposting ex-forces personnel and their families to the wide range of support available, including medical care in the NHS. Assistant Director of Veterans’ Gateway, Mark Collins said:
“This new app is a great way of enabling the veteran community to find information and gain advice on the go. Our team are here for them 24/7 and this technology means they can access local information quickly or use it to contact the service. By showing them the help and support available locally, it strengthens the fact that Veterans’ Gateway is a key point of contact for veterans and their families.”
Northumbria University has developed the app alongside American based software designers Ripplenami. Associate Professor of Mental Health and Veteran Studies from Northumbria University Dr Matt Kiernan PhD said:
“This is the first time that this type of mapping technology has been available on an app. We are proud that through this excellent collaboration we have been able to create something bespoke to the veteran community. It will benefit veterans and their families as they use it and it will allow us to better understand the needs of the veteran community across the UK and use that information to develop future services.”
The Veterans’ Gateway app is available on the Apple App Store and Google Play