ROYAL BRITISH LEGION
WILTSHIRE COUNTY
CIRCULAR
DECEMBER 2014 AND JANUARY 2015
PLEASE READ OUT RELEVANT DETAILS AT YOUR NEXT BRANCH MEETING
IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR ALL BRANCHES
CHRISTMAS GREETINGS
The President, Chairman and members of the County Executive Committee send their best wishes
to all County Members for Christmas and the New Year.
COUNTY CONFERENCE
The County Conference is being held in the Trowbridge Civic Centre at 1100 hrs on Saturday 10 January (coffee available from 1000 hrs). We very much hope to have representation from as many Branches as possible. Please do encourage your Branch to send a Delegate and Standard Bearer; additional visitors are also most welcome. This year the new Director of Marketing and Communications, Gary Ryan, will present the Head Office brief. We hope that the Lord Lieutenant may also be able to join us for part of the day. A ham and cheese Ploughman’s Lunch will be provided.
· Please could Branch Delegates bring a raffle prize with them to Conference. The raffle takings help offset the cost of the lunch.
· Papers for Delegates will be sent out in about a fortnight.
· A map showing the Civic Centre and car parks will be sent out with the Conference Booklet. Members may reclaim travel and parking fees from Branch accounts.
· Standard Bearers should arrive at the Civic Centre by 1000 hrs for rehearsal.
COUNTY CONFERENCE RETURNS
Remember 6 December is the final date for the submission of forms for:
• Branch Delegates/Standard Bearers to the County Conference.
• Branch Motions for County Conference.
• Nominations to the County Executive Committee.
• Nominations for the Branch/Club Efficiency Competition.
• Entries for the Lord Lieutenant’s Cup.
• Nominations to host the County Parade and Service of Rededication in 2016.
Please contact the County Secretary if you need replacement forms.
And please remember to send the County Secretary your MS1 Form by the end of December at the very latest (an electronic version is available from the CS should you want one).
LEGION IN THE COMMUNITY (LIC)
Head Office is developing a new process for bidding for funds for LIC events. In the meantime and until 30 June 2015 Branches should bid to the County Office as and when they have an event for which they would like LIC funding. Please contact the County Office before you submit a bid. The new procedure will be announced by the end of this year and be in place with effect 1 July 2015.
COUNTY WEBSITE
We are increasing use of the County Website to hold reference documents; do please check it out every now and then. If you have any ideas on how we can improve the website please contact Keith Passant directly on or the County Secretary.
MEMBERSHIP MATTERS
Remember that new membership applications can now be made only on the new Form MS4/13. The Form is available from Poppy Appeal now (01622 795801). If your Branch has an affiliated Club please make sure they comply with this.
Please ask your Membership Secretaries to make a final effort to collect the affiliation fees from any outstanding cash paying members. We really do need to retain our cash paying members if we are to keep the County membership up.
Any unsold membership cards have to be returned to CDI using the Form MS6/13 by 1 February 2015. If you miss this deadline your Branch will not receive a credit for any unsold cards.
CUPS & TROPHIES - REMINDER
Please could Branches/individuals who are holding County Cups return them to the County Office by 6 December.
CHRISTMAS/NEW YEAR STANDOWN
The cottage will be closed from midday 24 December until 2 January. However, the Contact Centre will be open from 8 am until 8 pm during the working week (0808 802 8080).
JANUARY CIRCULAR
There will be no Circular in January.
WELFARE
The Swindon Pop In Centre, which doubles as the Area Office and, in due course, the Regional Office for the South of the Country will be formally opened on Monday 15 December. The Centre is well located in Regent Street and there has been a good response from volunteers to help staff it.
STANDARD BEARERS’ INFORMATION
The final Standard Bearer Training of the year will start at 1000 hrs on 21 December in the Services Cotswold Centre, Neston, Nr Corsham, SN13 9TU. There will be a short training session followed by a social gathering in the bar; bring your own food. All Standard Bearers are very welcome to attend. If you have any queries please contact Cathy Smith on 01380 870735.
The training dates for 2015 will be:
18 January 15 February 15 March 19 April 17 May
14 June 19 July 16 August 20 September 18 October
15 November 20 December
We do hope that as many of you who are able will join us for Conference on Saturday 10 January in the Trowbridge Civic Centre. Standard Bearers should arrive at the Civic Centre by 1000 hrs for rehearsal.
FUNDRAISING MATTERS
· Salisbury Poppy Party. Congratulations to Cindy Nelson Twiby and her team for organising a hugely successful evening on 31 October at the Guildhall which raised approximately £3,000.
· Swindon Poppy Ball. The Thamesdown Swindon Rotary Club is also to be congratulated for putting on an excellent event for the Poppy Appeal on 1 November at the Museum of Steam. The Ball has raised just over £6,500 for the RBL. The event was attended by our County President, Gen Sir Jack Deverell, and Lady Deverell and Lt Col James Arkell, President of the Swindon Branch, along with other County officials.
· Poppy Appeal 2014/2015. Whilst, it is very early days, all signs for the Poppy Appeal this year are looking very positive and as a County, we have already banked over £455,300. This is 8.8% up from the same time last year. Despite a national shortage of the centenary enamel pins, all PAO’s are reporting a very successful Appeal. The County Committee joins Fi Dobson in sending enormous thanks and appreciation to all involved.
FORTHCOMING EVENTS & BRANCH ACTIVITIES
TALK – THE CHRISMAS TRUCE 1914
Talk by Lt Col Anthony Coutts-Britton in All Saints, Westbury on Friday 5 December 7.30 to 9 pm with refreshments available from 7 pm. Tickets are £8 and are available from:
· Parish Office – 01373 859450
· The Visitor centre in the High Street – 01373 825784
· The Council Office at the Laverton
· At the door on the night.
NOTICES
RBL CAMPAIGN ON SOCIAL CARE SUPPORT
The RBL Campaigns Manager has asked for our assistance in finding suitable case studies for an upcoming Legion campaign on social care support.
The background is that when it comes to determining how much veterans should have to pay towards the cost of their social care, local authorities are presently required to fully disregard Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) Guaranteed Income Payments, which are awarded to veterans for conditions or injuries sustained in Service on or after 6 April 2005. By contrast, veterans who are in receipt of a War Pension, which is awarded for conditions or injuries sustained in Service before 6 April 2005, can only expect the first £10 per week to be routinely disregarded, which means that the majority of their compensation payments will count against them in means tests for social care support.
The RBL campaign is for individuals on both the War Pension scheme and the AFCS to be treated the same, so that no injured veterans have to use their military compensation to pay towards the cost of their social care. The rules for civilian compensation for personal injury are that it is not regarded as income if it has been placed in a trust. So the campaign is not just about harmonisation but also about no disadvantage being incurred due to Service.
Before the campaign is launched in early 2015, the RBL is looking to identify further case studies to help highlight this unfairness in social care funding.
If you know of a veteran who has been affected in this way and who would be willing to be used as a case study, or if you would like further information about the type of story that the Legion is looking for, please contact the RBL Public Affairs and Campaign Manager, Laura Pett, on 020 3207 2240, or email
RBL HOUSEHOLD SURVEY
The RBL has just published the results of its 2014 UK household survey of the ex-service community. This latest research is an in-depth look at the size, profile and needs of the current ex-service community in the UK, which is estimated to be around 6.2 million people.
This survey follows on from the original 2005 survey which measured the size, profile and welfare needs of the Legion’s main beneficiary group. The purpose of this work was to map the needs of the community in detail and to identify those in greatest need, so that the Legion, other Service charities and statutory providers could tailor their welfare provision accordingly. This research is still hugely influential and it is drawn upon by a wide range of organisations, from local authorities and central Government departments to charities and MPs’ offices.
The 2014 survey refreshes the 2005 findings and it will be used to inform the Legion’s future strategic planning, welfare, marketing and campaigning work. It also provides vital information on the key differences between the ex-Service community and the UK population as a whole.
The results of the survey are summarised on the enclosed document (known as an “infographic”!). If you would like to read more about the survey a “support pack” has been added to the County website.
RBL MANIFESTO
The November Circular contained details of the RBL’s Manifesto for the 2015 General Election and a copy of the “short version” was enclosed for Branch Secretaries. Head Office has now produced the “Campaigning Guidance Booklet”, which is intended to help Branches engage with their MPs and Prospective Parliamentary Candidates. A copy is enclosed for Branch Secretaries. It is also available on the County website.
DEREK PARAVACINI CONCERT
Hungerford Branch have arranged for the pianist Derek Paravacini to give a concert in aid of the RBL. It will take place in St Lawrence Church, Hungerford at 1800 hrs on Saturday 13 December. Tickets are £15 and are available from the White Horse Bookshop in Marlborough (01672 513700) or the Hungerford Bookshop (01488 683480). Despite being blind from birth, Derek Paravacini is a hugely talented pianist who has played at major venues across the UK (including Ronnie Scott’s), in Europe and the USA. The Bear Hotel in Hungerford is offering a 10% discount on food for concert ticket holders who eat there after the concert (01488 682512).
CHRISTOPHER PRESTWICH
County Secretary
Enclosures: Distribution:
Household Survey Summary Branch Secretaries
Campaigning Guidance Booklet Branch Secretaries
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