Help for Heroes 40,000 Strong installation to come to Wales

An installation of thousands of small figures representing men and women who have been medically discharged from the Armed Forces is coming to Wales, with events in Caerphilly and Llanelli planned to raise awareness of the ongoing need to support those affected by their military service.

Caerphilly has been chosen as the focal point for the Welsh launch of the #40ThousandStrong campaign because it’s the town with the population closest to 40,000, the number of men and women who had to leave the Armed Forces due to injury or illness in the last 20 years. The installation will then move on to Parc Y Scarlets for a special Remembrance rugby event hosted by the Scarlets in November.

Help for Heroes Community Recovery Team, based in Treforest, delivers holistic support to serving personnel and veterans from the Army, Navy and RAF, including a number of individuals from Caerphilly, who take part in activities including model-making, sports recovery, and well-being sessions. They can also work with 1-2-1 Key workers who offer advice on a range of practical welfare issues, a specialist clinical liaison nurse, and take part in Fellowship events to regain a sense of camaraderie which may be lost when leaving the military.

Shelley Elgin, Help for Heroes Recovery Manager for Wales and Hereford said, “An average of 7 people have medically discharged every day since drawdown from Iraq. Thousands of those discharged are falling through gaps in the Ministry of Defence’s (MoD’s) support. Seventy percent of beneficiaries we surveyed say their transition to civilian life was a negative experience. That’s why we’ve created our 40,000 Strong model force to help show the true scale of those who have put their lives on the line for us.”

Several thousand figures from the installation will go on display in Caerphilly’s Castle Court Shopping Centre on Saturday November 2^nd, with the public encouraged to show their support by making a donation in exchange for one of the figures created as part of the campaign.

The charity has been working closely with shops and businesses in Caerphilly in planning the event, which will include Caerphilly Castle lighting up in Help for Heroes colours of Navy, Red and Blue to reflect the three branches of the armed forces.

The campaign launched in Manchester on Tuesday 8^th October with the charity calling on the UK government to commission an independent review into the MoD’s medical discharge process, and specifically the support available to service personnel as they transition into civilian life.

Find out more at: https://www.helpforheroes.org.uk/40thousandstrong/

A film about the installation can be viewed at: https://youtu.be/TOA7T-i9Ets

To get support from Help for Heroes go to: https://www.helpforheroes.org.uk/get-support/