“My command is this: love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” John 15:12-13.
The Bridge for Heroes is a registered charity that provides mental health and wellbeing support for the HM Armed Forces community, which includes serving members, veterans and their families. By providing an initial point of contact at the Charity’s Bridge Centre located in South Clough Lane in King’s Lynn, we are able to offer holistic support to all who seek help, working closely with beneficiaries to resolve their issues and, where necessary, signposting them to other services as required.
Additionally, the Charity has a second facility, located at Nelson House on the North Lynn Industrial estate, which offers a variety of activities including Arts & Crafts, Photography, Woodwork, Crochet and Knitting, Cycling, Bicycle Maintenance to name but a few. Both facilities offer free hot beverages, biscuits and cakes and the Bridge Centre also offers hot food daily, together with a Sunday Roast (to those on their own, isolated or lonely) and a Veterans Breakfast on a monthly basis. All of our services, beverages and food are offered free of charge and there is even free parking at Nelson House.
The Charity does not receive any statutory funding. We are funded by Grants that we have to apply for from organisations such as the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust, The Army Benevolent ‘The Soldiers’ Charity’, the Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund and the Norfolk Community Foundation to name but a few and we also rely on the generosity of the public. Obtaining adequate funding is always a constant struggle, but it is something that has to be achieved in order to continue delivering our ‘front-line’ services.
The Charity was awarded ‘The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service’ in 2020, which is a cited award with an MBE status for our important work in support of our community, which is an indication of the quality of our work together with the strict governance and framework in which we operate.
Our continual challenge, and one where we ask for your help, is communicating our presence to those who are entitled to our support and, for many varied reasons, cannot or will not seek it. Many of us know a veteran or close family member either within our own house-hold or local community and we urge you to let them know of our existence, together with the activities and support that we offer. Isolation, loneliness and a feeling of worthlessness have serious social and personal implications to those affected and The Bridge for Heroes offers tailored solutions to deliver comradeship, new skills or interests and a feeling of value and accomplishment that we all strive for.
Further information about The Bridge for Heroes can be found on www.thebridgeforheroes.org or by searching for The Bridge for Heroes on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.
