HOw VCN Can help and support you

IF YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW IS IN A MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS OR EMERGENCY, YOU SHOULD EITHER CALL YOUR GP OR GO TO YOUR LOCAL A&E DEPARTMENT.

If you need our help or support, our peer mentors will offer you:

Assertive outreach / identification of need / risk substance misuse support - low level psychosocial intervention (PSI) to educate on the risks and harms, provide harm reduction advice.
MH First Aid to support crisis.
Onward referral, motivational enhancement to prepare for treatment /support to remain engaged in the process.
Treatment and support guides and navigators.
Care co-ordination by ‘connecting’ veterans not just signposting.
Advocacy to ensure a seamless service between partners.
Transport to appointments / post session decompression.
Social Prescribing delivered at the Veterans Rendezvous point. This includes horticultural activity, crafting, woodwork, renovation projects and mindfulness.
Social activities including Breakfast Clubs, drop-ins, and our VCN choir.
VCN’s delivery approach is one of co-production and is peer mentor led.

OUR MISSION

The aim of VCN is to support Veterans, Reservists and their families in accessing the treatment and support services to help cope, adjust and manage situations such as mental health, housing, benefits and social isolation. We do this through our network of trained Veteran Peer Mentors and a monthly drop-in Hub.

additional information

VCN HAS SIGNED THE ARMED FORCES COVENANT

SAFE ACCESSIBLE SUPPORT

VCN operates Safe Accessible Support through offering Veteran Peer mentoring which actively seeks out other veterans who are in distress and in need of support. Our peer mentors all have a military background, have undergone the accredited veteran mental health first aid training and successfully completed an accredited peer mentor training course. Our ambition is to support veterans to engage and remain in treatment with our partners and other ‘wrap around services’

our governance

This legal structure ensures that VCN delivers services through a framework of policies and procedures to ensure a safe and effective network of support. Copies of our policies and procedures are available on our website. We are a member of ASDIC (Association of ex-service Drop-in Centres) and NCVO (National Council of Volunteering Organisations). We have been awarded The Veterans Mental Health Awareness Standard by COBSEO.

PRIVACY POLICY

The Veterans’ Community Network are committed to ensuring the security and protection of the personal information that we process, and to provide a compliant and consistent approach to data protection. We have a robust and effective data protection program in place which complies with existing law and abides by the GDPR (2018) data protection principles.