VE Day boost for veterans’ healthcare
Source: gov.uk (2025-05-08)

Government announces £1.8 million investment to transform NHS care for veterans, serving personnel and their families.

- New training for NHS workers to improve healthcare support for veterans
- Programme will improve access and outcomes for veterans, serving personnel and their families
- Regional trainers will work with GP practices and mental health services to embed expertise where it is needed most
Armed forces veterans and their families will benefit from improved and targeted healthcare, the government has announced as the nation marks the 80th anniversary of VE Day.

A new training programme will ensure NHS staff across the country are supported to meet the unique health needs of veterans, serving personnel and their families.

The new programme will see NHS staff across England receiving dedicated training to help them identify and support patients with military backgrounds. GPs, doctors and NHS nurses will work with regional trainers to make sure they embed this support into their services.

Veterans can require specialised care for injuries sustained in combat, as well as mental health support for conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression.

Many also struggle to navigate civilian healthcare systems and may not self-identify as veterans to NHS staff, putting them at risk of missing out on the additional services and bespoke services that are already available.

Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said:

As we mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day, we’re honouring our armed forces not just with words, but with action.

Too many veterans face a system that doesn’t fully understand their needs - that changes today.

This new training programme will help NHS staff across England give our veterans the personalised care they deserve. Through our Plan for Change (https://www.gov.uk/missions) the NHS will deliver for those who have delivered for Britain.

Minister for Veterans and People Al Carns said:

Our veterans have served this country with distinction, and they deserve healthcare that recognises their unique needs and experiences. This NHS training programme helps staff identify veterans and provide specialised support, and I urge all service leavers to tell their GP they’ve served - this simple step helps them better understand any service-related health issues.

Combined with our £50 million investment in VALOUR - a new network to deliver easier access to tailored support - this represents our comprehensive approach to veteran care and commitment to strengthening the Armed Forces Covenant.

We owe our veterans nothing less than the best, and today’s announcement is an important step forward from a government determined to renew our nation’s contract with those who have served.

As of April 2025, every NHS trust in the country became officially ‘Veteran Aware’, a status which means they have been recognised for demonstrating their understanding of military healthcare needs. The 3-year training programme will build on this success and will be rolled out from October 2025 across England.

The programme, backed by £1.8 million, will support NHS bodies to demonstrate their commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant, which ensures those who serve or have served, and their families, are treated fairly and not disadvantaged because of their military service.

The training will support healthcare providers to improve identification of armed forces personnel, deliver more personalised care, and ultimately improve health outcomes for veterans and their families.

Kate Davies CBE, National Director for Armed Forces Health, NHS England, said:

On the 80th anniversary of VE Day, we honour the extraordinary legacy of our armed forces - and reaffirm the NHS’s commitment to those who’ve served.

As part of the Armed Forces Covenant, we’re launching our most comprehensive training programme yet to meet the unique healthcare needs of veterans.

Developed with frontline experts in veterans’ health and those with lived experience, this national initiative ensures those who’ve served receive the high-quality, specialised care they deserve.

Carol Betteridge OBE, Deputy Services Director at Help for Heroes, said:

We’re pleased to see this important step forward in supporting veterans’ healthcare. Help for Heroes has already been delivering similar training through our Veteran Champion programme in NHS settings, and we look forward to working with NHS England to share our experience and help improve care for veterans and their families.

The announcement follows a £50 million boost in funding to ensure veterans across the UK will have easier access to essential care and support under a new UK-wide veteran support system called VALOUR (https://www.gov.uk/government/news/thousands-of-veterans-to-benefit-from-new-uk-wide-support-network).

Through the Plan for Change, the government has delivered an extra 3 million appointments since July to cut waiting lists and provided the biggest boost to GP funding in years - an extra £889 million. On 6 May 2025, the government announced a further major cash injection of over £102 million to upgrade and modernise GP practices.

The government is also bringing back the family doctor, recruiting an additional 1,500 GPs since October, and cutting red tape so GPs spend more time caring for patients.

National training and education plan

The national training and education plan will cost £1.8 million over 3 years (2025 to 2026 to 2027 to 2028), with funding already secured.

All NHS trusts have achieved Veteran Aware accreditation under the programme led by the Veterans Covenant Healthcare Alliance.

Key objectives of the programme include:
- driving down health inequalities and unwarranted variation in healthcare for the armed forces community
- increasing awareness of the unique characteristics of the armed forces community
- supporting NHS systems to deliver their statutory responsibilities under the Armed Forces Covenant
The training and education leads will:
- provide standardised national armed forces awareness training for NHS staff at all levels
- help inform NHS commissioning bodies in developing health needs assessments for the armed forces community
- assist integrated care boards to support armed forces families to better access health services