Hull veterans charity sees 100% rise in demand
Hull 4 Heroes say they're struggling to cope with the huge numbers of people coming to them for help. They're now calling for more support for veterans leaving the Army in Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire.
There are calls for more support for veterans leaving the Armed Forces in Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire - as a Hull charity tell us they've seen a 100% rise in the number of people asking for help.
Hull 4 Heroes, which launched last year and helps veterans resettle, has been inundated with requests in recent months.
They've told Viking how they've become so busy - they're struggling to cope with the rise in demand.
Former servicewoman Claire Edwards struggled to get the help she needed after being medically discharged from the Army through injury and also helps out at the charity. She told us:
"You've lost your job, you're moving away from the people you relied on for quite some time and some very good friends and then you've lost your home aswell. So you've got all of that and you've got no support in the background. You might also have injuries and your mental health to deal with and it is just a difficult balance and quite a fight I think to get recognised. You are just like at the back of the queue.
"For a lot of us, we have never had to search for a home. We don't have the money or know how to buy, how to rent and especially if you are on a low wage or pension like I was.
"It's a struggle and you ask yourself what do I do? I can't go and live with my parents again so to even know where to go looking, there is just no direction.
"I went to two places and they basically said to me that I was on my own two feet now and said off you go. Even now I speak to people on a daily basis who are going through the same processes. The support just isn't there.
"We thought we might get two or three calls a week. You would be lucky if you get that in a few hours. We have got a seperate phone now because we are just inundated. Even people who are due to leave the Armed Forces in like 6 months are contacting us now and asking for help filling forms in, which shows people are still going through the same difficulties that I had.
"We are just inundated with requests, even for people who just simply don't know how to apply for a house because we have never had to do it. I still now fight to get my appointments closer than London, I have to travel for 4 hours and that's if I can get down there to see specialists and surgeons."
Today - new research reveals how 80 percent of people think British soldiers should have more support when they return from active service.