Historian Seeks Memoirs by Forgotten Heroes of
The Battle of The Somme Historian Hugh Sebag-Montefiore is looking for accounts by soldiers who served in The Cheshire Regiment, The Worcestershire Regiment, The Sherwood Foresters or The North Staffordshire Regiment or The South Staffordshire Regiment and/or any other regiment during the July - November 1916 Battle of the Somme. He is researching for a book on the fighting on the Somme commissioned by Penguin. The book will focus on the capture or attempted capture of the chain of villages and strongpoints which had to be overcome if the German line was to be broken and will cover actions involving the 1st, 1st/5th, 1st/6th, 11th and 13th Bns The 22nd Cheshire Regiment, the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 10th Bns The Worcestershire Regiment, the 2nd, 1st/5th, 1st/6th, 1st/7th, 11th,15th and 16th Bns The Sherwood Foresters, the 1st and 8th Bns The North Staffordshire Regiment and the 1st, 1st/6th, 7th and 8th Bns The South Staffordshire Regiment. By way of illustration only, these actions include the 11th and 13th Bns The 22nd (Cheshire) Regiment’s involvement in the capture on 21st October 1916 of Regina Trench at the third attempt, the valiant efforts by 1st/5th, 1st/7th and 11th Bns The Sherwood Foresters to reach German lines on 1st July 1916, the first day of the battle, the North Staffordshire Regiment’s desperate struggle with 1st Bn The South Staffordshire Regiment to repulse the German counter-attack on the north east side of Delville Wood on 31st August 1916 and the 8th Bn The South Staffordshire Regiment’s capture of Quadrangle Support Trench south of Contalmaison on 10th July 1916 and the heroic stand made by its machine gun post in Acid Drop Copse which had been left behind when the battalion retired from the German position; finally, he will include the rôles played by 1st and 3rd Bns The Worcestershire Regiment in the respective captures of Contalmaison and Leipzig salient on 7th July 1916.
Contact Hugh Sebag-Montefiore at 37 Tanza Road, London NW3 2UA or on 0207 435 1035 or at
sebags@hsmontefiore.com.
Haig Homes
Haig Homes is the leading UK provider of rented housing for ex-Service people with over 1,300 properties on small, well- managed estates ranging in size from about six houses up to the largest estate in Morden of over 270 homes. The properties, a mix of family-sized houses, maisonettes and flats, are spread throughout the United Kingdom in 47 different local authorities.
136 October 2010
The properties are for rental only. Waiting lists are open for housing in the following areas:
Before applying to Haig Homes for consideration to be accepted onto the waiting list, please make sure that you are eligible to apply to Haig Homes for housing.
A guide to eligibility can be found on their website at
www.haighomes.org.uk/docs/guide.pdf. Also, you must apply for local authority housing before applying to Haig Homes and you will need to tell them the outcome. Download an application form and other supporting documents from the website:
www.haighomes.org.uk or ask for an application form to be sent to you by post by leaving your details on an answerphone message service on 0208 685 5782 or by e-mailing
haig@haighomes.org.uk
Redundancy and
Pensions The number of people made redundant continues to grow; one problem is that the contributions to your pension scheme end but the pension fund with your name on it remains. What can you do with it? When you do get a new job, should you transfer the fund or not? The answer to these and many other questions can be found in a new leaflet from the Pensions Advisory Service called Pensions and Leaving Work.
Further details from
www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk or 0845 601 2923.
Healthcare
Meeting healthcare needs: a new leaflet is available to help regular Armed forces personnel, their families and veterans to understand how to access the health services they need and what to do if things go wrong.
The leaflet applies to health services in England and is available by visiting
www.dh.gov.uk or from your local NHS Health Centre.
Bereavement Allowance
Benefits are available for wives, husbands and civil partners who are below the state pension age when the spouse dies.
Each year, thousands of bereaved spouses who could get financial help simply do not claim. The benefits are not means tested and are paid for by the National Insurance contributions of the person who has died.
They have to be claimed within strict time limits, so it is important to claim as soon as possible.
Further details can be obtained from
www.dwp.gov.uk/advisers/
claimforms/bb1_print.pdf or from your local Job Centre Plus.
Registration of Mobility
Scooters with DVLA DVLA has confirmed that all Class 3 vehicles (which include some powered wheelchairs and scooters) must be registered for road use and licensed in the exempt “disabled” taxation class. This does not apply to class 2 vehicles. Class 3 vehicles are generally larger than Class 2 vehicles and are capable of exceeding 4 mph, but not exceeding 8 mph. They are required by law to have lights, indicators, a horn, rear view mirrors and rear reflectors but they are not allowed to travel on motorways, cycle or bus lanes. Class 22 vehicles are not allowed on the roads other than to cross them. To register and license a Class 3 vehicle, you need to complete Form V55/5 (for used vehicles) and take or send the form to your local DVLA office (this can be found by telephoning 0870 243 0444 or by visiting
www.direct.gov.uk/motoring). MOD Discount/Benefits
Scheme Veterans are automatically part of the MOD Discount/Benefits Scheme and over 1,100 companies offer discounts.
See
www.forcesdiscounts-mod.co.uk Priority NHS Healthcare
for Veterans Under long-standing arrangements, war pensioners in England, Scotland and Wales have been given priority NHS treatment for the conditions for which they receive a war pension, subject to clinical need. This provision has now been extended to all veterans where a person has a health problem as result of their military service. They no longer need first to have applied and become entitled to a war pension. When referring a patient whom they know to be a Veteran for secondary (more specialist) care, GPs have now been asked to consider if, in their clinical opinion, the condition may be related to the patient’s military service. Where this is the case and with the patient’s agreement, it should be made clear in the referral. Where secondary care clinicians agree that a veteran’s condition is likely to be Service-related, they have been asked to prioritise veterans over other patients with the same level of clinical need. Veterans will not be given priority over other patients with more urgent clinical needs. It is for the
The Mercian Eagle
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