The successful Military Matters service was launched almost 14 years ago. The specialist housing information and advice service is provided by Housing Options Scotland and funded by the Scottish Government and supported by grant funding from the Veterans Foundation.

As part of an initiative to improve awareness across the Armed Forces community, a newly revised and updated online booklet has just been launched. In due course this will also be made available in print format too.

Experience and feedback from the Scottish Armed Forces community have influenced the decision to rewrite and update the booklet, titled ‘Finding a Home in Scotland as part of the Armed Forces community’.

It is aimed at a wide audience: those wanting to take their first steps on the housing ladder while still in the military, families looking at their options at transition into Civvy Street, or those struggling to find accommodation and looking for organisations that can help them.

It comes at a time when there is a lot going on in the military housing and veteran’s space. From a comprehensive review of military housing and the setting up of the Defence Housing Service to the ongoing campaign to eradicate veterans’ homelessness through Op FORTITUDE and actions to address recommendations in Scotland from the Veterans’ Homelessness Prevention Pathway.

The online resource is expected to be more popular with organisations providing direct support, while the hard copy has traditionally proved popular as a “take away” from face-to-face briefings and presentations and from the education, welfare and families centres at military bases across the country.

Tony Carruthers, a Royal Navy veteran and the Military Matters Associate at HOS has been involved with Military Matters since the service was first launched and has seen at first-hand how useful the resource can be.

He said: “In our experience of delivering information sessions to the Armed Forces community, having something to take away and reflect on has always been popular. We began to receive requests for more copies, so we took the opportunity to refresh the booklet with up-to-date housing information and links.

“It is a helpful summary of information and provides signposts to better help members of the Armed Forces community make more informed choices about their accommodation options.”