Armed Forces Week 2026: Share your messages of support!

Share your messages of support for our Armed Forces! This Armed Forces Week, we're looking for messages of thanks from friends and family of our Armed Forces. Email your message to MODComms-DDC@mod.gov.uk

Service Cotswold Centre

The Services Cotswold Centre (SCC) is a tri-Service facility, managed by Headquarters Army Welfare Service (AWS) and funded by Headquarters Regional Command on behalf of the MOD.

It provides short-term transit accommodation for Service Personnel (SP), family members and MOD civil servants. The key role of SCC is to accommodate varying numbers of vulnerable Service families, often with diverse and complex welfare needs.

The SCC accommodation consists of 60 self-contained chalet style homes and a 37 bed residential unit and is located in Neston, near Corsham Wiltshire.

The SCC is used for:Emergency accommodation for military families, spouses and civil partners who have been evacuated from assignments
Meeting a welfare need such as supporting injured personnel, their carers and/or immediate family members
Responding to family disruption such as marital breakdown
Provision of accommodation between assignments – both before taking up a post or repatriation back to the UK
Accommodation for discharging married personnel
Short Breaks
Contact Housing
Transit accommodation – both duty and welfare

The centre has recently changed its telephone number to TEL: 0331 1432730

FIND OUT MORE: Services Cotswold Centre - GOV.UK

EMAIL: RC-AWS-SCC-Bookings@mod.gov.uk

Army HQ: Family Welfare Matters Edition 03 now available

To read online with accessible links, please go to Welfare Matters May 2026

For those with access to MODnet, both this edition and the full internal Welfare Matters newsletter is uploaded onto our SharePoint site under the Welfare Latest News section. The link to access is: Welfare

Little Troopers Family Reconnection Weekend July 2026

 Family Reconnection Weekend – July 2026
Applications are now open!
We’re heading to Cuffley Activity Centre in Hertfordshire for a woodland weekend full of activities, connection and time together as a military family. Families will also have the chance to connect with others from the military community who truly understand military life.
Register your interest now, open to families with children in Year 4 and above.
We can’t wait to welcome lots of you to our second Family Reconnection Weekend of 2026!
Applications https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/XH8RVPF...

BELGIUM: CHAT HV Programme at SHAPE House, Coming Soon

SSAFA's CHAT HV program is coming soon to SHAPE House. 

This program gives military families access to informal parental support whilst also giving them the opportunity to build friendships and support networks. SSAFA recognise that parenting can be a lonely experience and for some in remote military locations this can be exacerbated by local practices. This program aims to break this barriers down.

Although Florence the Health Visitor will be in attendance, any discussions will be parent-led with the opportunity to have some Health Visitor support if needed.

These sessions are open to anyone across the UK military network. 

More information to follow!

Information provided by SHAPE HIVE

NAPLES: Sassi "Stones" of Matera

 

Matera is one of the most unusual cities in southern Italy, built into cliffs with thousands of cave dwellings known as sassi. What makes Matera stand out is how people lived in these Matera cave homes for centuries, often in poor conditions until they were abandoned in mid 20th century. In recent decades, restoration has turned Matera into a UNESCO World Heritage site and a destination for travellers who want something very different from the coastal towns of Puglia.

The city is divided into two main sassi districts: Sassi Barisano and Sasso Caveosa. Both are worth visiting, and you can cover them in one long day of walking. Sasso Barisano has more hotels, restaurants, and shops, so it feels more developed. Sasso Caveoso is rougher with many caves still looking untouched, which gives you a stronger impression of how people once lived here. Walking between the two districts involves steep climbs and uneven stone paths, so wearing sturdy shoes is essential.

Information provided by NAPLES HIVE

NAPLES: The Path of the Gods - A Must do whilst living in Lago Patria

 

The Path of the Gods, he Sentiero degli Dei, between Bomerano and Positano on the Amalfi Coast is a high level path that traverses the cliff face above the coast with continuous views of the Gulf of Salerno, the Faraglioni rock of Capri visible offshore, and the terraced villages of the coast below.

The path is one of the most celebrated walks in Italy. The path is approximately 8 Kilometres one way and is best walked east to west with the sun behind you in the afternoon.
Those who walk the Sentiero degli Dei in May or October when the path is less crowded and the light is at its best describe it as the finest coastal walking experience available in Italy and say the views rival anything available on any coastal path in Europe.

Information provided by NAPLES HIVE.

BRUNEI: Visa Application Guide - Leave to Enter & Indefinite Leave to Enter - Procedures and Requirements

Please click the images to enlarge.

Slide 1 - Leave to Enter – Procedures and requirements. Link.

Slide 2 - Indefinite Leave to Enter – Procedures and requirements. Link.

PoC – WO2 Bhishma Jabegu, RAWO 2RGR
Email: Bhishma.Jabegu402@mod.gov.uk

Information provided by BRUNEI HIVE.

BRUNEI: Do you have a visa or consular issue? Please follow the correct procedure....

CONSULAR AND VISA ISSUES

All consular and visa applications relating to SPs’ service in Brunei are processed through the Garrison RAO Dept, with the RAWO as the Garrison lead. All applications, and any issues arising from them, must be processed through the RAO Dept to ensure that the CoC can manage applications on their behalf.

Applications from BFB are processed by either the High Commission in Kuala Lumpur or direct through the Home Office. The British High Commission in Brunei do not process any visa or consular applications and are not able to assist SP with them. SP must not email the BHC in Brunei direct but should direct any issues to the RAWO, who will then engage with outside agencies to expedite applications or resolve issues where necessary.

Please email all enquiries through to 2RGR RAWO: 

Information provided by BRUNEI HIVE. 

BELGIUM: DIO European Support Group Families Newsletter

Please find below the May Edition of the DIO Families Newsletter.

Information provided by SHAPE HIVE