Health Needs Assessment for Serving Veterans - Find a freedom of information request

1. When was the last health needs assessment for serving personnel veterans and the wider forces family (veterans’ merchant navy wife/husband widow children of and cadet forces) was undertaken by LCC?

As the forces community is a register community in accordance with the Armed Forces Act 2011, it is a legal requirement for a needs assessment to be undertaken specifically for the armed forces community. As such could you please advise when the last assessment was undertaken (if one was undertaken can you please enclose a copy of said needs assessment) and if one has not recently been undertaken when will one be undertaken to ensure that the council is legally compliant and is ensuring it is properly aware of the specific needs of the armed forces community which it is required to do as the forces community is a registered group as BME are in legislation.

1. LCC does not undertake needs assessments on specific communities often and has not completed a needs assessment for either active or retired armed services personnel in Lincolnshire. LCC produces a regularly reviewed Joint Strategic Needs Assessment where intelligence on the armed services community is considered within specific topics e.g. Mental Health.

Although we haven't undertaken a dedicated needs assessment for armed forces personnel, we discharge our duties to this population in a number of ways. Some examples include:

•  Lincolnshire County Council co-chair the Lincolnshire Armed Forces Partnership Board which meets twice a year to look at issues affecting the armed forces community and to work in partnership to meet the aims of the Covenant.
• LCC has an Armed Forces Champion in Cllr Mrs Sue Woolley, supported by Cllr Mike Thompson. Cllr Woolley includes an update on the Armed Forces Covenant work in her statement for Council. LCC are amongst the 23 companies across the East Midlands that have successfully gained Silver status in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme, announced last year.