Royal British Veterans Enterprise

04/09/2026

We’re pleased to introduce our Resident Spotlight, offering an insight into the lives and experiences of those who call the RBVE Village home.

In our first spotlight, we share part of Pat’s journey and explore what finding a home at Queen Elizabeth Court has meant to her.

03/09/2026

Building confidence is an important part of moving towards employment.

Our Lifeworks team supports veterans to recognise their strengths, develop new skills and feel more confident when exploring employment opportunities.

Here are three confidence tips from the team to help you move forward and recognise the value you can bring to the workplace.

26/08/2026

The Prime Minister’s decision to donate 15% of his salary to homelessness charities is a welcome signal of intent, especially as it sits alongside more than £440 million now committed to tackling rough sleeping.

But as our Chief Executive writes in The Big Issue, an emergency bed is not the same as a route out of homelessness.

At RBVE, we see that long‑term independence comes from three things working together: a home, a job, and a community. It's why 72% of the veterans who move on from our village do so after securing paid work first.

Ending homelessness requires partnership across government, employers, health services, communities, and charities.

We'd love to see more communities like ours, with the investment and partnerships to deliver it at scale across the UK, so that an emergency bed is only the beginning of someone's future.

Read the full piece below!

Andy Burnham's ambition to end rough sleeping by Christmas is good but the veterans I work with need more than a bed to escape homelessness.

25/08/2026

Work continues to progress across Phase 2C of RBVE’s Centenary Village, which will deliver 20 new homes for veterans and their families in need of safe, secure housing.

The project has now reached week 28 of its 55-week construction programme. The top floors of Blocks B1 and B2 are taking shape, while Block B3 has progressed to roof coverings and preparations for internal heating and flooring works. Roof trusses have also been installed on the houses, with roof coverings due to begin next.

The next stages will include the installation of windows and doors, further roof coverings and continued work inside the buildings.

Scheduled for completion at the end of February 2027, the work will provide more homes where veterans and their families can find stability, access support and build a positive future.

24/08/2026

From precisely cutting the aluminium to printing and applying the reflective sign face, take a look at how our skilled teams bring each sign together at Britain’s Bravest Manufacturing Company (BBMC).

BBMC, part of RBVE’s national Social Enterprise, delivers road, rail, commercial and site signage for clients and contracts across the UK. More than 70% of our workforce are veterans, people with disabilities, or both.

By choosing BBMC, customers receive high-quality, competitively priced signage while demonstrating their commitment to social value. Every contract helps create meaningful employment opportunities for veterans and people with disabilities, enabling organisations to achieve their commercial objectives while delivering measurable social impact.

20/08/2026

Romane met her husband while he was serving as a lieutenant - later a captain - in the New Zealand Defence Force. When he transferred to the British Army in 2024, Romane followed him to the UK, settling in York while he worked - starting again in every sense, with no familiar support network.

She'd built a career as an administrator at Massey University in New Zealand, but the transition to the UK job market wasn't easy. Romane describes herself as someone who becomes extremely nervous in interviews, even when she knows she can do the job, and the pressure to settle quickly only added to the strain.

While applying for her visa, the Army Families Federation (AFF) told her about Lifeworks. With her coach, she learned to adapt her CV to UK standards, prepare for interviews, and manage the nerves that had always held her back. One piece of advice stayed with her: if you've been invited to an interview, it's because they already believe you're capable.

Romane went on to receive two job offers, choosing a full-time role as an Imaging Support Worker at NHS York Hospital, where she's since thrived. Her Lifeworks coach continued to check in long after the course ended - support didn't stop when the programme did.

Thanks to the generous support from funders like The Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust and UK Ministry of Defencee, we’re able to offer this training free of charge to families of serving military personnel, like Romane.

Read Romane's story - https://wearelifeworks.org.uk/romanes-story/

15/08/2026

In 1942, at just sixteen, Percy lied to the recruiting sergeant about his age to join the Army. He went on to serve with the 14th Army, known as the “Forgotten Army”, in the Burma campaign, one of the harshest and least‑recognised theatres of the Second World War.

Percy was shot in 1945 and later pulled from the line. He earned the Burma Star for his service.

Now 100 years old, Percy lives in the RBVE Village among a community of veterans. This VJ Day, he shares his story so the experiences of the Forgotten Army are never forgotten again.

11/08/2026

Following the unveiling of RBVE as the UK’s first VALOUR Centre by Calvin Bailey MBE MP, our CEO Lisa Farmer OBE shares what this means for veterans across the country.

Led nationally by the Office for Veterans' Affairs, VALOUR builds on the model we already deliver - homes, jobs and communities - by joining up support across 42 referral partners and strengthening the way veterans access the help they need. From employment and housing to wellbeing and specialist services, VALOUR ensures no one has to navigate that journey alone.

Find your closest VALOUR Centre here: https://valour.campaign.gov.uk/valour-the-uk-wide-veteran-support-system/valour-veteran-support-centres/

10/08/2026

For more than 20 years, Laura's husband has served in the British Army, and together they navigated deployments, relocations and everything that comes with military family life - while Laura built her own career as a qualified paramedic, working in local ambulance services before moving into the NHS 111 service.

Frequent moves and long separations made steady career progression difficult, and when Laura stepped away from frontline ambulance work as a new parent, the routine she had relied on disappeared almost overnight. Translating years of clinical experience into a new path felt far more complicated than she expected.

A referral from the Forces Employment Charity brought her to Lifeworks. The course created a space where Laura felt supported rather than judged. Hearing others on the programme share similar experiences reminded her she wasn't alone, and gradually she began to see the qualities military family life had built in her - resilience, adaptability, problem-solving - as genuine professional assets.

Soon after completing the programme, Laura secured a role as a Clinical Advisor with Herts Urgent Care, work that draws on her clinical background while giving her family the stability they needed.

Looking back, Laura describes Lifeworks as a turning point. It reminded her that asking for help is a strength, not a weakness, and showed her that there are organisations genuinely committed to supporting people through transition. She would recommend Lifeworks to anyone connected to the Armed Forces navigating change, uncertainty, or a loss of confidence. For her, it marked the beginning of a new chapter.

Thanks to the generous support from funders like Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust and UK Ministry of Defence, we’re able to offer this training free of charge to families of serving military personnel, like Laura.