The Army Benevolent Fund, formerly ABF The Soldiers' Charity, is the national

charity Charity may refer to: Common meanings * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sha ...

of the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

. Since 1944, it has provided a lifetime of support to soldiers, veterans and their immediate families when they are in need. In the financial year 22/23, the charity helped 70,000 people in 45 countries worldwide, and funded 74 other charities and organisations that deliver frontline services.

History

Winston Churchill’s War Cabinet discussed the formation of the Army Benevolent Fund a national charity for the British Army to ensure support would be available for soldiers, veterans and their families in peacetime. The Army Benevolent Fund was founded in 1944 as the Army Benevolent Fund. The demobilisation of soldiers after the two World Wars had put an enormous strain on Regimental and Corps charitable funds and highlighted the need for a national charity to give practical help to soldiers and veterans. Its first patron was

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of In ...

, who was later succeeded by

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

and then

Queen Camilla Camilla (born Camilla Rosemary Shand, later Parker Bowles, 17 July 1947) is List of British royal consorts, Queen of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms as the wife of King Charles III. Camilla was raised in East ...

. The charity continues to support the Army family by giving grants to individuals and other specialist charities that help soldiers and their families. It works with veterans from every conflict since the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, including those from recent operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2010, the charity changed its name to ABF The Soldiers’ Charity, in response to external factors within the sector. In November 2023, after research confirmed the name Army Benevolent Fund had remained a widely recognised brand, which resonates powerfully with core supporters and serving soldiers the charity reverted to the name Army Benevolent Fund

Events

The charity runs key national events as part of its fundraising activities: The Cateran Yomp – The annual Cateran

Yomp Yomp is Royal Marines slang describing a long-distance loaded march carrying full kit. It was popularised by journalistic coverage in 1982 during the Falklands War. The origin of the word is unclear, and there is no evidence to suggest that i ...

sees participants trek across the 54 mile Cateran Trail in Blairgowrie, Perthshire. Since the first Yomp in 2010 it has raised over £4,400,000 for the Charity. Adventure Challenges – The charity regularly undertakes a variety of adventure challenges, including tandem skydives with The Red Devils (the official parachute display team of both The Parachute Regiment (The Paras) and the British Army), the

London Marathon The London Marathon (also known as the TCS London Marathon for sponsorship reasons) is an annual marathon held in London, England. Founded by athletes Chris Brasher and John Disley in 1981, it is typically held in April, although it moved to Oct ...

and the Frontline Walk.

Partner charities

The Army Benevolent Fund is a key funder for many specialist organisations who rely on such funding to continue their bespoke support to the Army family and partners, alongside over 92 military service charities including the

Royal British Legion The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants. Membership Service in th ...

RAF Benevolent Fund The Royal Air Force Benevolent Fundis the Royal Air Force's leading welfare charity. It supports current and former members of the RAF, their partners and families, providing practical, emotional and financial support, whenever it is needed. The F ...

, Royal Navy & Royal Marines Charity,

SSAFA SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity, also known as the Soldiers', Sailors', and Airmen's Families Association, is a UK charity that provides trusted support to serving men and women and veterans from the British Armed Forces and their families or dep ...

and Combat Stress.

Beneficiaries and ambassadors

Every year, thousands of individuals received welfare support from ABF The Soldiers' Charity. Many of these individuals have gone on to become ambassadors for The Soldiers' Charity, sharing their stories in order to raise much needed funds and awareness for the cause. These individuals include: Stewart Harris, former infantryman served with the 1st Battalion The Welsh Guards. Whilst on tour in Afghanistan in 2012, a roadside bomb hurled Stewart's vehicle into a ditch leaving him with brain damage; the impact of which has left him partially sighted and partially deaf. The same year he also witnessed three of his comrades shot dead by an Afghan policeman. Stewart was later diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder before leaving the Army at the age of 28; the culmination of 13 years' service. He now spends his time trying to help other injured soldiers suffering with mental health issues. John Cutting served in the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

from 1970 to 1974. He joined the Army when he was 18 years old and deployed on back to back tours of Northern Ireland at the height of

the Troubles The Troubles () were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted for about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it began in the late 1960s and is usually deemed t ...

. John also served as a Reservist in the infantry between 1982 and 1984. John suffers with PTSD and has found therapy in art. He decided to apply for a three-year BA (Hons) degree course in Fine Art at

Teesside University Teesside University is a public university with its main campus in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire in North East England. It was officially opened as ''Constantine Technical College'' in 1930, before becoming a polytechnic in 1969, and finally g ...

and since specialises in sculptures. With thanks to the Trustees of The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo Charities (Limited), The Soldiers' Charity stepped in to help John with a bursary to help him with living costs whilst he studies. Joseph Connor, a Trooper with 15th (Scottish) Reconnaissance Regiment, found himself on the frontline of the Allied Invasion of Normandy during

Operation Overlord Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allies of World War II, Allied operation that launched the successful liberation of German-occupied Western Front (World War II), Western Europe during World War II. The ope ...

. He was part of a recce team whose job was to pinpoint enemy positions, often being the driver of the front vehicle going towards the German lines. Joseph has recently been awarded the

Chevalier de la Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

. ABF The Soldiers' Charity funded a new driveway that allowed Joseph to drive his car and his mobility scooter right up to his front door. Brenda Hale, a

Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is a Unionism in Ireland, unionist, Ulster loyalism, loyalist, British nationalist and national conservative political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1971 during the Troubles by Ian Paisley, who ...

politician in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, lost her husband Captain Mark Hale, 2 RIFLES, when he was serving in Afghanistan in 2009. In 2011 Brenda was elected to the

Northern Ireland Assembly The Northern Ireland Assembly (; ), often referred to by the metonym ''Stormont'', is the devolved unicameral legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliam ...

for the

Lagan Valley The Lagan Valley (, Ulster Scots: ''Glen Lagan'') is an area of Northern Ireland between Belfast and Lisburn. The River Lagan rises on Slieve Croob in County Down and flows generally northward discharging into Belfast Lough. For a section, the ...

. Andy Reid, who lost both his legs and his right arm after stepping on an IED plate whilst serving with the 3rd Battalion

The Yorkshire Regiment The Royal Yorkshire Regiment (14th/15th, 19th and 33rd/76th Foot) (abbreviated R YORKS) is an infantry regiment of the British Army, created by the amalgamation of three historic regiments in 2006. It lost one battalion as part of the Army 2020 ...

in Afghanistan in 2009. Since recovering from his injuries, Andy has written an autobiography, ''Standing Tall'', and in 2010 was presented with the Overcoming Adversity award at

The Sun Military Awards The ''Sun'' Military Awards (televised as ''A Night of Heroes: The Sun Military Awards'' since 2009) is an annual awards ceremony which honours members of the British armed forces and civilians involved with the forces. The awards are organise ...

ceremony. Andy is now a motivational speaker working with some of the UK's leading companies.

High-profile supporters

High-profile individuals who have provided support for the charity include people from the worlds of film, TV, sport, music and entertainment, who choose to support the charity on a wide range of fundraising, awareness and campaigning activity. Previous and ongoing supporters of the Charity include

J. K. Rowling Joanne Rowling ( ; born 31 July 1965), known by her pen name , is a British author and philanthropist. She is the author of ''Harry Potter'', a seven-volume fantasy novel series published from 1997 to 2007. The series has List of best-sell ...

Rowan Atkinson Rowan Sebastian Atkinson (born 6 January 1955) is an English actor, comedian and writer. He played the title roles in the sitcoms ''Blackadder'' (1983–1989) and '' Mr. Bean'' (1990–1995), and in the film series '' Johnny English'' (2003– ...

Will Carling William David Charles Carling (born 12 December 1965) is an English former rugby union player. He was England's youngest captain, aged 22, and won 72 caps from 1988 to 1996, captaining England 59 times. Under his captaincy, England won Five N ...

Jeremy Clarkson Jeremy Charles Robert Clarkson (born 11 April 1960) is an English television presenter, journalist, farmer, and author who specialises in Driving, motoring. He is best known for hosting the television programmes ''Top Gear (2002 TV series), T ...

Judi Dench Dame Judith Olivia Dench (born 9 December 1934) is an English actress. Widely considered one of Britain's greatest actors, she is noted for her versatility, having appeared in films and television, as well as for her numerous roles on the stage ...

Ben Fogle Benjamin Myer Fogle (born 3 November 1973) is an English broadcaster, writer and adventurer, best known for his presenting roles with British television channels Channel 5, BBC and ITV. Early life Fogle is the son of English actress Julia ...

Stephen Fry Sir Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director, narrator and writer. He came to prominence as a member of the comic act Fry and Laurie alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring in ''A Bit of ...

Michael Gambon Sir Michael John Gambon (; 19 October 1940 – 27 September 2023) was an Irish-English actor. Gambon started his acting career with Laurence Olivier as one of the original members of the Royal National Theatre. Over his six-decade-long career ...

Bear Grylls Edward Michael "Bear" Grylls (; born 7 June 1974) is a British adventurer, writer, television presenter and former Special Air Service, SAS trooper who is also a survival expert. He first drew attention after embarking on a number of notable ...

Colin Jackson Colin Ray Jackson, (born 18 February 1967) is a British former sprint and hurdling athlete who specialised in the 110 metres hurdles. During a career in which he represented Great Britain and Wales, he won an Olympic silver medal, became w ...

Alex Jones Alexander Emerick Jones (born February 11, 1974) is an American Far-right politics, far-right radio host, radio show host and prominent conspiracy theorist. He hosts ''The Alex Jones Show'' from Austin, Texas. ''The Alex Jones Show'' is the lo ...

Lorraine Kelly Lorraine Kelly (born 30 November 1959) is a Scottish television presenter. She has presented various television shows for ITV and STV, including '' Good Morning Britain'' (1988–1992), ''GMTV'' (1993–2010), ''This Morning'' (2003–2005, ...

Josh Lewsey Owen Joshua Lewsey MBE (born 30 November 1976) is an English former rugby union player who represented England and the British and Irish Lions. Lewsey is a former British Army Officer. Background and early life Lewsey was born in Bromley, Lo ...

Gary Lineker Gary Winston Lineker ( ; born 30 November 1960) is an English Sports broadcasting, sports broadcaster and former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Striker (association football), striker. Lineker is the only player t ...

Joanna Lumley Dame Joanna Lamond Lumley (born 1 May 1946) is an Indian-born British actress, presenter, author, television producer, activist and former model. She has won two BAFTA TV Awards for her role as Patsy Stone in the BBC sitcom ''Absolutely Fabulo ...

Jason Manford Jason John Manford (born 26 May 1981) is an English comedian, presenter, actor and singer. Manford was a team captain on the Channel 4 panel show ''8 Out of 10 Cats'' from 2007 until 2010 and has presented numerous television shows for the BBC an ...

Michael Morpurgo Sir Michael Andrew Bridge Morpurgo ('' né'' Bridge; 5 October 1943) is an English book author, poet, playwright, and librettist who is known best for children's novels such as '' War Horse'' (1982). His work is noted for its "magical storytelli ...

Bill Nighy William Francis Nighy (; born 12 December 1949) is an English actor. Known for his work in numerous stage, television and film productions, he has received several awards including a British Academy Film Award and a Golden Globe Award, and ...

Jeremy Paxman Jeremy Dickson Paxman (born 11 May 1950) is an English former broadcaster, journalist and author, born in Yorkshire. Born in Leeds, Paxman was educated at Malvern College and St Catharine's College, Cambridge, where he edited the undergraduate ...

Maggie Smith Dame Margaret Natalie Smith (28 December 1934 – 27 September 2024) was a British actress. Known for her wit in both comedic and dramatic roles, she had List of Maggie Smith performances, an extensive career on stage and screen for over seve ...

Caroline Quentin Caroline Quentin (born Caroline Amanda Jane Jones; 11 July 1960) is an English actress, broadcaster and television presenter. Quentin became known for her television appearances, portraying Dorothy in ''Men Behaving Badly'' (1992–1998), Maddie ...

Dan Snow Daniel Robert Snow (born 3 December 1978) is a British Popular history, popular historian and television presenter. He is an ambassador of the Electoral Reform Society (ERS). Early life and education Born in Westminster, London Dan Snow is the ...

Chris Tarrant Christopher John Tarrant (born 10 October 1946) is a retired English broadcaster, television personality, radio DJ and stand up comedian. He is best known for presenting the ITV children's television show '' Tiswas'' from 1974 to 1981, and th ...

Jonny Wilkinson Jonathan Peter Wilkinson, (born 25 May 1979) is an English former rugby union player. A fly-half, he played for Newcastle Falcons and French side Toulon and represented England and the British & Irish Lions. He is particularly known for scori ...

Ray Winstone Raymond Andrew Winstone (; born 19 February 1957) is an English television, stage, and film actor with a career spanning five decades. Having worked with many prominent directors, including Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg, Winstone is known ...

Union J Union J were an English boy band, consisting of members JJ Hamblett, Jaymi Hensley, George Shelley and Josh Cuthbert. Shelley left the group in 2016 and was replaced by Casey Johnson, who left several months later, Cuthbert left the grou ...

Blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB color model, RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB color model, RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between Violet (color), violet and cyan on the optical spe ...

, and

James Blunt James Blunt (born James Hillier Blount, 22 February 1974) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. He is known for his songs "You're Beautiful" and "Goodbye My Lover". As a British Army captain in the aftermath of the Kosovo War, Blunt ...

Corporate sponsors

The charity has a range of corporate partners and supporters that includes

MBDA MBDA is a European multinational corporation specialized in the design, development and manufacturing of Missile, missiles and related systems.Barclays Barclays PLC (, occasionally ) is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services ...

and

BAE Systems BAE Systems plc is a British Multinational corporation, multinational Aerospace industry, aerospace, military technology, military and information security company, based in London. It is the largest manufacturer in Britain as of 2017. It is ...

Patrons and trustees

Patron:

President: General Sir James Everard KCB CBE Chair of the Board of Trustees: Simon Heale

References

External links

Army Benevolent Fund
* *{{Scottish charity, SC039189, name=Army Benevolent Fund British veterans' organisations British Army 1944 establishments in the United Kingdom Organizations established in 1944 Charities based in London