Naples weekly newsletter March 1

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Op ASCEND – Careers After Service

                                                         

Op ASCEND is a free, government-backed service to support veterans in growing their careers.

Whether you’re a veteran seeking employment or an employer looking to attract skilled veterans to your workforce, find out what signing up to the Op ASCEND service can do for you.

For more information visit: https://careersafterservice.campaign.gov.uk

Give Us Time: New Motorhome Breaks Now Available

 

Give Us Time have had a new donation of breaks from the team at Sponsored Breaks. These are 3-day/2-night stays in their fully kitted out motorhome, which sleeps up to 4 people. The motorhome is based in Wolverhampton, so does need to be collected and dropped off back to site, and any drivers must be between 25 and 70 with 2 years’ experience of driving and less than 6 points on licence. Unfortunately no pets are allowed.

How to protect yourself from loan sharks

                                   

A loan shark – or illegal money lender - is someone who lends money illegally without proper authorisation from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

That means if you borrow from them, they don’t have to follow the rules – they can decide how much you pay back and when.

These criminals are not always easy to spot - they can be a friend, a fellow service member, even a senior officer.

Whoever they are, they will usually appear as a friendly face, offering you a favour. They may tell you that what they are offering is nothing more than peer-to-peer lending and their offer may seem hard to resist.

But very quickly the situation can spiral out of control, and you could find yourself having to pay back much more than you initially borrowed. You might even be subjected to threats, violence and intimidation if you struggle to make a payment.

Have Your Say: Accompanied Established Long-Term Relationship Overseas Pilot Survey open until 14 Apr

                                              

Please click the image to enlarge.

To take part in the Accompanied LTR(E) Overseas Pilot Survey please click HERE.

More information is available on Sway HERE.

Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust: Latest round of grants under The Armed Forces Families Fund - Early Years Programme

                                       

The Early Years programme is back for 2025 and we’re excited to share that applications are now open!

Part of the MOD’s Armed Forces Families Fund (AF3), The Early Years Programme will award grants between £5,000 and £80,000 towards projects that enable early childhood education and childcare settings to meet specific needs of young service children.

Serve and Protect Credit Union - March update

                                 

📢 Free financial webinars this March from Serve and Protect - don't miss out!
🌍 Eco-Friendly Ways to Save Money
📝 Budgeting 101: Take Control of Your Money
🚀 Credit Score 101: Boost Your Score
🔍 Before You Borrow: Things to Know
🔗 Register here: https://sandpcu.co.uk/webinars

Mindfulness can be a simple and effective tool to live in the moment and reduce financial stress 😊
Discover how to navigate your financial journey with clarity in Episode 10 of the Smile and Save Podcast.
🔗 Watch here: https://youtu.be/gb8ItNJ76_A?si=-IvTvTA_qSesz-GT

Start of Spring | 📆 Thu 20th March

Why not give your finances a fresh start and start saving from your pay with Serve and Protect Credit Union?

🔗 Learn more via their website: https://serveandprotectcu.co.uk/

Debt Awareness Week | 📆 Mon 24th - Sun 30th March
Boost your financial knowledge this Debt Awareness Week with the free webinars provided by our friends at Serve and Protect Credit Union!
Discover 10 steps to improve your credit score and what to consider before applying for credit.
🔗 Learn more via their website: https://serveandprotectcu.co.uk/education/webinars/

The Families Continuous Attitude Survey 2025 is open!

 

The Families Continuous Attitude Survey 2025 – which hears from Service spouses and civil partners about their views on Service family life – is now open!

Take part in this year’s tri-Service Families Continuous Attitude Survey (FamCAS) and help Defence to understand your experiences and thoughts across a broad range of areas. Your feedback will help Defence to make changes and develop policies to better meet your needs.

The survey invites a random sample of civil partners and spouses of regular serving personnel to take part. To see if you’ve been invited to complete the survey, and to access the survey, please check the online eligibility tool.

The eligibility tool and survey work best with Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge and will ask for a token/access code. This refers to your partner’s Service number, which is required for security reasons only. Please be assured that all survey responses are anonymous.

Recruit for Spouses Roadshow, Colchester – 25 Mar

                                         

Come and join Recruit for Spouses for a brew and a slice of cake 🍰☕️ while learning all about what RFS has to offer.

 

One of our reps will be there to chat about our programmes and how we can help you thrive.

 

• Mental Health & Wellbeing
• Foreign & Commonwealth
• Coaching & Mentoring
• Recruitment
• Resources
• and Much more!

Don't miss out on this chance to connect and discover new opportunities!

Head over to the portal to sign up https://portal.recruitforspouses.co.uk/users/sign_in

 

DIO Families First Newsletter – Issue 24

                         

This issue and previous issues can be read online at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/defence-infrastructure-organisation-service-family-accommodation