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

 

Forces Employment Charity: ‘Empowering You’ Employment Workshop, Manchester and online – 10-12 Mar

                                               

Empowering You is brought to you by the Forces Employment Charity, from Monday, 10 March, to Wednesday, 12 March 2025. It is a hybrid three-day employability and confidence-building workshop for spouses and partners, including military women, and those who are separated, divorced, or bereaved. Please note military spouses and partners of any gender may attend. 

  

Your top 5 reasons to attend: 

1. Receive a free one-to-one mentoring session with a corporate mentor 

2. Join us in person in Radbroke where Barclays will host our sessions 

3. Hear from employers about pathways into employment and regional job opportunities 

4. Understand the value that your transferrable skills can bring to employers 
5. Expert sessions delivered by our Families Employment Advisors

 

For more information and to register, please go to:  https://rfea.my.site.com/forcesemployment/s/community-event?id=a48N1000000C66TIAS

 

Blue Light Card Offers - February Round-up

                                               

Member Days:
Blue Light Card’s Member Days are back and bigger than ever before. Each year, attractions across the UK will close their gates to the public, on selected dates, and open them exclusively for our members. Expect smaller crowds, free parking, selected discounts on food and drink. Our first Member Day at Alton Towers takes place on Friday 7th March so don’ t delay in getting your tickets.

Find out more about Member Days here: Blue Light Card News

Mother’s Day campaign:

Give Us Time - March breaks for Forces families.

  

Give Us Time have provided a round up of the breaks they have available for Forces families for March below:

NEW!

21 – 28 March

Bird’s Nest, Carrick Shore, SW Scotland – property is for 2 people only Airbnb link

AVAILABLE AGAIN DUE TO CANCELLATION

Headspace App – Five FREE family & friends subscriptions available for Army Personnel and Army Civil Servants.

 

Click poster to enlarge. Army personnel and Army civil servants are eligible to sign up to Headspace for free, and also to extend this free subscription offer to five friends and family.

To sign up, please go to https://work.headspace.com/britisharmy/member-enroll

Please use your @mod.gov.uk, @armymail.gov.uk or @csmail.mod.uk email address to verify your account when prompted.

Headspace says, “We make mental health support accessible to everyone, no matter their background or experience. Through our flagship Headspace app, we provide mindfulness tools for everyday life, including meditations, sleepcasts, mindful movement and focus exercises. Our enterprise offerings combine this experience with a human-centered model of care, with coaching, therapy, psychiatry and EAP services under one roof. Our team of experts ranges from mental health clinicians, to Emmy award-winning producers and data scientists, working together as one to help millions of people around the world be healthier and more productive.”

Recruit for Spouses - online workshop for Foreign & Commonwealth military spouses and partners Tue 4 Mar.

                                         

Calling All Foreign & Commonwealth Military Spouses - Unlock Your Potential: Master Immigration, Visas, and Career Growth with Recruit for Spouses!

Are you navigating the complexities of life in the UK? Let RFS help you thrive! Join the exclusive workshop hosted by the Army Families Federation (AFF) and Recruit for Spouses (RFS), tailored specifically for Foreign & Commonwealth military spouses.

Defence launches the Families Hub – an information portal to help navigate Service family life.

 

The Families Hub – which signposts to information, support and organisations to help navigate all stages of Service family life – has launched.

For the first time, Armed Forces families will be able to access a “one stop shop” digital platform – which signposts to a wealth of information, support and organisations – to help you navigate Service family life.