Blind Veterans UK

Blind Veterans UK, founded in 1915 as St Dunstan’s by Sir Arthur Pearson to aid blinded soldiers returning from World War I, is a specialist UK charity dedicated to providing lifelong, free, person-centred support to ex-UK Armed Forces personnel and National Service completers living with significant sight loss, regardless of cause. Its mission ensures no eligible veteran faces blindness alone, empowering them to regain independence, wellbeing, and purposeful lives through core values of compassion, respect, dignity, and holistic care. With over a century of expertise, it operates UK-wide via rehabilitation centres in Rustington (West Sussex) and Llandudno (North Wales), plus nationwide outreach.

The charity delivers comprehensive direct services, including skills training for daily living, mobility and orientation, digital inclusion, adaptive technology and equipment grants, nursing, residential/respite care, emotional and peer support, befriending to combat isolation, tailored physical activities, adapted arts/sports, holidays, and community events fostering military bonds. Priorities target high-need older veterans and younger service leavers, with initiatives like the No One Alone campaign to reach unaware individuals, emphasising empowerment, stigma reduction, and measurable rehabilitation outcomes.

Blind Veterans UK does not accept unsolicited applications from charities or organisations—it is not a grant-maker for external projects—and only supports eligible individuals via rolling, needs-assessed direct applications (online/postal, requiring service records and sight loss proof, with assistance available). No income/size rules, geographic restrictions within the UK, or religious limits apply to beneficiaries. Distinctive for its exclusive veteran-sight-loss focus, bespoke lifelong interventions, and high charitable expenditure, it stands apart from general funders by channelling resources solely into individual holistic care.