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An Edinburgh-based charity for disabled veterans has launched an advertising campaign to raise awareness of its work and secure more homes for ex-service personnel.

Veterans Housing Scotland, the leading provider of homes for disabled veterans in Scotland, will celebrate its 110th anniversary in 2025, and had the Queen, her father and her grandfather as its patrons, yet it says many people know nothing about it.

The charity has helped 4,500 disabled veterans since it was founded during the First World War and currently has more than 650 homes across the country, helping around 1,000 veterans and their families. Some of the properties are owned directly by the charity, while others are council homes where it can place people. It is aiming to add another 25 local authority properties where it has nomination rights over the next three years, as well as building another 13 new homes. New poster campaigns on ScotRail and Facebook are aimed at letting the world know about all it does.

Kevin Gray is chief executive of Veterans Housing Scotland and a veteran himself. Picture: Ian Jacobs.

Today in Scotland, around three per cent of all those assessed as homeless by local authorities are military veterans. Recent research for Veterans Housing Scotland found around two in five adults in Scotland were themselves or knew someone who was a veteran, most often a family member. Most of those surveyed associated military veterans with Afghanistan, the Second World War, Iraq or the Falklands. And just over 50 per cent were aware of the particular issue of homelessness among veterans, with many seeing it as more important to address than homelessness in general.

Kevin Gray, chief executive of Veterans Housing Scotland and himself a veteran, said: "The results of our research into veterans and homelessness has shown that unless there is an issue involving the military then awareness for veterans generally and those organisations that provide homes is very low. We also learned that there is some confusion around the roles of the various veterans’ charities which is a key reason for our campaign. Alongside continuing to speak with local authorities on the possibility of VHS being awarded nomination rights we are keen to share the history of the charity. We have a wonderful story to tell."

Scottish Veterans Commissioner Susie Hamilton said: “This is a welcome campaign to help increase provision of suitable housing for Scotland’s veterans and we know that housing is a top concern in Service leavers’ minds, with over half leaving the Forces without having settled their housing requirements.”

A report in June 2021 found the challenges faced by disabled ex-service personnel were exacerbated by a lack of suitable affordable housing, with some veterans forced to take on accommodation which did not suit their needs, quickly affecting other areas of their lives.

Scottish Government veterans minister Keith Brown said: “I welcome this new campaign to help prevent homelessness for veterans. We are committed to preventing and ending homelessness, and are working with local authorities and partner organisations, including Veterans Housing Scotland to support veterans and their families across the country."

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Edinburgh charity's work helping to house disabled veterans highlighted in new poster campaign