December 2025

Here at the Standing Tall Foundation, we are extremely proud to support not just the wider community, but also veterans with their Mental Health, Addiction, Welfare and Housing needs.

As an organisation, we have always positively promoted and supported Veterans, especially due to Andy’s background and the amount of work he personally does for the veteran community.

We know that veterans are more likely to access the support they need if it is in one place, aligned, within a safe space they recognise, and fundamentally in a friendly and non-clinical environment. Our programme offers a unique offer of holistic support in one place; a one stop shop helping veterans to mental and physical health services, alcohol and substance misuse, wellness coaching, financial budgeting and planning, employment and education support which would otherwise mean engaging with multiple different agencies.

For the last 12 months, we have run a weekly Ex-Services group here at the Foundation from 9am-11am where members from the Armed Forces and Blue Light Services meet for breakfast, brews and banter. Every month, veterans from the group go out on an organised trip and regularly meet up with other veterans from Southport and surrounding areas.

In the last 5 years we have supported over 600 Veterans with their Mental health, Wellbeing and Employment opportunities. 

More recently in October, we were excited to announce we had partnered with Healthier Heroes CIC to open a brand new HMO housing project in St Helens with 4 otherwise homeless veterans, now living there.

The project was only made possible thanks to the collaboration of local businesses such as St Helens Flooring, Lindab and our partner B-Engineering’s dedication to get the house fully converted into an HMO. The initiative transformed the house into a secure and dignified home for those who have served. Each contribution, from energy-efficient heating systems to new en-suite bathrooms, enhances the quality of life for these deserving individuals. Thanks to all the companies that donated their time and resources to get this project over the line.

This development will create much-needed housing for Veterans, ensuring that we can continue our mission of not leaving any Veteran homeless or unsupported on our streets.

Healthier Heroes will provide safe and secure accommodation alongside wraparound support services. The STF will play a vital role in supporting this initiative by delivering Mental health and well-being services, Addiction support and diversionary activities.

Working together will strengthen the support network available to Veterans within the project, complementing the housing solution provided by Healthier Heroes. Together, our goal is clear: to provide sustainable housing and holistic support so that every Veteran has the chance to rebuild, recover, and thrive.

Our Co-Founder Andy Reid said:

“We reached out to our foundation partners for support with the project and the response was amazing. From free materials and labour, expert advice and hard graft the HMO is now finished and we are delighted with the results. We now hand the keys over to Healthier Heroes and let them do what they do best …support our veterans within full wrap around support. Thank you to our partners for making this possible.”

If you are a Veteran and need support – please reach out to us or come to our group on Friday. Everyone is welcome!

We are delighted to have partnered with Chorley Group and Chorley Nissan Wigan who have very kindly supported and provided us with an amazing car to use for Foundation purposes.

This will help us enormously with visiting vulnerable clients, allowing us to support them with their mental health, addiction and welfare needs. We can also use to  transport our veterans on days out and travelling to STF events.

Thanks to Andy Turner MBE and his team, we are truly grateful.

 

We cannot thank everyone enough for their involvement in our Xmas Toy Appeal this year. Friday saw us hold our Wrap and Pack event in the marquee here at the STF Hub at the Living Well Building.  Everyone came in their Xmas jumpers to either wrap presents or deliver sacks of gifts to the schools across our Borough.

The day saw more than 60 volunteers from a wide range of companies including PepsiCo, TRS Training, A+ B Engineering, Cosey Homes, VTA Recruitment, Allisons Financial. Integral Legal, B-Engineering, Carma, St Helens Council and Natwest.  We also had help from friends of the Foundation, family members and our Veterans who helped wrap, pack and deliver over 3000 presents to 1020 children and their families.

These were distributed amongst 40 local schools identified as having pupils with the greatest need as well as homeless families, refuges, those in temporary accommodation and Young Carers, ensuring the most vulnerable children have something to open on Christmas day.

We were overwhelmed with the generosity of people in the town as they donated gifts to Dunelm, Natwest, REDS Cafe, Smyths Toys and Cosey Homes. We also had donations from PepsiCo, TVS Supply Chain, Glassbond, Nine Arches, Helen & Eddie Hoffman, Morson and other kind individuals that brought toys and gifts in.

Thanks to each and every one of you that donated, wrapped, packed, delivered and supported along the way. With your help, these children will now receive a gift this Xmas and you have made a real difference.

Without you, none of this would have been possible!

Here are some of the pictures from the day:

We are ecstatic and extremely proud to announce that the Standing Tall Foundation now has an official Mascot!

Meet our new furry friend “Bastion the Bulldog” who will be representing the Foundation at all our events moving forward.

Back in the summer we launched a mascot competition across all the primary schools in the Borough asking the children to design a mascot based on our Co-Founder Andy’s background and our Foundation values:

• BE KIND
• HELP OTHERS
• HAVE COURAGE
• BE MINDFUL
• BE HONEST

We were amazed by the response and the fantastic designs we received back from the children. So much so, it was virtually impossible for us to choose only one winner! The Mascot was kindly sponsored by our Foundation partner A+B Engineering who came and helped us judge all the entries. In the end, we combined the designs across three schools – Haydock English Martyrs, Rainford C of E and Eccleston Mere Primary.

The dog was named “Bastion” after Andy’s stay in Camp Bastion after he was severely injured whilst on patrol as a soldier in Afghanistan.

And here he is!

If you would like a visit from him at your workplace, please let us know!