Serving Family Carers
Are you caring for someone and serving in the UK Armed Forces or a reservist?
Are you a caring for someone who is serving in the UK Armed Forces?
Do you live in Suffolk and care for someone serving who is on deployment or lives away?
I am currently serving, a reservist, or a partner, spouse or family member of someone currently serving or a reservist.
Are you the primary family carer to someone with additional physical or mental health needs?
Do you feel like you are left to ‘hold it all together’ in the absence of others?
We understand that life in the armed forces community can be challenging and, that having a family carer role can increase feelings of isolation, loneliness and can sometimes impact YOUR emotional health and wellbeing.
We work alongside welfare and other Armed Forces charities to support family carers within the Armed Forces community.
Our services are free and confidential.
By registering with Suffolk Family Carers, you will have an opportunity to speak with one of our trained advisors who not only understand family carer issues but also Armed Forces life. As part of the conversations you have with our advisors you will have the chance to air your concerns around your caring role and explore solutions to support the whole family.
We help support different families within the UK Armed Forces, they all have different needs and caring responsibilities. Here you can see how we have helped Marie and other family carers across Suffolk.
Carers Support Group
Looking after someone can be tough, and you don’t have to do it alone.
Our groups have been set up to offer support, advice, and a friendly, safe, space to connect with others who understand. We are here to support you whether you care for a child, partner, parent, grandparent, or friend.
The RAF Honington group is run in partnership with SSAFA and Suffolk Family Carers.
Tips for Supporting Unpaid Family Carers
Family and unpaid carers play a vital role in supporting others, often facing emotional, practical, and informational challenges along the way.
This guide is designed to empower those who support carers – whether professionals, volunteers, or community members – by providing practical tips, essential resources, and guidance on navigating confidentiality, wellbeing, and access to support. By listening, offering information, and connecting carers to local and national services, we can help build their confidence, resilience, and independence, ensuring better outcomes for both carers and those they care for.
Caring Forces
Our Caring Forces project supports partners and spouses of serving personnel based in Suffolk, even if as a partner or spouse you are not based in Suffolk.
Useful Resources
We have collated a comprehensive list of local and national organisations who support, serving personnel, ex-service personnel and their families.
Upcoming Workshops
At Suffolk Family Carers we host regular workshops covering a variety of different topics to help you manage your caring role to the best of your ability.
Your Road to Support
All Family Carers are entitled
to a Carers Assessment.
Completing UK national service
means that you or the person you
care for are considered part of
the Armed Forces Community
We offer a wide range of
information, advice and
guidance for family carers,
however, the Armed Forces
Covenant will be able to
provide specific advice.
Support for the person
you care for when they
are in hospital can be
found from Defence
Medical Welfare Service
and Op-Restore.
A wide range of benefits
and additional support
are available.
There are many organisations who can
help support your Wellbeing as well
as our team. You could also look at:
You will be able to gain specialised support
by speaking to your Chain of Command or
Welfare team.
If you are not serving, but supporting
someone who is, contact Suffolk Mind,
Wellbeing Suffolk and Norfolk or
contact your GP.
The Matthew Project is a bespoke drug
and alcohol service offering confidential
advice and support to current and
ex-HM Forces personnel and their
families, across Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex,
and Cambridgeshire.
You can check out the list of helpful
resources, or contact our Serving Suffolk
Families team by email or call them on
01473 835477.
If you require more support and would
like to discuss your caring role in
more detail please register with us.
New Mental Health Support for Armed Forces Spouses and Partners with Caring Roles
Suffolk Family Carers is excited to share news of a new project specifically supporting UK Armed Forces partners and spouses of who have a caring role. This includes reservists. Caring Forces is the latest offer from the charities Serving Suffolk Families Team and complements existing offers of support to veterans,
Dear Advisor – I saw a poster that said ‘say you served’ – what does this mean?
I was sitting in my GP surgery last week and I saw a poster that said ‘say you served’ – what does this mean? I did serve back in the day, is this something I need to know about? This is such a great question and thanks for getting in
Supporting Veteran’s Affected by Fireworks
Many ex-service people experience PTSD, with celebrations that happen at this time of year can cause more distress for these veterans. This can leave them terrified and with a feeling they are back in a warzone and in real danger, unable to fully distinguish past from present.
