Have a look inside the newly opened wellbeing centre for Moray’s military veterans
A former hotel in the centre of Forres has been transformed into a wellbeing centre for military veterans.
What used to be the Victoria Hotel is now the Erskine Veterans Activity Centre North (EVACN) which will be open every weekday for anyone who has served in the forces.
The ground floor of the building now has a communal lounge, plus other rooms fitted out with computers, a pool table and arts equipment.
In addition, there’s a gym that will be fitted with equipment, plus plans for a photography room.
Both counselling and physical therapies will also be on offer. Meanwhile, the top two floors provide plenty of space to expand the services provided.
Graeme Dey, who’s Minister for Veterans, travelled specially up to Moray to be at the launch on Tuesday.
He said: “I think it’s fantastic. I’ve had multiple conversations over a period of time about bringing this to fruition.
“I was well aware of the age of the building and the scale of the challenge. So to see it turning out like this now is fantastic.
“It’s a massive facility with a lot of potential for multiple uses for the veterans community.
“It gives them the opportunity to come together, have a support network, have a bit of banter, have a moan, whatever they want to do.
“And the facilities that are going to be on offer will really fit it with the ethos of Erskine.”
The Erskine charity was founded in 1916 during the middle of the First World War to care for the devastating numbers of wounded veterans.
David Grant, a veteran from Buckie, will be managing the facility. He served with the 4th Royal Tank Regiment and although he’s been out of the military for the past 30 years, he’s still excited about what the centre will offer.
He said: “It's a lifelong dream for myself to get involved.
“We've got a template of activities put down. So, for example, we've got archery, the games room, art, IT, talking therapies and massage therapies. The rest will be member-led. It'll be what they want.
“Any veteran can come along, no matter if they served one day, one year, it doesn't matter.
“Moray's got the highest number of veterans per head in Scotland. I think it's 4% of the population.
“We've got plans for year two, year three, with the second and third floors, so watch this space.”
Mick McConnell from Elgin was in the RAF police for 18 and a half years and lost part of his leg while serving in Afghanistan in 2011.
He said: “I've been so excited about seeing this place because I popped into the Erskine activity centre down in Glasgow and I've seen what they were doing down there, and how they were helping veterans.
“In fact, one chap said to me that the activity centre saved his life, because he goes there every day now, and he's involved with other veterans, and he's given himself some presence and significance.
“I'm looking for that here, you know, to meet other veterans, have a little community, do some IT or woodwork or whatever they're offering.
“When you’re in the military it’s a tight-knit community and a little family. But when you come out, they're not there anymore. They're not just down the corridor or just next door to support you.
“And that's what I missed, being part of that team.
“Erskine are asking us for our ideas of what we want, because the lads are already saying they want a photography club and stuff like that.
“And they also have people go through their benefits with them, to see if they're getting the right money and all that kind of stuff.
“I'm really happy that Erskine has opened this activity centre this far north because there's nothing north of the Central Belt.
“It’s absolutely brilliant for the veteran community. It'll give us somewhere to go, somewhere to be together.”
Highlands and Islands MSP Douglas Ross said: “I know many veterans and people living locally have shared my excitement about it opening its doors and it was great to see how the former Victoria Hotel has been transformed.
“Having now seen the result of months and years of hard work, I believe this will be an incredible resource for veterans in Forres, Moray and across the North of Scotland and I expect it to be extremely well used.”
