Veterans’ Care Charities Agree Merger

Royal Star & Garter and Care for Veterans have agreed a merger. The two charities have shared values and objectives, with long histories of providing high quality care to the Armed Forces community and an ambition to improve the quality and range of their services.

Andy Cole, Chief Executive of the Royal Star & Garter group with Pete Inkpen, Royal Star & Garter’s new Director of Integration

Confirmation of the merger comes after the two organisations, both founded as a result of WWI and over 100 years old, agreed to explore the proposal in 2024.

Royal Star & Garter was established in 1916 and currently runs three Homes, in Solihull, Surbiton and High Wycombe, which provide loving, compassionate care to veterans and their partners living with disability or dementia. It also has services reaching out into the community and nationwide.

Care for Veterans (formerly the Queen Alexandra Hospital Home) was established in 1919 and operates from a single home in Worthing, West Sussex. It provides long-term nursing, rehabilitation, respite and award-winning end-of-life care to ex-Armed Forces personnel who live with disabilities, including acquired brain injury and degenerative neurological conditions.

Andy Cole chats to residents at Care for Veterans after the completion of the merger between the two veterans’ charities

The merger officially completed on 31 March 2025 and expands the Royal Star & Garter group to four care homes, providing a more effective, efficient and wider-reaching offer to the veteran community of all ages.

Royal Star & Garter is committed to enhancing the services delivered to veterans and their families at Care for Veterans. It will work on a seamless operational integration over the next two years.

Residents at Care for Veterans chatting to Andy Cole

Andy Cole, Chief Executive, said, “Our strategy at Royal Star & Garter is to ensure consistently exceptional care is provided for those in the Armed Forces community living with disability and dementia. The merger underpins this ambition as our two charities unite, developing and learning from one another to benefit the veteran community, now and into the future. We are privileged to welcome Care for Veterans, its home, residents and staff, into the Royal Star & Garter family.”

David Williams, Care for Veterans trustee, commented, “This merger brings together two charities sharing common goals and values, with expertise in caring for Armed Forces veterans and their families living with disability. Combining our skills and strengthening our financial and operational resilience will ensure that high quality care continues to be provided at our Worthing home. We look forward to beginning this new chapter with Royal Star & Garter.”