VETERANS and volunteers marked the third anniversary of the Royal British Legion’s pop-in centre.

The Regent Street hub offers advice and support for armed service veterans and their families.

It opened in 2014, providing a centre for Legion volunteers in Wiltshire.

This year alone the charity’s Wiltshire members helped with 540 home and hospital visits, 244 telephone buddy calls, 76 bereavement support sessions and represented the Legion at 70 events.

Isobel Thompson, a Royal British Legion advice and information officer, said: “We’re not here just for Remembrance Day. We’re here all year round.

“The purpose of the pop-in centre is to be the front face of the Royal British Legion.

“If you want to find out about the work we do or you want to buy a poppy broach, we’re on hand. And we can help if you’re a veteran and you walk through the door.

“If we can’t get the answer, we know who can.”

Increasingly, the centre is being used by other veterans’ charities – including the Royal Air Forces Association and Combat Stress.

“It’s like a networking hub,” said Isobel of the pop-in centre. As well as the centre, the charity also offers support online and through a dedicated telephone helpline.

On Friday, volunteers and veterans met to celebrate the third anniversary of the centre. Staff laid out an exhibition, featuring photos and memorabilia from Legion branches across Wiltshire.

On display was a special plate, presented to the Legion’s Wiltshire members in 1995 on the 50th anniversary of the Liberation of the Netherlands.

Sweet treats were also laid on for the volunteers past and present who cam in for the occasion.

The Royal British Legion’s Isobel said their were preparing for a busy year in 2018, with the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War.

For more about the Royal British Legion, visit: www.britishlegion.org.uk or call 0808 802 8080.