HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN WILL VISIT HAIG HOUSING TRUST TO OPEN THEIR NEW VETERAN HOUSING DEVELOPMENT
Friday 11th October 2019
Her Majesty The Queen, Patron, will visit Haig Housing Trust to officially open their new housing development in Morden for armed forces veterans and the ex-service community on Friday 11th October 2019.
The new development of almost 70 homes will provide tailored accommodation for severely wounded and disabled veterans. During the visit, Her Majesty will meet families benefitting from the new facilities, as well as those involved in the design and construction of the new development.
On arrival, the Queen will be greeted by local schoolchildren and Haig Housing staff, before meeting residents whose new homes have been specially designed to meet their needs.
Her Majesty will then meet the Bowman family in their new home, and hear from them about their experience within the accommodation so far. The Queen will then visit a new block named in her honour, Queen Elizabeth Terrace, where a posy presentation will take place.
Before departing, the Queen will meet a group of veterans involved in last year’s Long Walk Home, which saw 100 veterans walk the 100 miles from Ypres to the Cenotaph to mark the centenary of the Armistice. Her Majesty will unveil a plaque to officially commemorate the opening of the new development.
Background information
Haig Housing is the country’s largest military housing charity, with over 1,500 properties across the UK. The charity has been providing affordable rental accommodation to armed forces veterans and their families for over one hundred years.
The trust was established as a memorial to Field Marshal Earl Haig, who championed veterans facing housing difficulties as they returned to civilian life.
Haig Housing also offers the opportunity for the most seriously injured veterans to get onto the property ladder and become joint owners of homes that have been specially adapted to suit their needs.
Haig Housing were one of six beneficiaries of the Tower of London ceramic poppy installation to mark the centenary of the start of the First World War.
The Queen has been Patron of Haig Housing since 1952.
Catch up on Her Majesty’s most recent engagements in the latest issue of Royal Life.