Housing Options Scotland has signed up to the Pride in Veterans Standard (PiVS).
This is a programme run by Fighting with Pride, a military charity that supports LGBT+ Veterans, serving personnel and their families, particularly those who were affected by the ‘gay ban’, which was lifted on 12 January 2000.
As a veterans-focused organisation, we want to ensure we are proactive in making the whole veteran community feel confident in accessing our services and support, knowing that when they do, they can be assured they will be treated with dignity, respect and understanding.
We are delighted to join this standard, having demonstrated that we are committed to promoting and practicing inclusion and respect for all LGBT+ people in the delivery of our services, specifically our Military Matters service, which helps veterans make informed decisions about their housing.
Other signatories to the standard include the Confederation of Service Charities, Age Scotland, Citizens Advice Scotland, Help for Heroes, the Defence Medical Welfare Service, Op Courage, The Poppy Factory, The RAF Association, Tri Services and Veterans Support Centre, and The War Widows Association.
How will this affect the organisation?
Being part of PiVS will allow us to visually demonstrate our commitment to delivering the highest standards for LGBT+ Veterans, with the standard’s kitemark being present on our website and literature. It will also provide us with an assessment framework and access to specialist resources to allow us to meet our aim of being a fully inclusive organisation.
Pride in Veterans Kitemark – Fighting with Pride
Why have we signed up to the PiVS?
Although it has been 26 years since the ban on homosexuality in the Armed Forces was lifted, work still needs to be done to understand, acknowledge and, where appropriate, address the harm the ban had on LGBT+ Veterans.
By signing up to the standard, we make our pledge to challenge discrimination and be actively committed to delivering the highest standards in LGBT+ Veteran inclusion.
As a PiVS organisation, we will:
- Warmly welcome LGBT+ Veterans, serving personal and their families
- Ensure all staff, volunteers and members have an awareness of the different challenges faced by LGBT+ people, in particular, those who were impacted by the Armed Forces “gay ban”
- Have a clear understanding of the needs of LGBT+ Veterans and tailor support to meet their specific needs
- Understand that for some LGBT+ Veterans, their experiences have impacted their mental health, so ensure any support in this area is tailored to meet their specific needs
- Promote inclusion, dignity and respect for LGBT+ people in everything they do
- Recognise the different groups in the LGBT+ community and understand their needs may be different.
Housing Options Scotland CEO Moira Bayne commented,
‘Housing Options Scotland is proud to be an actively inclusive organisation and to challenge any and all forms of discrimination. We are committed to welcoming everyone who comes to us from the Armed Forces community in Scotland for advice on their housing issues, and to providing the very best in inclusive, respectful and timely support.
As a charity that also supports older people and disabled people as well as veterans, across all our services we make sure to understand where the individual is coming from and that their previous experiences may have affected their mental health. We are a trauma-informed organisation, and our brokers meet all of the clients where they are, to support them to get to where they want to be.”