China Fleet lands £79,440 to give submariners a break

Spending weeks at a time deep beneath the sea, out of contact with home, is one of the hardest jobs in the armed forces. A country club at Saltash has just been handed the money to give the people who do it, and the families who wait for them, somewhere to properly switch off.

A pilot built around submarine life

The China Fleet Trust has been awarded £79,440 by Greenwich Hospital to run a new Submarine Service Wellbeing and Family Resilience Support Pilot. The 18-month programme is built around the particular strains carried by members of the Royal Navy Submarine Service and their families.

It sets out to do three things. Ease loneliness and isolation. Keep family relationships strong through long absences. And support good mental health and wellbeing that lasts.

The pressures behind it

Submarine crews work under some of the most demanding conditions anywhere in Defence. Long deployments, drawn-out maintenance periods, a high operational tempo and repeated separation from family and support networks all take a toll, on the people serving and on those they leave at home.

Coming back can be its own challenge. Families who have spent months apart have to find their feet together again once a patrol or a deployment ends. The pilot is designed to put support in at those key points in the submarine cycle, giving individuals and families a chance to reconnect, recover and build resilience.

Who the funding is for

The support is aimed at several groups within the submarine community. Personnel affected by displaced maintenance periods in Devonport, Faslane and Barrow-in-Furness. Families dealing with long separations caused by deployments and patrols. Crew returning from demanding patrols. Single submariners cut off from their usual support networks. And command teams wanting to recognise sustained effort and reward people for it.

What a stay includes

Eligible personnel and families will be able to take a funded wellbeing break at the China Fleet Country Club. That covers a three-night bed and breakfast stay for a family or an individual, along with complimentary use of the Club’s Aqua Spa, swimming pool, gym, racquet sports and other health and wellbeing facilities.

There is practical help alongside the stay. Travel assistance of up to £200 is available, together with Devonport taxi support costs. Command teams can use the breaks to reward and recognise their people, and further welfare support can be added where an individual or family needs it.

By taking the cost out of the equation, the programme aims to open up respite that might otherwise be out of reach, giving families time together and helping people recover after heavy operational commitments. It is also meant to build a picture of how well targeted wellbeing support actually works, evidence that can shape what the Submarine Service community is offered in future.

“When it is needed most”

Deirdre Mills, Director of Greenwich Hospital, said: “Submariners and their families make extraordinary sacrifices in support of national security. This pilot recognises those unique pressures by providing practical and financial support when it is needed most. By investing in opportunities for rest, reconnection and recovery in a stunning setting, we hope to strengthen resilience, reduce isolation and improve wellbeing across the Submarine Service community, while building an evidence base to inform future provision.”

Gordon Hannah, Chief Executive Officer of the China Fleet Trust, said: “We are delighted to receive this funding, which enables us to expand our support for the Submarine Service community in a meaningful and targeted way. The pilot has been shaped around the realities of submarine life and will provide families and individuals with first-class facilities in which to relax while enjoying a short break from service life in a great location.”