Sending parcels of support for our Forces

01 October 2009

As Christmas approaches, many Legion branches and other groups think about sending parcels or shoeboxes to our troops in Afghanistan. The Ministry of Defence has issued the following guidelines.

• Goodwill parcels sent by people other than families and friends place a strain on the logistic supply chain whose primary purpose is to make sure troops in theatre are properly equipped with fuel, rations, spares, ammunition, and other essential items, to enable them to operate effectively. Such parcels delay personal mail.
• The delivery of such mail to forward operating bases would necessitate additional resupply flights and convoys which would place our personnel at additional risk.
• The cost of extending the current system to accept 'unsolicited' mail, based on a modest 2-fold increase, would be £19M per year.
• Such an extension would require in-theatre Postal and Courier Service enhancements as well as military augmentation of the BFPO in UK, which we are not currently in a position to provide.
• We do not wish to stop people from sending packages to soldiers who are known to them but discourage 'generic' parcels which are not destined for a specific recipient.
• Post Offices have been instructed not to accept parcels unless they are addressed to a specified individual.
• Every Service man and woman on operations over Christmas will receive a gift box containing suitable gifts from a MoD-endorsed charity (UK4U Thanks!).
• The MoD sends festive foods to operational theatres so personnel will be able to enjoy a traditional Christmas meal.

Suggestions for other ways to show your support.

• Encourage a focus on the families who stay behind when their loved ones are away.
• Demonstrations of support for personnel on their return are always particularly well received.
• Distribution of parcels to local units for the use of the families of those who are deployed.
• Donations to local charities or hospitals.
• Donate to UK4U Thanks!. Each year around 24,000 boxes are packed to reach their recipients by Christmas Day. If you would like to make a donation or find out more information about uk4u Thanks! visit www.uk4u.org

Messages of support

Serving thousands of miles away from home and their loved ones is tough. To lift the spirits of our troops, the Legion has created an online messageboard so those serving overseas can read kind messages from our supporters.

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