'It's time to do more than just clapping on our doorsteps to honour our uniformed services workers' - says Willenhall veterans' support worker
A Willenhall man who helps to run activities for war veterans is behind a new petition calling on the Government to introduce a special month to celebrate all uniformed workers.
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The parliamentary petition by John Elwell, aged 68, is calling for a funded "month of celebrations of Britain's uniformed services".
John, a businessman, explains: "I have started the petition for a Uniformed Services Month to be introduced because I feel that Armed Forces Day does not do justice to those who serve us. Many leave the military and join other uniformed services like police, fire or ambulance services.
"So I am calling on the government to support my petition and have a Uniformed Services Month with a finale on Armed Forces Day.
"If I can get to 100,000 signatures it will be debated in Parliament. We have month-long celebrations for other reasons why not a month-long celebration of those that keep us safe."
"I'm not the first person to attempt to do this. Various people have unsuccessfully tried previously to get Armed Forces Day extended to a month initiative. I'm proposing that this time the idea is developed to include all the other uniformed groups who have put their lives on the line and never seem to get any thanks.
"The nearest we got to it was during Covid when everybody stood on doorsteps and clapped workers to show our appreciation.
"My dad and all my uncles served in some way so this is something that means a lot to me. We ought to do more to recognise those who serve in the military and in our emergency services and the like. As a nation we don't show them enough appreciation in the way that some countries do. In the United States for example, military service veterans are applauded in the street and my understanding is that there is options for some to visit military bases for medical and dental check-ups.
"Here we are starting to look after our veterans a bit better, but we still have a long way to go. We now have an ID card where former service staff are offered discounts by businesses which we didn't have before. I'm sure there will be more that we can do. I'd like to see a month-long programme to recognise these people leading up to Armed Forces Day.
His efforts have so far attracted more than 140 signatures. To support his petition visit website petition.parliament.uk/petitions/70071
Armed Forces Day is and annual event celebrated on the last Saturday of June to commemorate the service of men and women in the British Armed Forces. This celebrations include community events and the Armed Forces Day flag is raised on buildings and famous landmarks. Next year it will be marked on June 28.
It was originally known as Veterans' Day and was first observed in 2006. It is an official event, but it is not a public holiday. The name was changed to Armed Forces Day in 2009.
National Service was a mandatory 18-month military conscription period which was launched to address a shortage of military manpower between 1949 and 1963 when all able-bodied men, aged 18-30 were initially called up, but this was lowered to 17-21. The service period was increased to two years during the Korean War from 1950-1953.
John's father Kenneth Elwell, from Wolverhampton, did National Service after the Second World War and served in the Royal Army Medical Corps in the Middle East in the 1950s. John is a member of Short Heath's Lest We Forget group which organises activities for military veterans and the community.
