News

Great news this week – we have another new local business, Nine Arches joining our Foundation Partner stable.

Nine Arches Services Ltd, based in St. Helens, Merseyside was established in 2023 by Sean and Rachael Pennington, who bring over 25 years of combined experience in the security and facilities management sectors. They are dedicated to a people-first approach, which not only elevates the quality of their services but also cultivates strong relationships with their clients and the communities they serve. You can rely on them for outstanding security and cleaning solutions that demonstrate their commitment to excellence and care.

Their mission is to create safe, clean, and welcoming environments for businesses and communities alike. With a team of highly trained professionals, they offer tailored services that meet the unique needs of each client, ensuring peace of mind and satisfaction.

If anyone needs help with security or cleaning solutions moving forward, please get in touch.

We are delighted to welcome Nine Arches onboard and look forward to working with them moving forward!

Dave Galloway, a 54-year-old army veteran from Nantwich, is gearing up to tackle the gruelling ‘Marathon des Sables’ ultra-marathon in support of The Standing Tall Foundation; so we can continue to provide vital assistance to veterans and disadvantaged individuals in need of mental health support, vital help and PTSD, addiction recovery programmes.

The Marathon des Sables is a six-stage ultra-marathon covering 250km across the Sahara Desert. Competitors must endure blazing heat during the day and cold nights in the open. The race includes running through dry rock river beds, mountainous rock formations, and vast sand dunes, all while carrying essential equipment weighing between 25-30lb. The event lasts nine days, with two days dedicated to equipment and medical checks, six days of racing, and day seven is reserved for a charity fun run.

Speaking about his motivation, Dave said: ”As we navigate our way through life, I want to demonstrate to my children and grandchildren that no matter what barriers you may face, with enough determination, plus help and support you can achieve what you may feel is unachievable – it’s a mindset!  

“I also want to prove to myself that I’m not finished. I have struggled with my own self-pity and struggled quite often with the question of, “why carry on”?  But it’s not all about me, I have a family and those that are better with me in their lives, and I need to remember that there are lots of reasons to keep driving forward.

“I chose to support The Standing Tall Foundation over other armed forces charities as I share a lot of the same values and passions. I have raised money for other military charities over the years, and they are all very well supported and well-known. The team at STF support so many, but aren’t as well-known as the likes of Combat Stress etc, so I feel that if my efforts can help them to help others and gain more visibility, then all this pain and stress will have been worth it.  

“The STF is an award-winning foundation and through this challenge I want to champion their great work and do what I can to get their name out there, hopefully generating further support in the future.”

Dave, originally from Liverpool, has a distinguished military career spanning 31 years. He joined the British Armed Forces at the age of 16 and served in the 1st Battalion the Kings Regiment, now known as The Lancs. He rose through the ranks to become a Warrant Officer Class 1 and was later awarded a Queen’s Commission, promoting to the rank of Captain. Dave retired from the Army in 2018, with his last post as the Risk to Life Safety Advisor & Live Fire Tactical Training Advisor to the Commander of 20 Armoured Infantry Brigade based in Paderborn, Germany.

Now a Human & Organisational Performance Specialist at Urenco in Chester, Dave is married to Nicola, and they have three children: Ben (28), Beth (25), Oliver (20), and one grandson, Noah (2).

Dave’s personal experiences have driven his passion for supporting mental health initiatives. He has lost friends to suicide and witnessed the devastating effects of alcohol addiction firsthand. This has fuelled his commitment to raising funds for The Standing Tall Foundation.

Over the years, Dave has raised funds for various charities, including Combat Stress and Help for Heroes. His dedication to supporting those in need is impressive, and the Marathon des Sables is his latest challenge in this ongoing effort.

To support Dave on his incredible journey, visit his JustGiving HERE.

We are delighted to announce that we now have a travel partner! Working closely with Marcus Edwards from Not Just Travel, we now have our very own Travel Website and Holiday App!

Marcus comes highly recommended, providing a completely personalised and bespoke service when it comes to booking your next holiday or trip, no matter how big or small. He will be supporting the charity by making a donation from all bookings made.

You can book via the link below or download the app as instructed on the site:

https://notjustholidays.com/standingtallfoundation

Marcus will be available every Thursday 10am – 2pm for a pop up shop, beginning on Thursday 6th March.

Come and see him in the Poppy Suite at our offices at the Living Well on Borough Road.

We warmly welcome Marcus onboard and look forward to working together moving forward!

It’s been a fantastic start to the year for the Foundation as we announce our newest partner VTA Recruitment. Owned and headed up by Louis Green, who works closely alongside Operations Manager Tom Wilson, the boys met Andy at the Armed Forces Covenant Silver Awards. They have become firm supporters of the Foundation since then and we are really excited to have them onboard.

VTA Recruitment is an independent transport and logistics-based recruitment agency. They have divisions in Driving, Industrial, Manufacturing and White-collar recruitment. They offer tailored support and solutions to both local and national businesses,  Their mission is to create pathways that connect service leavers, ex-military, reservists, and the wider community to opportunities in transport, logistics, and white-collar careers. They place clients, candidates and the veteran community at the heart of everything they do.

Louis Green said:

“VTA Recruitment has become a proud partner of “Standing Tall Foundation” we take pride in our partnerships with ex-military charitable organisations and following our first encounter with Andy at the Silver armed forces covenant award’s in 2023 and throughout 2024, we have become friends of the foundation attending the fantastic events they hold becoming more involved in the foundation and seeing the work they do tirelessly to help those in need. Andy is a true inspiration and a pillar for the veteran community and for everyone who reaches out for help. Knowing VTA’s contribution will help their work continue is something we are delighted to be a part of.”

Our Co-Founder Andy Reid MBE had this to say:

“Having a company like VTA Recruitment onboard is such an asset to the Foundation. We are always looking of ways to work more effectively and collaborate with others to help support the Veteran community. Partnering with these guys means we can offer more routes into employment for the Veterans we currently see for Mental Health and Wellbeing issues. We look forward to the year ahead and working alongside them.”

We are delighted to welcome Money & Me Solicitors as our latest Affiliate Partners of the Standing Tall Foundation.

Our relationship with them has quickly developed over the last year and we are now official! Our Co-Founder Andy has also become their Armed Forces Ambassador and supports them with the fantastic work they do for Veterans.

Money & Me are an established law firm based in Warrington, dealing with a wide range of mis-sold financial products claims. In particular, they work with the Armed Forces to seek financial justice for any veterans who have been given wrong advice surrounding their pensions.

They have continued to support the STF in various ways, including providing advice at our recently launched Ex-Services group on a Friday, as well as donating 4  brand new TV’s for our HMO for Veterans. Most recently, they have wrapped and donated a large number of gifts for our Xmas Toy Appeal.

It’s brilliant to have you onboard and we look forward to working together more in the future!

We cannot thank everyone enough for their involvement in our Xmas Toy Appeal this year. Friday saw us hold our Wrap and Pack event in the marquee here at the STF Hub at the Living Well Building.

The day saw more than 60 volunteers from a wide range of companies including Murphys, Vinci and our Foundation partners Morson, Muse, Cerco, A+B Engineering, VTA Recruitment, Allisons Financial and Integral Legal help wrap, pack and deliver over 2000 presents. These were distributed amongst 50 local schools identified as having pupils with the greatest need as well as homeless families, ensuring the most vulnerable children have something to open on Christmas day.

We were overwhelmed with the generosity of people in the town as they donated gifts to Dunelm, Natwest, REDS Cafe, Smyths Toys, Cosey Homes and Whistles Cafe in Eccleston.

Massive shout out to our partners who donated toys and vouchers – B-Engineering, PepsiCo, Morson and Money & Me Solicitors (who ended up wrapping 56 individual footballs!) Also to Bates Office Supplies who very kindly donated Sellotape, Scissors and bin bags for the cause!

Thanks to each and every one of you that donated, wrapped, packed, delivered and supported along the way. With your help, these children will now receive a gift this Xmas.

Without you, none of this would have been possible!

You can view some pictures from the day and the appeal on Flickr below:

We are extremely proud and delighted to announce that we were crowned winners of  the Community Impact Award at the recent Pride of St Helens Awards 2024.

Sponsored by Halton & St Helens Voluntary and Community Action, the Community Impact Award recognised which business or organisation has had the biggest positive impact on their community.  The panel considered the following questions when selecting the finalists – Which business or other organisation has had the biggest positive impact on their community? How have they made St Helens a better place or helped people? Have they used their heart as well as their business head to serve their area?

Standing Tall Foundation were up against two other very worthy nominees – Buzz Hub and Town in the Town, who both make a massive impact on the community in their respective ways.

The 12th Pride of St Helens awards – sponsored by the Mikhail Hotel & Leisiure Group – was staged in Saints’ 1873 Lounge on Friday.

BBC Radio 5 Live’s presenter Fraser Dainton hosted the event, which saw the St Helens Darts Academy take the evening’s headline Pride of St Helens award.

The first celebration of the town’s community stars took place in 2012 and was declared a resounding success – prompting organisers the Steve Prescott Foundation and the St Helens Star to make it an annual fixture.

Our Founders John and Andy were in attendance on the night to accept the award on behalf of everyone at the Foundation. Andy first received the headline Pride of St Helens award 10 years ago at its inception, and went on to win the Courage Award in 2022.

Thanks to everyone that voted  for us and  a massive congratulations to all other nominees and winners from the night!

CEO and Founder John Tabern said: “We are delighted to be nominated for and win this award. “It represents a great deal of hard work by team STF in helping our local community, which is central to our purpose.”

“We would like to thank the Pride of St Helens selection committee for seeing fit to include us in the final three.”

Here  is a snippet of Andy’s acceptance speech below:

The Standing Tall Foundation are asking for people to donate new toys and gifts to support the most vulnerable families in St Helens.

We are looking to distribute over 1500 gifts via 50 schools in the Borough who have identified the greatest need, as well as homeless families, to make sure that the most vulnerable children receive gifts this Xmas. 

If you would like to donate anything, we are accepting gifts from newborn up to the age of 17.

There are several drop off and collection points in the town as follows:

Standing Tall Foundation

REDS Cafe – Rainford

Natwest

Smyths Toy Store

Dunelm

Whistles Cafe, Eccleston

Cosey Homes

If any other businesses want to become a collection point or be involved in any other way, we are open to volunteers! We are also requesting wrapping paper, sellotape, gift bags and gift tags if anyone can help with those.

If you would like to get involved with the appeal, please get in touch via the email below:

christmas@standingtallfoundation.org.uk

Our annual Standing Tall Foundation Gala Dinner & Awards Night wouldn’t be a success without everyone who attended.

Thanks to our fantastic photographer Dave and Paparazzi Mirror we managed to capture all of your best bits!

So here are the photos from the night and links to Flickr so you can download:

SELFIE BOOTH

MAIN PHOTOS 

We’d like to say a massive thanks so much to everyone that came to our Gala dinner and awards night at the stunning Titanic Hotel in Liverpool on Saturday October 19th.

It was a fantastic night with all our Foundation Partners and Friends which saw over 230 guests come together to celebrate the support they have shown the Foundation and the brilliant things we have been able to achieve, and deliver due to that support.

It was also a night to celebrate our Founder Andy’s “Being Alive Day” which was the 15th Anniversary of when he suffered life changing injuries while on patrol in Afghanistan back in 2009.

The event, compered by the hilarious Pete Emmett was a huge success and we raised a substantial amount of money on the night, allowing us to deliver more Mental Health Counselling, Addiction support services and Physical Activity Initiatives here at the Foundation.

A special thanks goes out to Andy Williams, a former Veteran who shared his story of struggles with Mental Health and Addiction and how he overcame them.

Also to Hanna Joy for her amazing singing and for keeping us entertained all night and up on the dance floor! And to Showkings for their  fantastic AV support and set design.

Finally, a huge thanks to our Silent Auction from Colin Beresford and all our sponsors on the night – Menzies Distribution, TIP, Muse Developments, New Balance, MCR, Money & Me, Integral Legal Costs, Cannington Shaw, Cinema Bar, Bouquet Residence, and Shove Media.

THE WINNERS

Congratulations to all of the winners on the night, spanning across the 8 different categories.

List of categories and winners as follows:

TECH/DESIGN AWARD – Presented by Shove Media

This Award is presented to the company or individual that has offered exceptional technical or design support to the Foundation, to ensure the professional and smooth running of its internal operations.

Winner

EMPORIA MARKETING LTD

ARMED FORCES AWARD – Presented by Money & Me Solicitors

This Award is in recognition of the fantastic support a company or individual gives to our Service personnel and veterans.

Winner

HUGHES DRIVER TRAINING

SOCIAL IMPACT & COMMUNITY AWARD – Presented by Integral Legal

This Award recognises the company that has contributed to the development or needs of an individual by helping them and implementing positive change in their lives and the community.

Winner

B-ENGINEERING

LOCAL SERVICES AWARD – Presented by TIP

This Award celebrates the services offered by local businesses in the Northwest region, and the support they have shown not only the Foundation, but the surrounding community.

Winner 

INTEGRAL LEGAL COSTS

NEW PARTNER AWARD – Presented by Menzies Distribution

This Award celebrates our newest Foundation Partners and the support they have shown us so far.

Winner

PEPSICO

STANDING TALL AWARD – Presented by New Balance

This Award recognises the outstanding contribution this company or individual has made to the Foundation since it started in 2020.

Winner

AESSEAL

ANDY REID MBE SPECIAL RECOGNITION AWARD – Presented by MCR Building Supplies

This Award is in recognition of the support this organisation has provided to the Foundation that has gone above and beyond.

Winner

A+B ENGINEERING

JOHN TABERN SPECIAL RECOGNITION AWARD – Presented by Cannington Shaw

This Award is in recognition of the support this organisation has provided to the Armed Forces Community.

Winner

NW RFCA