Who are we?
At Sherrington Park Medical Practice, we are proud to be a Veteran-Friendly–accredited GP practice. We recognise the unique contribution made by those who have served in the UK Armed Forces (Regular or Reserve) and are committed to delivering care that meets their specific needs.
We aim to support not only veterans but also reservists, service leavers, their families and carers—together known as the armed forces community.
What ‘Veteran Friendly’ means
Being veteran friendly means we actively ask, record, recognise and respond to the health and wellbeing needs of the armed forces community.
This includes:
- Supporting fair and timely access to NHS services for veterans — recognising the commitment they have made, while ensuring care is safe, effective and relevant.
- Asking patients registering or being seen: “Have you ever served in the UK Armed Forces?” and recording that information in their record.
- Having a dedicated clinical lead for veteran health (someone in the team who takes responsibility for awareness, training and co-ordination)
- Ensuring the team is aware of veteran-specific health issues (physical and mental), specialist NHS pathways for veterans, and how to refer appropriately.
Our Offer for Veterans & the Armed Forces Community
As part of our veteran-friendly commitment, we offer the following:
- On registration or at any future appointment, we ask if you are a veteran, reservist, service leaver, or partner/family member of someone who has served — please tell us!
- If you have recently left the services, we will support the transfer of your medical records from your service medical centre to our practice to ensure continuity of care.
- We will flag your veteran status in your patient record so that our team can consider any health issues with your service history in mind.
- We will provide information and signposting to veteran-specific services (for example, mental health support services, specialist physical health pathways, and veteran welfare charities) when appropriate.
- We will consider any condition possibly related to your service (for example, hearing loss, musculoskeletal issues, or mental health conditions) and ensure you receive the right referrals or investigations.
- We will endeavour to ensure that you are not disadvantaged because of your service. For instance, if your condition is linked to service, you may be eligible for priority access to certain NHS services.
- We will work with you as an individual: service history, reservist status, or time since leaving the forces do not affect your eligibility for veteran-friendly care.
Why this matters
There are around 1.8 million veterans in England and Wales alone. Many veterans may have health issues that are connected to their service — physical injuries, musculoskeletal wear, hearing loss, mental-health effects, or other conditions that may manifest some time after leaving the forces.
By recording veteran status and recognising the specific needs of this group, our practice can ensure better, more personalised care — and help signpost to specialist services when standard routes may not be sufficient.
What you as a veteran/service leaver can do
- Let front-desk staff or your clinician know your veteran status (even if you served just one day or many years ago).
- Bring any medical records you may have from your period of service (or tell us where they are) so we can integrate them into your NHS history.
- Ask if the clinician knows about veteran-specific services and whether your condition might benefit from specialist referral or veteran-specific support.
- Take advantage of the free specialist veteran NHS services provided via programmes such as Op COURAGE (mental health) and Op RESTORE (physical health) when relevant.
Our Commitment to you
At Sherrington Park Medical Practice, we value the service you have given. We are dedicated to ensuring that you are clearly recognised in our records, offered care that takes your service history into account, and signposted to the right specialist support when needed.
Should you ever feel that your care is not considering your veteran status or that you require a service specifically for the armed forces community, please speak to your clinician or our veteran-care lead.
Thank you for your service—we’re here to support you.