THEY survived the Second World War and the various fields of conflict after it but now some ex-servicemen and women are suffering from dementia and the on-set of Alzheimer’s and it is isolating them from their friends and the community.

To try to address this problem, a new social group for them and for people interested in the military has been launched.

Called Legion’s Legends, the new social group was unveiled by town mayor Pam Jones at the Royal British Legion clubhouse at Alton’s Anstey Park on February 11.

The idea for setting up the group came from Sarah Gardner, from Dementia Advice Basingstoke (Andover Mind), and Louise Whapshott, who works as a community support worker for the NHS older people’s mental health team.

Louise said: “While there are many excellent support groups in the area for older people, we realised that there was nothing specifically aimed at veterans and their carers.

“Legion’s Legends aims to fill that gap by providing opportunities for social interaction and mental stimulation. We will be encouraging people to bring along memorabilia that they can share with other group members or, if they prefer, they can just come along for a cup of tea.

“Although we request that carers stay, we do hope they will enjoy an hour’s respite in the company of other carers.”

In thanking the Royal British Legion for hosting the group and providing refreshments, Sarah added: “We look forward to welcoming anybody who would like to come along to the group.

“There is plenty of free parking and the building is fully accessible.”

The first meeting, which was held last Thursday, was deemed a great success and the former servicemen and women were able to swap stories about their time in the military while the carers got the chance to talk with other carers over a cup of tea.

Now it has been launched, Legion’s Legends will meet on the second Thursday of the month at the British Legion clubhouse from 2pm-3.30pm. Guests speakers and activities for members are in the pipeline.

There is no need to book but anyone seeking more information about Legion’s Legends can call Sarah Gardner on 07827 317650 or Pat Murrell, from the Royal British Legion, on 0777 1790228.