We would like to invite you to the first Manchester Combat Stress open day, which is being held in honour of the Veterans mental health charity Combat Stress. It is a day where the people of South Manchester can show their support and appreciation for our Veterans, their families and those in the mental health services, who are working in the front line to assist those, whose mental health has been effected as a result of their service in the British armed forces.

The South Manchester Combat Stress open day promises to be an informal event where a variety of stalls, information stands and accessories will be available to the public, with a Combat Stress Café also being located on site, where refreshments can be purchased, with all proceeds raised on the day going to benefit the year long “Enemy Within Appeal” , which was launched by the Prince of Wales at St. James's Palace in March.

The reasons why we would like your support on the day is because:

Founded in 1919, Combat Stress is the leading UK charity specialising in the care of Veterans’ mental health. Over the last 90 years Combat Stress have supported almost 100,000 Veterans of every campaign that British Forces have been involved in since the First World War.

Combat Stress have a current caseload of over 4,300 ex-Service men and women. This includes 400 who served in Iraq and 102 who have served Afghanistan. The youngest Veteran in receipt of care is just 20 years old and the oldest is 103.

On average it takes over 14 years from Service discharge for Veterans to make the first-step approach to Combat Stress for help, by which time their condition is often highly complex. Of the Veterans taken on by Combat Stress as clinical cases since 2005, 75% suffer from PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). Of these, 62% have a co-morbid presentation of depression and alcohol disorders.

On 11 January 2010 Combat Stress signed a partnership agreement with the MoD and the Department of Health, resulting in an overarching investment of £350,000.This will help fund Combat Stress staff to work directly with NHS mental health Trusts within Manchester and the North West to ensure that the services they provide are accessible to and appropriate for military Veterans.

The Manchester Combat Stress Open Day will take place on Saturday 7th August between 11 am - 4 pm and is being held at the St. Barnabas Church on Hardy Lane, Chorlton-Cum-Hardy, Manchester. For more information please e-mail  manchestercombatstress@yahoo.co.uk and for more information on the work of Combat Stress nationally please visit the website  http://www.combatstress.org.uk