He goes above and beyond the call of duty to help Armed Forces veterans get back on their feet.
And now North Tyneside councillor Gary Bell has been nominated for a Chroncile Champions Award for the exceptional work he does.
Councillor Bell has served as North Tyneside’s Armed Forces Champion since 2013.
The former RAF intelligence analyst has worked tirelessly over six years to improve the level of support available for veterans and serving armed forces personnel in the borough.
His hard work, alongside a dedicated council armed forces officer, has helped the authority achieve a gold award in the Government’s Defence Employer Recognition Scheme, for ‘exceptional support to the armed forces community’.
As well as supporting and advocating for veterans, Coun Bell, whose career involved tracking Soviet submarines during the Cold War, is responsible for commemoration events in the borough.
He is also regional co-ordinator for Project Nova, funded by Walking with the Wounded and RFEA, which supports vulnerable veterans in the criminal justice system.
In addition, he is chairman of North Tyneside Armed Forces Forum and vice chairman of North Tyneside Veterans’ Committee.
North Tyneside’s Elected Mayor, Norma Redfearn CBE, spoke in support of his nomination in the Armed Forces Champion category.
She said: “Having had a long and distinguished career with the RAF, Coun Bell knows what it means to serve your country and then transition back into civilian life. It isn’t always easy.
“His passion for supporting our veterans and their families is an inspiration to us all.
"He has been a driving force for positive change, working to ensure that veterans have the support they need and overseeing a host of commemoration events and new initiatives.
“He goes above and beyond the call of duty to help others and I cannot think of anyone more deserving of a Chronicle Champions Award.”
Coun Bell, of Benton, said: “It’s hard to explain to someone who hasn’t served what a shock it can be when you come out of the Armed Forces.
“You may have lived in a foreign country for a lot of years, and suddenly you’ve got to find a place to live, a job, you have to find your kids a school, register with a doctor and a dentist.
“That’s fine if you don’t have health or other problems which may require extra support. But it can be really hard to get that transition right.
“The Armed Forces Covenant says you shouldn’t be disadvantaged by your service and that’s why we try and have policies which make veterans feel appreciated by the borough, as well as our residents and politicians.
“As a council, we try to help them have a smooth transition into civilian life.”
The Killingworth ward councillor's various roles keep him very busy indeed - but help is at hand in the form of Laura Potter, North Tyneside Council’s Armed Forces Officer.
He added: “Laura has made a massive difference because she has the ability to set policies and bring them to the cabinet, such as the guaranteed and reservist jobs schemes, as well as advising and signposting both serving and ex-serving personnel to housing, benefit, employment and health services.
“I’m fortunate to be in a position where I can help veterans positively every day, by getting people into recovery programmes or back into employment, and turning their lives around.”
