Suggested points to help a new Regional Armed Services Liaison Officer
Getting started
- Tell GSO you are the new RASLO by email: aainformation@gsogb.org.uk
- Talk to the previous RASLO about what work has been done before. They may be able to handover records of earlier work, contacts, and resources.
- Get the RASLO email for your Region. If this email does not exist, contact GSO and they will set one up for you.
- If there has been no RASLO, talk to current or previous Intergroup ASLOs or Intergroup/Region Chairs/Secretaries.
- Read Chapter One: Public Information and Chapter Two: AA and the Armed Services in The AA Service Handbook for Great Britain. Also take time to familiarise yourself with both the AA Service and Structure Handbooks.
- You can contact the Board Trustee for Armed Services, whose e-mail is in the confidential directory to introduce yourself and find out about any developments nationally.
- Attend all Regional Committee Meetings, Assemblies, Workshops, etc.
- In preparation write and send a report of your activities and of the Intergroup ASLOs to the Regional secretary.
- Attend annual Workshops at GSO in York, normally a Friday evening and/or Saturday which are organised by the Board Trustee for Armed Services.
- Ensure your local telephone office or service has your contact details for when an Armed Services enquiry comes in.
- Contact the Armed Services sub-committee (currently aservices4.sc@aamail.org) to ensure your contact details go on the national AS 12th Stepper database. Encourage serving, veteran and interested civilian members to go on this list.
- If you are stuck or confused – ask for help! Current or former RASLOs and ASLOs in your Regions, other liaison officers, the Chair of Region or the member of the Sub-Committee will be delighted to help. Whatever problem you are having, we have had and solved them.
Internal Communication
A. Make contact with the Intergroup ASLOs in your Region (or other officers performing Armed Services Liaison work – for instance, the PI officer)
B. Talk to Intergroup Chairs in Intergroups with no ASLO in place to discuss presenting at Intergroup meetings to encourage prospective Intergroup ASLOs into service.
C. Chair quarterly Armed Services Liaison meetings in your Region for Intergroup ASLOs. Others may be invited e.g. Chairs of Intergroups with no ASLOs, and ASLOs from neighbouring Regions and Intergroups. These meetings are good for coordinating activities and ensuring that areas with no ASLO are covered.
D. Make yourself available to the Intergroup ASLOs to share experience, strength, and hope.
E. Make yourself known to neighbouring regions’ RASLOs.
External Communication
With Intergroup ASLOs, draw up a plan for actively carrying the message to relevant organisations within the Region.
These include:
- British Army, Royal Air Force, and Royal Navy sites.
- Welfare Branches, e.g. the Army Welfare Service, Departments of Community Mental Health (DCMHs), the Chaplaincy.
- Other Ministry of Defence sites.
- The Public Health Departments of Local Authorities, NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups, and other NHS bodies responsible for veterans’ health, including NHS-organised Armed Forces Network events.
- Headquarters and branches of charities assisting serving persons and veterans. These can be found by searching online for service charities in an umbrella organisation the Armed Forces Covenant team at your local council along with other listings.
Regional Armed Services Liaison work like all liaison work is a team effort and all the more fun for it.
