High Ground

Our Vision

Our Vision is to be the leading organisation for the provision of land-based opportunities for all ex-military personnel and Reservists.

About us

HighGround is a registered charity started in 2013 by Anna Baker Cresswell to help service leavers, veterans and reservists create their Life Beyond the Military – Outdoors.

By providing expert support, guidance and advice, along with hand-on learning opportunities and access to work-experience, we help ex-military personnel explore careers in the land-based sector.

HighGround is also the proud provider of Horticultural Therapy services to injured service personnel at DMRC Stanford Hall.

Our Mission is to improve the wellbeing and employment prospects of serving personnel and veterans using the green environment and our Values are Ambitious, Authentic, Inclusive, Practical and Loyal.

We are led by our Chairman Brig (Retd) Simon Caraffi MBE JP and are fortunate to have committed volunteers on the Board of Trustees, Development Board and the nascent Friends of HighGround network.

We don’t receive any statutory funding and rely entirely on grant-making trusts and foundations, public donation and corporate support to enable us to continue our work helping those who have served their Country.

WHAT WE DO 

Military life teaches motivation, problem-solving, teamwork, resilience and adaptability in sometimes rough and often unfamiliar environments. 

HighGround helps Service Leavers, Reservists and Veterans to work out what military skills and experience they have, how they will map into the land-based sector and how to access the many opportunities it offers for employment and selfemployment. 

We have pioneered Rural Weeks, 5 fully residential days at an agricultural college for 8 Service Leavers, Reservists and Veterans to learn about what the landbased sector looks like from subject matters experts; how to access them. Rural Weeks are run by our Rural Employment Manager in conjunction with the delivering agricultural college. 

Since the first pilots at Plumpton College in 2014 we have delivered 38 Rural Weeks. 

Thanks to funding from the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust we pioneered Rural Experience Weeks in 2021 to improve the wellbeing and mental health of serving personnel and veterans, and have successfully delivered 8 Rural Experience Weeks at Bicton alongside our Rural Weeks programme. 

Outcomes following a Rural Week include identifying training courses, arranging work experience or volunteering or in the case of those who are still serving, gaining knowledge, information and contacts to assist with their decision-making during their resettlement and transition back to civilian life.

WHAT IS THE LAND-BASED SECTOR? 

This is a generic term which covers outdoor industries including Land Management; Environmental (outdoor) Design, Production and Leisure; and Animal Care with a special focus on food production.

WORKING WITH LAND-BASED EMPLOYERS. 

Our Development Board helps us to connect with employers across the UK who want to offer work experience and employment opportunities to ex military personnel, and recognise the skills and experience they bring to the workplace. Through Careers in Racing, BALI, the Arboriculture Association, Historic Houses and many more, our links and success stories are developing every day.

"The week gave me space and time to think and relax, focus my mind on the future and decide what exactly I want to do and how to get there. A wonderful experience, one for which I am extremely thankful. This is a very diverse area and plenty of opportunities for veterans, with a strong support network of professional like-minded people." 

Lieutenant Royal Navy. Still serving. Rural Week Summer 2019.

"I feel like this week has opened so many doors for me and I am now part of a supportive network I can rely on."

Royal Marine Young Recruit aged 20 (Did not complete training for medical reasons).