The David Ellis Charity is a Dorset‑based veterans’ organisation committed to supporting military veterans, serving personnel, reservists, and their families. It delivers a wide range of recreational, social welfare, wellbeing, and community-building activities designed to strengthen connections, reduce isolation, and promote positive mental and physical health across the Armed Forces community. These include fitness and Pilates classes, a weekly veterans’ drop‑in, target (archery and air rifle) shooting sessions, and regular walking activities across Dorset. Alongside its weekly activities, the charity also provides free accredited qualifications, helping veterans and families gain valuable, recognised skills. It funds exercise instructor training to support those who want to build new careers or volunteer within their community. The charity also delivers enrichment sessions in schools, teaching children essential skills and building confidence from a young age.
Registered as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, the charity is led by five trustees from the Armed Forces community and supported by around twenty dedicated volunteers. Every activity and service is provided completely free of charge, with no membership fees, participation costs, or hidden expenses, ensuring that support remains accessible to all who need it.
The David Ellis Charity was created in honour of David Ellis, a veteran of the Royal Tank Regiment who passed away from Covid‑19 in 2020. Naming the charity after ‘Dave’ was a deliberate act of remembrance and a way to carry forward his spirit of service and his pride in the Armed Forces.
The David Ellis Charity supports the Armed Forces community across Dorset by providing free wellbeing, recreational, and training courses, as well as social activities, designed to strengthen connections, reduce isolation, and promote positive mental and physical health. In rural Dorset, veterans, serving personnel, reservists, and families are spread widely across the county. The charity delivers its sessions in multiple local venues, ensuring support is accessible to those who may face transport barriers, mobility challenges, or social isolation. This Dorset‑wide approach allows people to engage with activities close to home while still feeling part of a larger, connected community.
Its wellbeing offer includes fitness classes, outdoor activities, and other health‑focused sessions that help rebuild confidence, restore routine, and recreate the camaraderie many veterans miss after leaving service. Training opportunities, including accredited qualifications and skills development, offer veterans and military families pathways into employment, volunteering, and renewed purpose. These programmes help individuals regain direction and strengthen their sense of identity during and after the transition from military life.
Volunteering and social events are essential components of the charity’s support efforts. Many of the volunteers are veterans themselves, which helps create a peer-led environment where individuals can contribute, reconnect, and feel valued. Social gatherings, drop-in sessions, and community events offer safe, welcoming spaces for veterans and their families to build friendships, establish support networks, and signpost to support services. Together, these activities form a comprehensive support system that uplifts the Armed Forces community and ensures that no one feels left behind.
The David Ellis Charity is proud of its commitment and integrity by offering all of its activities for free and relying entirely on volunteers. This support is particularly important for the Armed Forces community, as veterans and their families often experience isolation, loss of identity, or face challenges when transitioning to civilian life. The charity’s fitness classes, outdoor activities, training opportunities, volunteering roles, and social events help rebuild confidence, restore routine, and recreate the camaraderie that many veterans miss after leaving service.
Each session, held in village halls, sports and community centres, or outdoor spaces across Dorset, serves as a reminder that support can be provided in more than one location. We believe that simplicity, consistency, and mobility are key to strengthening the social fabric of Dorset’s Armed Forces community. We are proud that our presence ensures that no veteran or family member feels forgotten, and the volunteer-led model fosters a sense of pride, ownership, and belonging.
We are proud that we have recently opened our fitness and exercise program to Dorset NHS members, enabling them to work out alongside our Armed Forces personnel. By including NHS staff in our activities, the charity recognises the essential care they provide to serving members, veterans, and their families. This initiative strengthens the bond between the Armed Forces and the local healthcare staff who support them.
Being a member of Cobseo provides significant practical benefits for a small, volunteer-led organisation like The David Ellis Charity. Membership grants us access to influence, expertise, and collaboration that would be difficult to achieve on our own.
Cobseo membership gives our charity a sense of confidence and validation, irrespective of our size or volunteer-led structure. It reinforces the idea that small armed forces charities like ours are included in the national network of Armed Forces charities and that our work must meet the same high standards as larger organisations.
For a charity driven entirely by volunteers, this recognition carries considerable weight. It builds trust with the people we support, strengthens our relationships with partners, and opens doors that might otherwise remain closed. Every free class, wellbeing session, social event, and act of support is backed by the assurance that our charity operates with professionalism, integrity, and accountability. Cobseo membership serves as a visible symbol of that commitment.
Afghanistan support
In light of recent events in Afghanistan, please find information and support resources here