Antony Lewis

After leaving school, Antony became a father at the young age of 15. At the time, he was in and out of jobs and decided to join 2nd Battalion, The Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment in 2008 where he served nine years. He spent four years in Cyprus and completed two tours of Afghanistan.

He never got injured but was diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from the second tour. The full medical board asked him to stay and work in the stores. When he knew he would never serve on the front-line again, this was tough to take.

When he returned to the UK with his family, he was relocated to Weeton Barracks in Preston. He received on-going treatment as his PTSD got worse and was eventually medically discharged. His marriage also broke down as a result of PTSD and he stayed at his mums in Liverpool for 18 months.

He applied for housing at South Liverpool Homes (SLH) but there was a three-year waiting list, which made it impossible for him to be housed. Here, he was referred to Launchpad’s Speke House who had a flat available and moved in in October 2018.

Antony, 34, used Launchpad as a stepping stone. Because he was in temporary accommodation, he was able to jump the waiting list by three and a half years and has now moved into his own home. “I know Launchpad is always there for me if I need it but it was time to move on and re-build my life. I’m going to try and ease myself back into work and hopefully resurrect my marriage. I’ve got four children – three little ones and my eldest, who is 18, has followed in my footsteps. He’s an infantry soldier based in Cyprus.”