On the evening of Monday 8th February our Provincial Grand Almoner, W. Bro. Peter Hayler, hosted the first online seminar for Kent Mark and Royal Ark Mariner Lodge Almoners.

The 69 brethren who attended, including Darren Coleman-Heald, Mark Masons’ Hall Charities Manager, were party to important news updates on financial, physical well-being and mental health plus the various bodies that are available to provide assistance to them and our members.

During the evening, an important booklet providing a roadmap to expert help, assistance and guidance when dealing with matters of personal debt, prepared by our Provincial Grand Treasurer, Bro. Peter Lapage, was launched. To our knowledge, this is the first time such a guide has been published in the Province; it is primarily aimed at brethren who may be facing a debt challenge in their lives, but is also a useful source of information for those who are assisting others.

Please be aware that the booklet has been designed to avoid breaching Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) rules and simply signposts where to find expert advice. Therefore, the original booklet has been amended and renamed Debt – A Roadmap to Expert Help.

Apologies for any inconvenience this might cause. May we ask that you kindly destroy any copies of the original publication please and replace it with this one. Thank you.

Our Provincial Care & Welfare Committee continues to work hard to improve our handling of every aspect of care, welfare and benevolence in Kent in the hope that we might become known as ‘The Caring Province’. This booklet is part of that aspiration and we commend it to you.