VETERANS started the day with a hearty meal at the first meeting of an armed forces breakfast club.

Rossendale Armed Forces and Veterans’ Breakfast Club will be held on the second Saturday of every month at Haslingden Community Link in Bury Road from 10am to 12.30pm.

Veteran Bill Ogden, who served in the Royal Signals for 25 years in Germany, Northern Ireland and the UK, decided to set up the club and bring it to Haslingden.

He said: “It is designed to bring ex-service personnel and families back together.

“Leaving the forces isn’t like changing your job because you leave behind your home, your colleagues and your social group."

The first Armed Forces Breakfast Club was set up in Hull by two veterans and is now a national organisation.

Veterans get a full breakfast including orange juice and unlimited amounts of tea and coffee.

After the success of the first event at the weekend the next meet is on Armistice Day, November 11 at 10am.